Theme and variations

Apparently, I'm on some kind of a hat and flower jag. It started with this. Over the weekend I knitted a variation.

Summer Slouch in tangerine, same stitch pattern, new flower arrangement

Can also be worn like a cap with flower detail in back

Now, there are more hats in the works, but next time it will be different.

Honestly, I've been a little envious of the hand knitters who often make their hats in the round, without any seams, and I've been itching to try knitting a hat in the round, too. (Interestingly, the only hat I've ever hand knitted was not knitted in the round.  It was knitted back and forth on two needles, but that's another story....)

Though I love the complexity of the stitch pattern I created for these summer hats, knitting in the round on a knitting machine will involve major modifications to my design.

Swatch of Summer Slouch stitch pattern in flaxen

A double bed knitting machine was required to knit my two recent hats -- one bed of needles to create the knit stitches, a second bed to create the purls (with a few other moves carefully thrown in ;) ).  In circular knitting, one bed knits the front of the hat. The other bed knits the back.  There will be no purls in this new design; the next hat will be based on a jersey fabric.  This will be an experiment.  We'll see what happens.