Knitting the Knitter's Almanac - June

June's project from the Knitter's Almanac is hats.  When my sister first learned to knit, all she knitted were hats.  I can't blame her; hats are the perfect knitting project.  They are practical, good for oneself or as gifts, they are neither too small nor too ambitious a project, they don't use up a lot of yarn, and they can employ a number of different techniques, giving one endless possibilities. 

Unlike the mitten chapter, the text of the chapter simply outlines the methods for the three hats whose patterns are detailed at the end of the chapter.  Thus it was quite clear what I needed to do to consider this chapter complete: knit three hats.

Ganomy Hat

The first of the three hats I knit was the Ganomy Hat.  The idea behind this pattern was to use the same miter pattern used in last month's mittens (regular increases and decreases) to make ear flaps.  The end result looks a lot like a Gnome's hat.  When I first saw the pattern name, I was pronouncing it as I read it, with equal length syllables and the stress on the first syllable.  As I was describing the hat to my husband however, I realized, the correct pronunciation is really G-nomy, pronouncing the "G" sound as a sort of separate but quick syllable before the rest of the word, the same way I pronounce gnome, actually.  Yet another example of the way Ms. Zimmermann and I think alike.  I followed this pattern exactly as written using leftover yarn from January's Aran Sweater and from April's Afghan to make the hat.

Maltese Fisherman's Hat

The second of the hats I knit was the Maltese Fisherman's Hat.  This is another ear flapped hat that she recreated from a hat someone brought back from vacation.  The gauge she gives for the hat of 5½ stitches to 2" was impossible for me to achieve with the yarn and needles I had on hand, so I had to adjust the pattern so I was making an adult sized hat instead of a child sized one.  I decided the easiest adjustment to make would be to knit it at a gauge of 5½ stitches to 1", basically doubling the necessary stitches indicated.  This hat's ear flaps are knit first by knitting back and forth instead of in the round, and then more stitches are cast on for the front of the hat and then joined and continued in the round.  The ear flaps are somewhat asymmetrical as a result of the shaping instructions, but they do cover the ears properly.  For this hat I used up some more yarn I had on hand left over from various projects, trying to keep them to matching or complementary hues.  I did not "make the tassel of [my] dreams" as directed, however. 

Three-Cornered Hat

The third and final hat I knit was the Three-Cornered Hat, basically a variation on a tam-o'-shanter.  This one again called for an impossible gauge, so I did the same thing as for the Maltese Fisherman's Hat and doubled the pattern to make an adult sized hat.  This hat again uses increases and decreases for shaping, but instead of four equal points like the Mitered Mittens and the Ganomy Hat, it has three, making a tri-cornered hat.  The hat is increased off the head, and then sharply decreased to give it the flat look of a tam.  I again used up yarn I had on hand for this project.

This experiment in hats didn't really offer a lot by way of new techniques.  I did have to work with adjusting a pattern to meet my gauge, but that is something I've done before.  The shaping techniques were all ones I've already used on projects from this book, though it did show the various ways those techniques could be put to use.  The biggest takeaway for me was how easy and enjoyable hats are, and how useful as a means of using up those last bits of yarn from other projects.  You'll notice I didn't buy yarn for the last two months of projects.  I could easily see the usefulness of knitting a bunch of mittens and hats for gifts every year from the leftover yarn accumulated from other projects. 

Resolutions

I'm not usually one for making New Year's Resolutions. I am very aware of the arbitrariness of the way we delineate time, so I don't put a lot of stock in "significant" dates. Additionally, I think resolutions aren't really what are important to making life changes. To me a resolution is a statement of a goal, such as "to lose weight". A resolution is only the beginning of making a change to your life. It's a nice summary, but you can't just will yourself to lose weight. You have to follow that up with a detailed action plan, such as going to the gym three times a week and/or modifying your diet in a specific way.

Personally, I practice a philosophy of constant self improvement, and to do that I use the "today is the first day of the rest of your life" approach. In other words, I make constant action plans and put them into effect immediately, rather than waiting for a significant date or time to begin.

I actually put the items I'm currently considering my "New Year's Resolutions" into action in December. I went to the doctor at the beginning of the month, and found out that my health was not as good as it could be. Since I had pretty much gone off my exercise routine, and was slowly slipping in my diet, it wasn't really a surprise, but it was enough of a shock to scare me back into an exercise and diet plan.

So, my resolutions for 2013:

1. Regular exercise. Let's say 4 days a week minimum with the real goal being 6 days a week. My usual favorites are running, Pilates and belly dance.
2. Better diet. Because of my personal health issues I keep a low carb/low glycemic index diet. As I mentioned, I've been slipping a bit, enjoying things like crackers and cheese and soda at lunch. My current plan is to try to keep my carb intake to under 150 each day.
3. Finish the Knitter's Almanac project. I'm working on July at the moment, and am optimistic that the second half of the book can be completed by the end of 2013.
4. Transparency. I'm of the opinion that no one needs to know the details of my every workout or every meal, but I also know that openly committing to goals and telling others about them and your progress is a good way to achieve them. One very good suggestion I saw a few years ago suggested treating the resolution process the way businesses treat their business goals: resolutions could be made and reviewed for success at the beginning of each quarter. While I don't think we should run our lives like a business, I do like the idea of reviewing how things are going from time to time, and committing to a quarterly update to honestly assess my progress seems reasonable.

There are other changes I'm considering starting this week, and I'm sure there will be new things coming up throughout the year, but I'd like these four things to be the ones I hold myself accountable for at the end of the year.

Happy New Year; may this year be the best year yet.