Pride!

In a secondary meaning of PRIDE, I am proud that I successfully completed this project!

These are cast on at the cuff, and the little flag is created with double knitting. It is pretty darn fiddly, but the result is quite handsome.

I really like the way that the stranded section looks. This gives me hope that I can dive into the Shetland and Scandinavian stranded patterns when I'm ready. Which is probably coming up quickly, as I signed up for the Advanced Fair Isle Mittens class with Tanis Gray at Knitters' Day Out at the end of this month. I'm hoping to improve my technique for stranded knitting at small circumferences. I used dpns in this project (rather than the two circulars method I favor for socks) because it creates better angles at the needle intersections. I also worked on the inside of the circle rather than the outside. This worked somewhat well, but I still don't like that you can see where those needle intersections were (especially in the garter cuff section).

Here's the inside - so pretty, too!

I'm also proud that I used up a project's worth of yarn that I bought in Scotland earlier this year. I still have a LOT left to work with, but little by little, it will be used. In fact, I'll be able to use two balls of yarn at the KDO Mittens class - it calls for two skeins of DK yarn in highly contrasting colors. I'll use these two lovelies that I got at New Lanark Mill:

This project was a diversion from the sweater I'm supposed to be working on a little bit day by day... I need to get back to that this weekend. I've been distracted by these little mitts, by some towels I'm weaving (they just came off the loom today), and by Margaret Atwood's latest novel. So many interests, so little time...

Oh, I also knit another Sockhead hat from sock yarn in my stash.

This one is really, really soft, as the fiber content is 50/30/20 merino/nylon/angora. I bought it as a curiosity, and later decided that it really wasn't right for socks (despite being marketed as such). But a hat? Sure! This little guy used up just over half the skein. I counted the rounds of rib and stockinette, and I think if I work just a few less of each, I can get another hat out of the skein. This is my work knitting right now. The softness makes working it extra soothing, which is often quite a bonus during meetings.