Pattern #35 Textured Tam

The Case of Needle Size and Gauge

Hello everybody! It is Em! Brittany is traveling home from wherever she is (She's been going all over the US visiting family in the south.  Last I heard, she is heading home.) I've been enjoying the nice weather outside, working out, and enjoying the sunshine!  Hopefully the sun will stay in Green Bay for a while! (We had a late, late start to our summer.  It kept on snowing until late April this year!)


One of my ex-co-workers, Jordan, asked me to make this hat for her. It is pattern 35, the Textured Tam.

I was quite nervous about making this hat.  I have a huge phobia over the L word...aka lace.  And although this project didn't have a TON of lace like features, it had some.  The cables helped me feel better...since I love cables!  Those yarn overs tend to disappear off of my needles and the entire project just ends up looking like crap.

However, when I started knitting this project, I fell in love.  The project was easier than I anticipated.  Everything made sense very quickly.  I understood how the pattern worked up and how to troubleshoot if my stitches got off.  Once I was able to figure out how the stitches lined up, I didn't really "need" the book.  (Don't get me wrong, I still used it and marked off my rows, but it was more of a formality.)

I finished the hat in 2 days flat.

But...


It is too small.

This thing looks like a darn beanie.  The pattern is awesome...but it is TOO short.

This isn't just me.  ALL of the Ravelry knitters who made this project agree...it is TOO short! (See my unhappy face in the picture underneath? Ha, ha.  That's my "gangsta" looking face.  I'm pretty sure I took that photo around 2AM.)

I tried to stretch it over a plate like so:

 

but...it is still too short...  

Looking at the pattern it calls for size 7 needles.  However, in the actual instructions for the hat, it says "with smaller circular needle, cast on 94 sts." Nowhere does it say "with larger needles" indicating that there are no larger needles.  Since the pattern only calls for one size of needle, I am suspecting A) the phrase "with smaller circular needle" is incorrect or B) they forgot to add in the other size needle, which I am guessing is a size 8 or 9.  There is another possible reason: C) the smaller needles are supposed to be a size 6 (not a size 7) and the larger needles are a size 7.  Either way there is some sort of error in the book and I hope Cascade will correct the issue if they see fit.  You can find other errata that Brittany and I discovered (as well as, other talented knitters) by clicking here.

Well, that's all I have for now!
Happy Knitting!!!

Em

Pattern #27 Scalloped-Edge Beanie

I made this hat for a friend from college. She went through my 60 Quick Knits book and told me she wanted this hat. When Christmas rolled around I decided to make it for her. I had to restart this hat several times because I did not do the yarn over correctly, at first. I really liked the colors I chose to make this hat. I purposely chose these colors because they matched the scarf I made her for Christmas 2008. The only thing I was not sure I liked about the hat, was it seemed a bit short when it was finished:

I know in the picture (in the book) it was kind of short too, so it may just be the pattern. My friend Katie was happy with the finished product, which is all that matters. Right?

Yarn Information: Cascade 220 Wool - #7808 (Purple Hyacinth) & Cascade 220 Paints - #9921 (Caribbean Sea)

If you would like to see more pictures check out my Flickr Account.
Thanks for reading and looking,
Brittany