my monmouth

The last gift hat is ready to hit the road with us in the morning, when we head off to Washington/Maryland for the festivities. We've got chanukah, christmas and an anniversary to cover, and a slew of gatherings in the next couple days, so uncork the champagne and spin the dreidel. And car knitting! With no deadlines.

I am so proud of this hat I could just pop.

Monmouth, brim down

Monmouth, brim up
(you have to see its beanie-like essence on a head to really appreciate this view)

pattern: Monmouth by Sarah Bradberry
needles: size 9us dpns
yarn: Malabrigo held double for the brim and Araucania held double for the crown
notes: why am I raving on this? First, the brim covering your ears is double weight, in this case 4 strands of Malabrigo, because its a knit-in hem. So soft, so warm, so cushy. It looks finished and well made and solves that problem of knit hats never seeming to be warm enough for ears. The design lent itself to changing colors from the brim to the crown, a behaviour modification approach to get my variegated ya-ya's out in a way I can love. Or stand under. I am definitely making one of these for ME. When the brim is folded up, it sits like a hip little beanie. This one's going to my favorite bro-in-law, who sadly lost his last little hip beanie. I think he'll be happy. I'm sticking some chocolates in it so I'm hedging...but I don't think I really need to. I just like him that much.

Whatever your persuasion, enjoy these days! As the dreidel says, keep an eye out for miracles. They're all around us.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •