Finished hat

Hat, mixed fibers, stockinette stitch, size 10.5 needle

The process with this series of hats can go either way: I sit with scads of yarns and cut lengths abitrarily, tie them together and wind them into balls then knit, or I sit with scads of yarns and start knitting, then cut and tie the lengths of yarn as I go. Both involve sitting amid piles and piles of yarns and a good deal of time selecting what goes with what. When I make up the balls before I begin knitting there's a sense of anticipation about how it will turn out that I like. I don't know what will happen. I change yarns if it looks like it will be yukky, and otherwise make adjustments as I go along to intelligently distribute textures and weights.

This colorway is the result of finding oodles of yarn on sale at one of my favorite little yarn shops, Saratoga Needle Arts, in Saratoga Springs, New York. They have great sales and have an ongoing 50% off area that I scrounge on a regular basis.