Category: Rambles

sittin’ on the swing wearin’ a spankin’ new BUP on a face only a mother could love – wait a minute – my mom took this picture!!!

What I did on My Summer Spring Vacation…

Vacation means that I have a little time in the middle of the normal *working* day to fiddle with some fun stuff…

This is a BUP that I made from some Lion Brand Cotton Ease in Traffic Cone Orange. I figure I can wear it to work and it might protect me from oncoming cars since they WON’T BE ABLE TO MISS ME!

I haven’t had time to experiment with very many cotton yarns using this pattern but here’s some stuff I’ve learned while rockin’ in the misty pines…

1. Not all cotton yarns are created equal – it’s good to read the yarn band to see what the manufacturer’s recommended gauge is. Remember this pattern is for a worsted weight, not Aran weight (the original Bucket-O-Chic works well for that) and choose accordingly. The gauge you are looking for is 20 sts / 28 rows over 4″.

Sugar’n’Cream is too heavy for this pattern and will hurt your hands and make a larger hat than you wish. Cotton Ease is more lightweight and can be knitted up at the smaller gauge. The only way to tell????

2. Swatch, baby. I used Cotton Ease and #6 needles for this BUP. I love it! I have some aqua, navy and yellow to try out as well. I traded a co-worker a bup for a cool shirt and needed to try this out before I made a yellow one for her.

3. For a brim that really stands away from the body of the hat (and it seems that cotton/blends can be kindof floppinzee), slip stitch the last two purl rounds together – this is the round that is closest to the body of the hat and made with a single strand of yarn and the last round that is made with doubled yarn.

4. The hat I made and wore at the MDS&W is out of off-white perl cotton – it really stretched out so I made a chain-stitch crocheted tie and wove it in every other stitch close to the brim, then tied it. It makes a nice decorative accent…

5. Be sure to try on your hat to make sure it is tall enough for you before you start the crown shaping – I ended up making my cotton bup a little higher than my wool version – this one measures 3.5″ high.

…all photos & graphics