Baby Hats and Easter Cactus in Bloom

Here's my latest baby hats. Diametrag put in a special request for a preemie hat, and that's the tiny one, plus I'll tuck in the little tube socks. They look tight, but with the Twisted German Cast on, plus the k2p2 rib, they stretch out pretty good. The hats are the usual suspects, Little Basket Weave, Uneven Rib, Harris Tweed Rib, and Waffle Stitch. Harris Tweed is new, and looks good. Take a good look at Little Basket Weave, because that's the last one on this blog. I can't get the decreases to look good, so I'm ditching all the patterns with a multiple of 6.
My Easter Cactus (Rhipsalidopsis gaertneri) finally bloomed! Technically it's two weeks late, but I think it is gorgeous. The pink is beautiful, and there are hints of a lighter pink stripe. Now that I realize I should treat an Easter Cactus differently from my Christmas and Thanksgiving cacti, maybe I'll have blooms next year. I knew Christmas and Thanksgiving cacti depended on shorter daylight hours to set blooms. Easter Cacti need cool temperatures to set their buds. I have a nice cool spare bedroom that should do the trick.

Hats to the Hospital

I took a dozen baby hats to the local hospital today. I lined them up for a mug shot before I gave them away.

I got 5 7/8 hats from my pink skein; I had to use a new skein for the last 3 decreasing rounds. I got 6 hats from the blue skein, and knit about 2" ribbing of another hat.

I use a Twisted German Cast-on, and all the cuffs are very stretchy. Right now I prefer a k2p2 rib on the cuff, k1p1 looks flat to me. I make a generous 3" rib, which gives you a lot of room for adjustment. My knitting basket feels empty right now, I'm going to start on another batch.

(top row, left to right) Uneven Rib, Waving Rib, k3p1 rib.

(bottom row, left to right) Waffle Stitch, Little Basket Weave Stitch, Fancy Slip Stitch Rib.