Off the Needles: Houll Hat!

Sometimes, a project hops on and off the needles faster that I can set up a project page for it on Ravelry, or write about it here! That was certainly the case with the Houll Hat, by Ella Gordon, which I knit during the second half of March. I finished it all off almost two weeks ago, but I’ve been so busy wearing it that I’m only just now getting around to posting about it.

I love Ella Gordon’s patterns — both the motifs she chooses and the ways she puts color together!  Pretty much as soon as I saw this pattern released in February, I knew I wanted to make it in the original colors — a bit boring, perhaps, but the original colors were SO good and not a combo I would ever think to put together!  I got a few of the colors from Isla, as part of BritYarn’s closing sale.  The remainder I got from the Jamieson and Smith stand at EYF — in fact, I got to buy them off Ella herself (and managed to mumble something about how much I admire her designs).

 

As I was knitting, I worried if the hat would be the right size … it looked really wide and really short!  I didn’t really care as it was soooo pleasurable to knit — the colorwork was addictive!  But it turned out I had nothing to worry about.  The fit is great.  I love that there’s a bit, but not too much slouch, and that if it’s really cold (still not outside the realm of possibility here!) I can pull the hat down over my ears.

So I pretty much love everything about this hat — like my Bousta Beanie, I’ve found that the fabric that Jamieson and Smith’s 2ply jumper-weight is nice and water repellent — perfect for me here in the rainy northwest of England!

But by far my favorite feature is how the crown comes together …

Swoon.  I have no words about that.

I know for some of you, it’s getting well and truly spring-like, but if you still need a hat, I highly recommend this pattern!  Actually, even if you don’t need a hat, you could probably do with some colorwork in your life.  Go cast it on! I want to knit another and play with my own color choices!

Hope your week is going well.  And as a quick reminder today’s the last day to sign up for Kat from Felinity Knits awesome Sock Yarn Stash Swap!  It doesn’t have to cost anything but postage!  You can participate no matter where in the world you live! It’s going to be lots of fun!  Sign up here.

Hope your week is going well!

xo K