How much can you do when there's actually time?

I was blessed to be anonymously gifted the registration to a health and wellness retreat in Broomfield, CO. So Friday I spent the day traveling alone on airplanes. I finished almost 3 hat "bases" in that time! And, because it's more of a sit-down, learn and process deal, I took my crochet with me. By the end of the day I had 5 hats basically done and ready for embellishments.

I now have 2 dragons or dinosaurs (that's up to the user's imagination), 2 earflap hats that will most likely become three-eyed monsters, and one more elaborate pattern (it took forever!) that I'll be attaching Rapunzel braids to. They were all supposed to be sized for 2-4 year olds, but I'm afraid the pink braid hat is only size 6-12 months. The pattern had no gauge or finished size listed, so I was entirely guessing.

Today I'll try a different "elaborate" pattern and see if I can get the right sizes out of it. And, for craziness, I've decided to reserve a booth at a craft fair in December that will be held at a preschool. My goal is to have at least 25 hats there, so we'll see how it goes!

Why Gauge Matters!

So I got the pattern I was going to use for Sariah's Halloween costume hat (http://www.redheart.com/free-patterns/bewitching-hat), and was extra-motivated to get it started.  We just moved, and I THOUGHT my yarn was consolidated, but when I looked through all my boxes, I couldn't find my Lion brand Super Saver (Weight 4) black yarn.  I did find some Caron Simply Soft (which CLAIMS to be Weight 4, but I beg to differ) and figured it would work just the same, so got started.  It looked like my stitches were a little bit small compared to the gauge, but I didn't think it would be a big deal.  About two hours later and half-way through the pattern I decided it WAS and I stopped.  The next day my husband found two misplaced boxes of yarn that had my Super Saver black yarn in them, so I started over.  I stopped at exactly the same place and took a picture.

And THIS is why you should ALWAYS check the gauge!  Even though the yarns are supposed to be the same weight, they are vastly different.  I used a size I crochet hook for both.  The one on the left is the Lion Brand Super Saver yarn.  The one on the right is the Caron Simply Soft yarn.  When I try to work the Simply Soft yarn to gauge for this project, it unravels and leaves TONS of gaps in my work.  So there you go.  When a pattern recommends a gauge, and gives the yarn they used to achieve it, it's probably a VERY good idea to use THAT yarn or at least something that feels similar.  Simply Soft feels much finer and softer than Super Saver yarn, and the hats proved it.  The Simply Soft hat will not keep shape by itself, while the Super Saver yarn holds its own.

And the finished product:

Sariah is obsessed with pink, and since it's her costume she got to choose.  She wanted the hat band to be pink.  And originally she wanted BRIGHT YELLOW (brighter than Minnie Mouse's shoes on her shirt) for the hair.  I convinced her to go grey and pink, which I think works really well with the hat band.  Now we'll see if it holds up until Halloween.  I'm going to have to put it up soon if I want those braids to stay intact!