Autumnal Knitting: Lotus Hat

This is an autumn hat I made based on the Crosshatch Lace stitch. I call it "Lotus Hat" because the decrease at the crown forms a lotus-like pattern, while the lace on the body looks rather like stems and leaves. I made it beanie-style, designed to only cover the tips of the ears, but have included instructions for lengthening it.


TBL's Lotus Hat



Original pattern

Gauge:
5 st/in in stockinette

I used:
Pakucho color-grown organic cotton, worsted weight
Size 6 needles

CO 96 st. Join into a round, being careful not to twist.

Work in K1, P1 ribbing for 6 rounds.

Work Chart A (Crosshatch Lace) around 3 times, ending on row 8--24 rounds total. (For a longer, earlobe-covering hat, work one extra time--32 rounds total.)

Work Chart B once. Break yarn and thread through live stitches. Pull tight, secure, and weave in ends.



Gaugeless pattern (extrapolated from the original and NOT TESTED):

CO a multiple of 12 stitches. Join into a round, being careful not to twist.

Work in K1, P1 ribbing for 6 rounds or until desired band height is achieved.

Work Chart A (Crosshatch Lace) until hat is approximately 2 pattern repeats shy of total desired length (as measured from crown to edge), ending on row 8

Work Chart B once. If there are more than 16 stitches left on the needles, work row 20 again. Break yarn and thread through live stitches. Pull tight, secure, and weave in ends.

Apologies for the blurry charts--Blogger doesn't like the very tall image size. Click here to see the original image.

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Today's Reason

...to duck behind the couch, curl up into a ball, and whimper.

 

National Debt Clock Runs Out of Digits

NEW YORK - In a sign of the times, the National Debt Clock in New York City has run out of digits to record the growing figure.

As a short-term fix, the digital dollar sign on the billboard-style clock near Times Square has been switched to a figure — the "1" in $10 trillion. It's marking the federal government's current debt at about $10.2 trillion.

The Durst Organization says it plans to update the sign next year by adding two digits. That will make it capable of tracking debt up to a quadrillion dollars.

The late Manhattan real estate developer Seymour Durst put the sign up in 1989 to call attention to what was then a $2.7 trillion debt.

 

TBL's yarn stash is starting to look like a better investment than her 401(k), because we may just revert to an agrarian society by the time she's 65.

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