New Pattern, New Winner, New Award!

Hi Knitters,

First off, I am so honored to have won the Readers' Choice Award for 2012 for Favorite Knitting Blog/Website! Thank you so much for the nomination and for voting for the award. It is quite a thrill. I was lucky enough to be asked for an interview after winning the award, too. 

I especially want to thank my loyal and fun Ravelry Group, Itty-Bitty Knits, for voting for me. I know they helped greatly. I will proudly display the award logo on my blog sidebar. Thank you, again, to everyone for voting and for the support!

Click here to see more about the Readers' Choice Award Winners!  There are winners for the knitting categories of favorite yarn company, favorite needles, favorite book, and favorite designer along with my category for favorite knitting blogger/website.

Click here to read my interview with About.com!

I love everything about this blog and have enjoyed the work I have lovingly poured into it for the past six years. It feels good to know that others are enjoying it, too. 

On to other news, I randomly selected and contacted a winner for a copy of Kata Golda's Hand-Stitched Felt book. The winner is deliamae (rav id)! Congratulations! Thanks to everyone who entered and I will have another giveaway and review soon.

Now for the new pattern! In case you don't know about the original hat photographed in my blog banner, it was knit in my own handspun worsted weight yarn from Fiber Optic Yarn gradient roving. It was a gorgeous hat, one of my favorites for sure. One day last fall my daughter bustled off to school wearing this hat. I hesitated a little but decided not to say anything and to let her wear it. That was the last time I saw the hat. It has been lost ever since.

I posted the photo on my blog banner and I have received many, many requests for the pattern which I didn't write down at the time I made the original hat. I have now re-knit the hat in Malabrigo Worsted and I have written out the pattern.

Here are a few more shots of the handspun version of the hat:

Above is the beautiful Miss Molly modeling the Malabrigo Worsted version of the Lost Banner Hat. The Malabrigo Worsted is the perfect yarn for this hat. Really, any worsted weight yarn in wool, any wool blends, superwash wool or cotton will work great for this project. You only need one skein or about 200 yards of worsted weight yarn to make the hat!

Here is some information you might like to know about the pattern:

Size: child (adult)

Finished measurement: 17.5 inches (19 inches)

Note: The finished hat is very stretchy and is to be worn with up to 3-4 inches of negative ease. The adult size easily fits my head circumference, which is 22 inches.

Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted (100% merino wool; 100 grams/210 yards), 1 hank

Samples are made in Malabrigo Worsted in the Kaleidos colorway, and my own worsted weight handspun from Fiber Optic Yarn and Dyeabolical Yarns.

Needles: US size 7 (4.5mm), 16-inch circular and a set of 4 double-pointed needles or the size needed to obtain gauge

Gauge: 5 stitches per inch in stockinette stitch

Materials:

Ruler or tape measure

Scissors

Stitch marker

Yarn needle

The photo above is the top of the Malabrigo Worsted version of the hat. Doesn't almost everyone have a skein of Malabrigo sitting on their shelf? Here is the perfect project for that languishing skein!

The hat above is made in my worsted weight handspun. The roving was from Dyeabolical Yarns and Fiber. The yarn turned out great and I love the finished hat. If you are a spinner with a skein of worsted handspun with around 200 yards, this pattern could be for you.

The pattern for the Lost Banner Hat is available in my Ravelry pattern shop. You don't have to belong to Ravelry to purchase patterns on Ravelry, it is open to everyone.

I hope you enjoy the new hat pattern. It is a simple unisex hat that is for children, women, men, teens, everyone! It is the perfect quick gift knit and can be worn many ways.

Click here for the Ravelry project page for the Lost Banner Hat! 

Click on the button below to purchase the hat pattern for the Lost Banner Hat!


Wow! What a week it has been. I found out that Itty-Bitty Hats, my first book, is going into its 7th printing, which is amazing news. I won this fantastic award. And best of all, I get to come on this blog every few days and share time with all of you! Thanks for the support and fun. I love being here with you.

best, susie