1.19.2009

a tale of three hats



as the weather turned cold and snowy in december, i decided that for my next knitting project, i would knit myself a hat. sounds simple enough. i looked up a pattern online, bought the yarn and started knitting away. i wanted to finish the hat as soon as possible so i just started knitting...who needs to check the gauge? who needs to use the right sized needles? right...?


the hat began to take shape. the cables were curling just right. i couldn't wait to finish the hat, take it off the needles, and try it on. one night, i was getting close to the end. when the end is in sight, it's like reading a book and having a few chapters left, you have to finish. it always takes longer than you think it will. past midnight, i finally finished the last stitch and eagerly took the hat off the needles to try on my head. i was convinced the hat would fit. i had no idea how small the hat actually was until i tried to pull it on in front of the mirror. it was so small that it wouldn't stay on at all. it didn't even come close to touching my ears...or my forehead for that matter.
i took the hat off and looked at it again and realized that it was too small for even a toddler. it struck me that it might fit an infant's head. and i could only laugh at myself for truly believing that it would fit me. then i packed it up and sent it to my friend kate who has a 4 month old baby. apparently it fits him pretty well...

i still had enough yarn left to give the hat another try...so off i went. this time i had learned my lesson (or so i thought) and i adjusted the pattern accordingly. i also was resolved to try it on and size it while knitting to make sure it would fit. again, the hat was forming nicely. it was big enough to fit around my forehead. but this time i misjudged the length. i closed off the hat, took it off the needles and realized it wasn't long enough to cover my ears...or even touch my ears.

after my second attempt, i took a break from hats to knit a scarf (belated christmas gift). and finish some fingerless gloves (birthday gift). this weekend, while at the knitting store, i purchased some new yarn and decided it would be perfect for a hat. so i returned to the pattern one last time. i used needles that were way to small for the yarn. the stitches came out nicely, but the bones in my hands felt like the were going to break with each stitch. the pain was worth it, though. i finally completed a hat that was the right length and width and size for my head.



1 comments:

Justin and Kate Mills said...

Nolan certainly appreciates the hat you knit "for" him!