Squeezebox

A couple of days before Christmas I decided to cast on something small. Something simple to knit that wouldn't require too much concentration or frequent referring to a pattern.

I certainly didn't have time to spend digging around for a pattern and going out for yarn was definitely out of the question.

I ended up turning to two purchases I had made back in the spring at Stitches. This yarn was never intended to be paired with this pattern and the end result is just so-so, but the project served it's purpose and I now have a baby gift hat in the vault.

Back in the spring at Stitches South, I fell in love with a booth sample hat. It was knit in either a Koigu or a Claudia's Handpaint in a crayon box colorway and was ever so soft and yummy. When I asked for the pattern I was stunned to be handed this - The Scrunchie Hat by Sandy Joyner.
[no link found and neither pattern nor designer is found on Ravelry]

Proof once more that those shop samples are very effective. Never would I have thought to make the hat that is pictured on this pattern, although I suppose it is a good use for the Noro sock yarn called for by the designer.

Knitting this in a very pale solid color just totally misses the point pretty much. The Noro at least accented the rounds and the colorful Koigu of the sample made great show of the knit/purl stitch combinations. This pale blue does neither. : (

I used Kollage Yarns Luscious; a washable fingering weight blend of 63% cotton and 37% nylon. It comes 345 yards/100 grams and I guess I used maybe 180 yards or so. Just guessing.

I knit it with size 2 INOX needles. The pattern is written for 3 sizes and for a child's 15"-17" hat has you cast on 132 stitches with size 2 needles and the Noro Silk Garden Sock. That seemed like rather too many to me, but I tried it and yes, it was considerably too large. I ended up casting on 102, knitting the knit/purl pattern and decreasing down to 99 before the crown decreases started. Then I just ended with the little i-cord loop at the tip.

The part I like best about it is the way it collapses on itself when you put it down. I couldn't help but think of it as a squeezebox and tend to start singing or humming The Who song whenever I handle it.

Well it served the purpose for portable, simple holiday knitting and I think I'll keep my eyes peeled for some Koigu sometime.