After botching the crown placement, (I attached it to the brim not the sidepiece), I am surprised I still want to do this pattern yet again. But I do. I feel like I know what needs to be done to make it outstanding the second time around.
Here are some preliminary thoughts on this great Annie Modesitt pattern, originally printed in Knitting Today. (She tells me she will be able to sell the pattern as a stand-alone on her site soon). Anyhow....
- Needles. The pattern calls for DPNs, but since I really despise DPNs more than unsweetened chocolate, I went the circular needle route, starting out with a pair of bamboo circs I used for Modesitt's High Society hat. In fact, I would say it's my go-to set of needles for her hats which seem to call for size 5 needles. When I needed to split the hat-in-progress to two circs, I used my Denise needles...and I found the silk/cotton Classic Silk yarn 'slipped' better on the Denise circs. I also used the Denise no. 6 tips as DPNs when I was doing the seed stitch brim. Worked better than a charm and saved me the cost of buying new needles!
- Ease. There's a lot of ease in this pattern which you don't discover when until you're done. I did the pattern for the 22-inch headsize, and I had at least four inches of ease on side of the hat. So, yes, the completed hat fits my noggin, but it's huge and not snug like the model in Knitting Today. I'm considering dropping down a size or two for the next rendition of the Modern Cloche. My hat looks more like a bucket hat (not the look I'm after) and less of a cloche. Oh well. Next time!
- Yarn. The pattern calls for a worsted linen/cotton yarn, but I think that's too thick. I used a DK weight....but whatever you use you want something summery with a lot of natural fiber...which will probably stretch and contribute to that ease issue I mentioned earlier.
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