Week 3 of the 40 in 40 challenge 2017

My family is going stir crazy this week.  Our family vehicle broke down on us March 4th making us a 1 car family again.  That means spur of the moment trips to the park because the weather is nice couldn't happen this week.  It means running out of milk went from being a 20 minute trip to the grocery store to an hour long walk on a curvy road without sidewalks.  Although I must admit that not being able to go anywhere was nice to begin with, forcing us to slow down and take a break from everything.  At this point though, we were all relieved to pick up our new to us SUV over the weekend.  Especially since it meant a brief visit with family from Georgia.

One of the good things about not being able to go out as much, I had some extra time after homeschooling to work on the challenge.  That prompted me to work on a couple of lace hat patterns this week.

First up is this simple knit hat called the

Beanie to Match Carole Barenys’ Seamless Yoked Baby Sweater.  I love this with the variegated yarn that has a slow transition.  The slip stitches add interest to what is otherwise a very basic pattern.  As you can see it works up a bit long for a newborn, but you can easily fold up the brim and the extra length means it can be worn for several months.  And the detail on it easily lends itself to being made for boys and girls.  And if you are interested in making the Seamless Yoked Baby Sweater, you can find it here.

The next one is a super quick crochet project that for some reason reminds me of the 20's.  It's called the Charmed Cloche.  You can download the add free PDF on Ravelry here or you can visit the designer's website and grab the pattern for free here.  The pattern is available in newborn to adult sizes and includes an optional flower embellishment.

Next up is a two for one pattern, it is actually called Two Lace Baby Hats.  Each hat has a coordinating blanket that the designer linked to on the pattern page.Both call for a DK weight yarn and size 6 needles.  They are also available in sizes up to toddler.

I worked the first one, the Tiffany Lace pattern, using Simply Soft yarn which obviously isn't a DK weight but still allowed the lace pattern to come through but gave it some thickness.

The second, Fan Lace, I worked using Bernat Baby Sport which gave the hat a much more open lace design.  Directions for both were easy to follow and written very well.  They do involve some more advanced techniques such as knitting through the back looks, and 4 different decrease stitches but don't let that intimidate you.  Take your time and pay attention to the directions and you will do great!

This one was chosen because it was the day I knew I was going to be in a car all day long traveling to pick up our new to us SUV.  I wanted something quick and simple since I needed to be available for a 2 year old that had never been on a trip this long before and because I would be driving for at least half of the trip.  This is the Scallop Hat pattern and you can find it on beginner-crochet-patterns.com That alone told me that this would be a relatively quick pattern with little difficulty....and it was.  Yet that lovely scalloped edge gives it some flair making this a great project for last minute gifts!

I have to say that so far, this is my favorite hat using this yarn.  The yarn is Bernat Baby Sport in Citrus Sorbet .  The hat pattern is the Georgia Baby Hat and it is available in both a large preemie and a newborn size.  In addition you can also grab the matching sweater pattern for free as well.  I chose to work this pattern in the round rather than flat because I hate seaming.  

So that is it for me this week.  Next week we'll reach the half way point. 

Until next time,