It’s getting cold out here in North Dakota, and in the tender little moments where it feels like ice crystals are burrowing into every pore of my face I began to realize that I was woefully unprepared for real cold after my cushy, easy winters in the Pacific Northwest.

I went over to the website my dear familiar, Knotty Lamb, and ordered Madelinetosh’s Tiny House on the base Farm Twist since I had been ogling it anyway and this was obviously pure necessity.

Then I dug through my hat pattern collection to find Camas by Cory Ellen Boberg,

Other than completely messing up the first triangle section, and having to rip out 15 rows of progress because I was a bit too caught up in Buzzfeed’s Unsolved: Supernatural, this hat went remarkably smooth.

Who could blame me though? They were talking about Mothman!

Even after my paranormal distraction mishap, this hat was finished in two days.

I have found this pattern so attractive that I can guarantee you will see the design elsewhere in another project I work on. Cory Ellen’s concept is beyond beautiful, and now I must have a matching cowl and maybe even a sweater if I find the right yarn.

As for alterations, I did make the hat one repeat longer than was dictated in the pattern. Personally, I prefer hats that are long enough to put all of my hair into so I can focus all of my attention on my freezing cold face. I can’t stand my hair getting in the way of that.

It may also be a little nice to have my hair in a bun so it’s not tickling my face. Have you ever tried to move hair out of your face with gloves on? It’s like a cat trying to pick up a small piece of paper.

Now I’m one step closer to not freezing to death!

Stay warm, stay sweet, stay crafty, and stay tuned.

Being the child of a crafter meant I was given countless beautiful and cozy creations that my mother made.  Hats, sweaters, socks, dresses, you name it.  I even was selfish enough to ask her to borrow, and sometimes to keep, the things she made for herself.  I'm not saying it was the right thing to do, but I was so enchanted and inspired by what my mother made that I wanted to be the special person that got to wear it.

Now I'm old enough to make my own things, and while I still will take any creation my talented mum offers to me, I'm becoming the person that makes all of the things that I always admired.  

That being said, I do have some greediness to make up for, so for the holidays this year I decided to make my mum something, in hopes she might forgive me for owning so many of the things she's made.

I had bought some of Judy's Novelty Wool when I went to the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival, and being the creative genius she is, she had heaps of beautiful fiber of the most captivating colourways -- one of which I knew would be perfect for making something for my mother.

The colours spun up brilliantly.

And despite my concern, the hues didn't muddy after I plied it. 

Then onto needles it went!

I made the hat with a little extra room around, as I know my mother gets frustrated with hats that just slip off of her head because it's too tight around. Really, what's the point of wearing a hat if it's just going to keep sliding off?  My family goes for beautiful and practical.

The design uses knit and purl stitches to form the faint diamonds that you can see on the sides of the hat.  I made my own pattern and it goes as follows in the picture;  the grey stitches are purl, and the white are knit.

For the decreases that made the top of the hat have a light spiraling effect, I decreased by consistently taking one stitch from the left at five evenly spaced points all the way around.  

I kept doing this until I ran out of stitches, and then finished it off, creating a fun little point the top of the hat.

I finished this hat with plenty of time before the holidays we celebrate, but to ensure that my mum didn't see this, I waited until after I had given it to her to post.

Cherish those who inspire you, bring fun and joy to your life, and return the favour when you can.

And for the record- she seems to quite happy about the hat.

Stay sweet, stay crafty, and stay tuned.