Moving to London Hat

 My Ravelry updating continues. I have finally pulled out all of my winter gear, and now I'm trying to make a concerted effort to update my Ravelry profile with knitting and crochet projects that I have made over the years. I'm forced to reflect on why I haven't shared many of my projects on Ravelry, and here's what I conclude:

1. I'm a perfectionist. If I don't like a project, or if I want to make changes to a project, it doesn't get posted.
2. I start projects and then don't finish them for years... Surely we're all guilty of this!
3. There are so many beautiful blogs and glossy websites out there, that I'm afraid my snapshots just don't do justice to the projects that I spent so many hours making. I'm borrowing an SLR from the college where my husband works for most of my blogging. Otherwise, I've got two broken digital cameras in the drawer - a serious stumbling block when it comes to sharing photos!

I'm sharing with you today the very first hat that I ever knitted. I genuinely can't remember if I made this hat in 2007 or 2008. I think it must have been 2007, and I remember making it on the plane from Texas to London on one of many trips back and forth over the years. I purchased the wool and pattern at Hill Country Weavers in Austin, Texas knowing that I faced a long haul and a cold winter. The lady who helped me pick out the pattern was so patient to help me pick out an appropriate yarn and needles. I can still remember being nervous about getting it all right - and apparently I was afraid to pick out a color that was different that the one used for the original pattern. Not that that would have made a difference to the gauge!

Using a ggh pattern, the hat is made with either a Malabrigo Worsted or Chunky in a kettled-dyed colorway. It's incredibly soft yet durable, and it is still beautiful after years of hard wear and abuse. It's been dropped on many a pub floor, crammed into my handbag, and worn under a bike helmet around dingy ole London. I wear this hat so much that I'm completely sick of it come spring. And then, come Autumn, I pull it out again like I did tonight! I finally got around to tacking the sides of the flower down to the hat, as it was really floppy and kinda crazy cat lady. I'm hoping now it just looks a little bit romantic and vintage. I'm still pleased with this project after so long.