I mentioned a while back that I couldn’t show some of the items I’d made recently because they were presents. Well, I can show you some of them now:

Dad’s socks. He really loves receiving hand knit socks. I used Moda Vera yarn, reinforced with nylon thread at the toes and heels, using my usual toe-up short-row heel pattern.

Mum requested some hats. (Actually, she hinted at first, but at first I was oblivious to this, then I ignored the hints since she knows she only has to ask me and I’d happily make her hats.) Knowing that she is a ‘hot’ person, who gets too warm very easily, I dug out some navy cotton ribbon yarn I’d salvaged from a frogged project and used it to work out the sizing to this crocheted hat.

Then, since she has decided recently that she wants to collect owls, I hunted down a hat pattern (sorry, could only find a Ravelry link). I made a lot of adjustments since she was very specific about the size of the brim, I added beads for eyes as I knit the owls, and decreased every second row on the crown to eliminate the bulky gathers.

I used sock yarn, since fingering weight was specified in the pattern. It made for a very loosely knit fabric, which is fine for Mum as it should be cooler.

She was thrilled with both, but refused to model them for me, instead getting out this polystyrene head and a wig for me to pose them on.