bathing beauty

i finished my first knit hat. while it is a winter weather hat, the round paillettes all over it remind me of a vintage bathing cap. so i call this my Esther Williams Hat. that is not the name of the pattern, but my changes make it appropriate. the picture to the left if the hat after i switched to double points.

the full details...

Sparkle Hat
designed by Sonya Laska
published in stitch n' bitch: the knitters handbook

stitched in one ball of Patons Rumor 84% acrylic, 15% alpaca, 1% polyester (color: moonstone heather) on size 10 circular needles and size 9 double point needles. 30 each magenta, black, and chartreuse large hole paillettes

this was my first project knit in the round. i picked it because it used both circulars and double points. i wanted to try both, and i guess you could say i want more bang for my buck when it comes to skill building.

the yarn is super fun. the acrylic content is high, but with the alpaca, it is sort of a good thing. my 100% baby alpaca scarf is a little spongy and it gets stretched easily. the acrylic seems to help this hat keep its shape, and it prevents the very toasty alpaca from melting my head off.

the original pattern uses a solid yarn and smaller paillettes, so mine looks a lot different. right now it is hitting about a 50% rate of approval from people who see it. the heathered multi color yarn and several colors of paillettes are pretty... aggressive. my grandma would call this hat loud. i like to think it is bold. you know, a fun statement piece. like the hat with kitty ears my mum crocheted for me. not for every day, but perfect when you need a little boost.

we'll see if i get to wear it this season. the weather has been increasingly nice these last few days. remember the snow photos sunday? well, today i was standing outside in a tee-shirt. wild.