Cornish Tin II AND Colorwork?! Absolutely!

This hat is just gorgeous!  I'm so glad this yarn didn't have to sit in my stash for millions of months!

I told myself that if I finished a few things for the kids, I could work on a couple things for me, and back when Cornish Tin II came out, I knew I had to snatch it up FAST!!!  (I purchased from The Woolly Thistle, by the way - so....stateside!)  I had missed the first incarnation of Cornish Tin in 2015, so, I allowed myself two whole skeins of the second go-round, and I totally don't regret it, naturally.  I am really trying to move toward using non-superwash yarns, but I'm so picky and have a hard time purchasing just anything, based on an on-line picture.  But I knew when I saw it in 2015 that I NEEDED it.  The 2016 version, from Blacker Yarns, is a lovely mix of fibers, so, it's pretty and heathered, in a way.

The colors I used in my lovely Vitsippa hat are Wheal Kitty Orange and Levant Gray.  The colors are clearly contrasting, but I feel that with this pattern, maybe a brighter color would have been a better choice over the orange.  You CAN see the pattern well enough in bright light, but I always worry.  The pattern is included in Pom Pom Quarterly, Issue 12 (Pom Pom site) and isn't the only pattern in that issue I'd like to knit!  Written by Joji Locatelli, it is quite delightful and simple, as far as the pattern and directions go.  It seemed to take forever, just because it is a million rounds of fingering weight yarn, yet it also flew by - maybe because there were no cables, LOL!

I had tried a needle size or two for the ribbing but ended up going with size 00 needles and the smallest size hat.  In the end, I maybe could have knit the middle sized hat, but it does fit.  I prefer my hats to be a bit snug, but it's almost a pop-off-my-head type of snug, aha!  Honestly, I am just excited I now have three whole knit hats for myself - one I knit several years ago and the Fathom I recently knit.  I have plans for just ONE more....then I promise I'll work on a hat for Matt, a Quadri, as he really could use a new, fancy hat!

Things have been pretty tame around here lately.  I mostly can't stop thinking about my quilting class that starts next week at Modern Domestic.  I'm THIS NERVOUS about the class....I feel I will ruin all my fabric and have NO IDEA what I'm doing.  I hope I don't drive the teacher, Meredith, nuts!  :O

The weather has been off and on decent....sun, clouds, wind, rain....I'd like a consistent 65 and sun, if that's all right ;)  It looks like the birthday party weather for this coming Saturday should be okay, which is awesome.  I am sad, though, for Camden, as I planned poorly and didn't think about spring break for public school kids, so, a lot of families are out of town.  But ahhh!  I need to order cupcakes today!  I keep forgetting!

Our days in the life of....

Someone brought up Santa, so, he had to make an "appearance" for Tiberius's birthday

Finally rid of this annoying tree 

Presents from "grandma in Michigan"

                                      

Someone didn't feel well for a day last weekend 

Time with good friends!

                                                     

Headed out on a shopping trip with Matt's mom and me

Two Hats for the Family! Can You Fathom One is for ME?

Indeed, folks, I have knit myself a hat - for the first time in six years, I believe...something close, anyway!  As you see, of course, it's photographed on Camden; I couldn't handle the photos Matt took of ME in said hat.  Sad times.

The hat is Fathom, from the first collection of Interpretations patterns by Veera Valimaki and Joji Locatelli (ebook on Ravelry).  The pattern fell under Veera's interpretation of the word "reflection."  This hat is one of the reasons I wanted this book (though Laneway is also lovely!).  I own the third volume, also, and the newest volume, number 4, is out, but I only see one pattern in there that I'd like to knit, so, I think I'd just buy the pattern individually, if I ever get a chance to knit it.  Veera does also have a blog, 100% Rain, if you want to check it out!

Man, this hat is better on HER!

I used Orange Flower Yarn in the DK 250 base, colorway Peachy which is clearly NOT the called-for sport weight base, but I knew it'd work out just peachy keen (see what I did there??!), because of my loose knitting/tighter row gauge thing.  The yarn was something I ordered a couple years ago, because some raveler just had knit up the most glorious project...in which colorway, I do not know, but I think I managed getting my skein on sale - yay!

The pattern knit up beautifully and FAST, which is always great.  I had cast the brim on a couple weeks ago, before my beach weekend, and I let it sit on the needles until I finished Camden's Little Honey sweater.  What makes me laugh is that I knew I had to work next on Tiberius's Antler cardigan, yet I somehow COMPLETELY forgot all about that in my fervor to work on something for myself ;)  I will clearly get back to his cardigan now, as I need to cast on the sleeves.  I feel bad, as it took me all winter, and I haven't yet finished a cardigan for the poor little guy.

