I am not a Christmas gift knitter. The organisation it would take for everyone to receive something on time would definitely surpass my abilities and I would feel bad if some people got home made things and others didn’t. So my gift knitting sticks to birthdays. My mum was down visiting me just before her birthday in December and almost bought herself a hideous woolly (I use the term loosely as I am 100% sure it had never seen a sheep) hat which would go with her new coat. Thankfully she decided against it and in doing so gave me the perfect idea for her birthday present.
It had to be quick, because I had left it a bit late, so I chose the really simple pattern Barley by Tin Can Knits. Its a really nice pattern, great for a quick hat project and perfect for beginners. The purl detail is a nice touch to make what could be quite a run of the mill hat something quite lovely. I cast on and finished the ribbing during a couple of episodes of Marco Polo and then managed to knit the rest and finish it on the train up to Newcastle.
As soon as my mum said she wanted a hat to match her turquoise coat (she loves to match my mum) I knew exactly which yarn I was going to use. Lang YAK has a beautiful peacock teal colour and the yarn itself is lovely and soft and perfect match for the pattern. It’s a worsted weight yarn made up of 50% yak and 50% wool and it was a dream to knit with.
I only used one ball of the YAK but I did make it quite a bit shorter than the pattern asks. I started decreasing after 6 inches. As you can see it only just covers the tops of the ears but I think it looks quite smart and suits my mum better than a full beanie would. Unfortunately I don’t have any photos of it with the coat, but it does go well I promise.
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