North Pole Project The Dog Lover Hat

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Instructions

I have to write them up since I have them written longhand in a notebook, but that will not take long. I have to write them up since I have them written longhand in a notebook, but that will not take long.

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Difficulty:

Category: Knitting

Type of item: Clothing

For: Charity

Style: Funky, Whimsical, Rock / Punk, Outdoorsy, Casual, Holiday, Cute, Eco-Friendly

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Materials

This is the very first stranded (Fair Isle) knitting I have ever done and I made up the design myself, so the pattern is 100% my creation. I used 11 colors of worsted weight wool yarn. I hope people like my first creation.

What was your inspiration?

I have an 18 year old dog (Katie, who is my profile photo). She is starting to get stiff when it gets cold out and she is also pretty thin, so she does not have a lot of fat on her bones to stay warm sometimes. I wanted to make her a really nice dog sweater with a stranded Fair Isle pattern, but I had never done that type of knitting before and was afraid to start such a large project if I didn't know what i was doing. So, since it has been a bit chilly at night when I walk my 3 dogs, I thought why not do a test project in the form of a hat on which to practice. Well, in order to make this project something I would be excited about so I would actually finish it, and considering I am the worlds biggest dog lover ever, I wanted to come up with something totally unique. And that it would describe how I feel when I am walking the girls, start conversations with other dog lovers at the dog park, and most of all keep my ears warm, I chose a puppy theme.

What are you most proud of?

I'm most proud of the fact that I created this pattern myself. Considering that it is the very first stranded project I have ever done, and I actually made the pattern the right size and properly laid out the grid, I am amazed. I never thought of doing stranded work before because it looks to intimidating, but I was totally motivated by the cold weather we had right before Christmas and the fact that I wanted to make a totally unique pattern that would suit me and show my love for all dogs. So, of course the love I have for MY dogs was my inspiration. I am so happy that I was able to make this hat exactly the way I wanted. And for that reason I am proud and it has given me confidence to do more patterns and a lot more stranded and Fair Isle knitting.

What advice would you give someone starting this project?

It is really easy and since it was my very first try at it I wrote out notes of every obstacle that I came across, so I think it will make it very easy for someone who has never done stranded or is new at it.