A Cunning Hat

Pattern: Jayne Cobb Hat
Yarn: Elann Highland Wool (Ruby; Burnt Orange; Freesia)
Needle: 4.5 mm

Firefly fans will love this, it's another Jayne Cobb Hat. This second hat was knit using the exact same yarn and needle size as hat #1, and it comes out to be a ladies xs/s size which fits my head. Here are the slight modifications I made to the pattern:

• Knit at tighter gauge.
• Added 2 rounds to orange section before switching to yellow.
• Added 2 rounds to yellow section before decreasing.
• Added 3 knit even rounds to the crown decrease, after decrease rounds 1, 2, and 3.

I guess it's not that easy to distinguish the size difference when looking at both hats side by side. Hat #2 is in front. I haven't trimmed the dangling yarn ends yet, their length will be determined by the hat recipient.

Elann's Highland Wool is a lighter worsted weight yarn. I think the hat size would come out a bit differently (larger) if I used a "regular" worsted weight yarn.

I think the hardest part of making this hat is getting the pom-pom to come out right. These are the only 2 pom-poms I have ever made. I find it difficult to figure out how many wraps I should make before cutting the yarn. Too many wraps results in a dense pom-pom. Too few wraps results in a wimpy limp pom-pom.

The second hardest thing about knitting this hat is finding 3 coordinating yarn colors. Yes, you can always find a red, an orange, and a yellow, but will they go together? It took me a long time to find the 3 colors I wanted to use for this hat. Shortly after I got my yarn, Elann decided to discontinue the orange and yellow colors. Doh! Now I am in search of yarn colors again. I'm thinking of trying to combine Ruby, Pumpkin, and Allspice for a more muted looking hat.

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