Thanksgiving Hat

This past October, we celebrated Thanksgiving up-island with friends visiting the island from the mainland.  The long weekend felt special because it was my first free weekend since Labour Day, as I had been spending weekends working through an awesome Yoga Teacher Training program at Moksana.  So, working full-time during the week and studying full-time on weekends meant there was little time left for knitting.  I couldn't wait to have a weekend off and start a new project!

I received a skein of "Jean Jacket" Amber Label Tanis Fiber Arts in late September as part of the Year in Colour Club 2014.  It was quickly hidden and I didn't even *dare* look at it until the Thanksgiving weekend because I knew it would prove to be too great a distraction from work and studies.  Good thing I waited to use this skein because the digital version of Shannon Cook's hat pattern "Schwimmen" was finally released the day before our 3hr drive up-island on that Thanksgiving weekend (for non-knitters, a long drive usually = knitting time).  I had seen a sneak-preview of the collection but thought it was being released at a later date.  Couldn't wait for the paperback version of this pattern so downloaded the pattern at home minutes before our long drive.

The weekend turned out to be a rainy one, so we mostly read, played games, and I knitted, of course.  This hat proved to be a very quick knit and was done by Monday.  It feels super light & soft.  I'm usually partial to fingering-weight hats for our mild Westcoast climate, but this DK yarn/design combo is very comfortable.

One last picture of this Thanksgiving Hat sitting atop the underside of Tippy, my Dad's row-boat.

Project notes

Papaya Shawl

Back in July 2013 I received this gorgeous skein of "Paprika" yarn as part of the Tanis Fiber Arts 2013 Year in Colour Club.  As soon as I opened the package, a flurry of ideas buzzed through my head.  The Red Label was so soft and the colour so rich and vibrant that this skein had a life of its own and needed to go into production right away.

I had been eyeing this project.  I liked the airy, spring lightness produced by the lace pattern within the body of the shawl.  However, since the weight and yardage of my skein were much less than the pattern, I decided to make my own design.  That way I could also incorporate a few baubles, a recent obsession.   After testing a gazillion top-down baubles & vines constructions, I finally settled on a simple 3 baubles pattern.

This became shawl #2 for my Mom.  She looks awesome in orange and I knew she would love it.  I hope she doesn't tire of shawls because they are so fun to knit!

project notes