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Spiffy Christmas gifts galore.

Materials: 1 Bucket-o-Chic pattern. 16" Clover Bamboo circular needles.
#1: 1 skein Cascade 220 (100% wool) in #9449. 1 skein Berroco Mohair Classic (78% mohair, 13% wool, 9% nylon) in #8489.
#2: 1 skein Manos del Uruguay #107 (100% wool).

Time: Several days for each.

Cost: #1: $22, including needles. #2, free! (leftover yarn.)

Combining my gift-giving and crafty impulses into one, I decided to knit my mom a Bucket-O-Chic for Christmas this year. Because she is, er, less flamboyant than I am, and because I wanted something slightly fun, I decided to knit her a hat in navy blue wool and matching mohair, using only the wool for the band and a combination of the two for the brim and top.

I was a little apprehensive about the pattern because it involved a three-needle bind-off and picking up stitches, neither of which I'd done before, but both turned out to be easy. The big mistake was deciding to knit the brim with two strands of wool and two of mohair. Four? On what size needles? My hands hurt a whole lot after that was done. Learn from my mistakes -- mohair is bulkier than it appears, and trying to squish the whole thing onto a 16" circ was officially Stupid.

I completed the top with one strand of mohair and another of wool, which was much easier. I'd like to show you a photo of the finished product -- it's much spiffier than the in-progress picture above -- but my mother has not yet worn it, because she doesn't like how it sits on (instead of tightly hugging) her head. She wants to machine-sew some white elastic through the bottom of the brim, which I guarantee will ruin the lines and make it look like a deranged Cat-In-The-Hat-style creation. Oh, well -- at least it was a joy to make is the thought that counts, or something.

The second Bucket was actually a lot of fun, and I completed it in, I think, two days at Pete's house. It's made from a leftover skein of Manos del Uruguay from my cowl project. I adore the yarn, and it also worked really well for the pattern.

Although I dropped a bunch of stitches at the top -- I was working on metal DPNs, which wasn't the smartest idea -- I think I managed to pick them up and blend them in fairly well. Besides, the hypnotic swirlyness of the top decreases are what really attracts the eye.

This one is a little tighter than the first -- probably because of yarn choices -- but I still had a lot of fun with it, and it sufficiently fits Pete's mom's head despite being smaller than intended. I don't think I'm going to make any more hats at the moment, but I'll definitely keep the pattern for the times when I have a spare skein of wool lying around. By now, though, I think I have it memorized. Oh: and I officially still heart Manos, and Cascade 220 was a surprisingly lovely and affordable yarn (though slightly thinner than Lamb's Pride Worsted).