Pattern: Norwegian Star Earflap Hat
Yarn: Nashua Handknits Creative Focus Worsted Yardage: 1/2 skein of espresso, just a bit of cream
Yarn Source: New York Knits
Needles: addi turbo us 7, 40″ for magic loop method and us 7 harmony dpns
Time to Complete: 12/15-12/16 for the bulk of the knitting, a couple off days to finish the i-cords and pompom
Modifications: Added matching earflaps out of cream for added reinforcement.
This was knit as a gift for my sister who had requested a hat quite a while ago. It was knit to match her snowboarding gear which is white, teal, and brown, and I’m working on a pair of convertible mittens with a matching fair isle pattern on the mitten part.
It’s not a tough pattern by any means, I think I had the most trouble with the colorwork while using the magic loop method. I can safely say it is not my favorite method for knitting in the round, especially with addi turbos. There was less laddering than with dpns though, so that’s a benefit.
I’m not in love with the shaping of the hat, and I’m tempted to pick some of it back out and decrease the top of the hat a little more quickly. The “adult” size seems a little more suited to a man’s head, except that the colorwork tends to make that part of the had a bit tighter and the rest seems too loose in comparison. I’m not sure whether that’s my knitting style or the pattern itself. The earflaps don’t meet my ears, they’re too long, and they curled in on themselves when they were finished. I was able to fix that by knitting matching flaps (followed the pattern until the join for the brim and then cast off, for a total of 27 stitches) and then stitching them to the flaps. Since it’s a rustic looking hat, and the yarn is a single ply, it’s cute.