Another reason I was pushed into starting this hat is seeing Jeanette (Bookish Stitcher Podcast) knit up a gorgeous version, which she showed off on her podcast last month.  I clearly needed it - and it worked nicely into Nina's Palate Cleanser KAL (This Old Knit podcast).

Awwww!

Next up, we have the Cables and Twists Beanie by Jamie Sande.  It was a lovely, simple pattern - less purling than Fathom, which was nice, too, LOL.  I'd had this skein of Madelinetosh DK for years now, so, I yanked that sucker out of my stash and said it would be a hat for Tiberius (though it was originally meant for Matt - oops!).  The colorway is Terrarium, and it is a lovely green that sadly didn't come out well in the photos, both because of lighting and Tiberius acting like a crazy person.  I apologize for the poor quality :O

And...how most photos went...

It is a FREEEEE pattern, which is a bonus!  I probably cast on ten fewer stitches, and I could have maybe gone up a needle size.  It's not snug at the moment, but I hope it actually fits through NEXT winter.  I also maybe could have gone a smidge taller, but whatevs at this point, aha!  Of course, it seems like there is enough yarn yet in the skein for maybe some mittens????  That'd be awesome!  I'll have to remember that a million months from now!

And now...a million days in review!!

Don't get me started :(  TOOOO smalll.... 

Just another floor picnic!

Hanging out with Aunt Jeannette during baby shower weekend!

Just another cheap Joann Fabrics craft!

Yay for another fun hat for me!

I get to take a quilting class at Modern Domestic!

                                    

Warming up, post-bath

He couldn't help being a weirdo on our date night

All the baby sweaters finished for a cousin!

A Little Honey...For a NOT-So-Little Kid!

So....some firsts!  My first time using Hedgehog Fibers (FB page), first time knitting a fingering weight sweater for Camden and possibly my first time knitting an Amy Miller pattern!

Basically, I'm saying this sweater is awesome!

Seriously, I WISH y'all could see this sweater in person!  It's not my first time using either Voolenvine Yarn (FB page) or Gnome Acres (FB page), but those are naturally also still glorious.  The Little Honey is glorious and soft - and I would love to steal it for my very own :O  The Voolenvine was in the Nevermore colorway, and I actually used some of the Violet from my Bon Bon Bunny Gnome Acres Doppelganger set.

This sweater was NOT a planned knitting project for the new year...yet here we all are.  I decided I wanted to take some chances - and throw a wrench into my planning for the winter - by joining the Honey KAL in the This Old Knit and Yarngasm Ravelry groups.  I figured I HAD to have two skeins of fingering weight yarn that would go well together...and I did!  Yay for me!  I was doubly excited because I hadn't yet knit with one of my several skeins of Hedgehog Fibres, so, it all worked out well.

I naturally encountered some problems when starting out...why wouldn't I???  I thought I totally had gauge on one needle size, but it turned out, a few good inches in that it was all a LIE and that I was knitting too tightly...which was fine, so, I bumped up what I THOUGHT was a needle size or two - but what was REALLY a size 4.  I have no idea how that happened, but I kept questioning why my fabric was so loose, LOL.  It turned out there was a reason.  Ugh.  So, I moved back down a needle size, but then I also remembered that I'd planned on casting on for the size 4/5, rather than the 6/7, because of the positive ease...and apparently, I forgot.  So, I knit along on the size 6/7, thinking it'd be way too large...and it actually fits super well - yay once again!  She definitely has some room to grow, length-wise, so, I hope it continues to fit well in the shoulders when it fits better in length.  My project page is here.

I was worried, too, that I'd run out of yarn, which is why I used the Gnome Acres in the collar and cuffs.  I partly did the cuffs, too, when I realized it'd look cooler if I knit them in purple...as it turned out I had enough yarn, after all, between the other two skeins.

Awww, she came in at the camera, and I liked the result, LOL

The pattern is well-written and simple, though I do wish it had short row shaping at the neck.  I clearly could have tried to work that in, but eh....effort.  You can see I totally skipped out on knitting the pockets, because I knew they wouldn't be used, per se, and I didn't want any heavy things inside the pockets, weighing the sweater down.  And, well...yarn worries, aha!

A pose she needed to do, apparently ;)

Anyway, snafus aside, it's lovely, and I'm glad I'm DONE.  I put pressure on myself to knit this semi-quickly, and my hands are broken souls.  Camden loves, it, though, which is awesome!

And....days in the life.....

As a homeschooling mom, I have NO idea what I'm doing

Their little role-playing people

I spend $6 at Joann Fabrics for quickie activities!

Aww, a Berenice and Camden's old Owlet, passed on!

Mad skillzzz with Valentines!

This kid NEEDED a cut!

Adding embroidery to his sword jacket