Christmas Knitting, etc.

The Christmas knitting has begun. I picked up needles and yarn for the first Unoriginal Hat I'm making for my two sisters-in-law. I bought some AMAZING Crystal Palace dpns in the funky 10 3/4 size (7mm). For how much they cost, I'm glad I like them. I've already given them a test knit by reknitting MY Unoriginal Hat last night. Yes, I'm that big of a dork. The hat was a big too snug and I wanted to see how the fit would change with the larger needle. It is much better now. No need for a picture, cuz' it looks just like it did before. I used 0.2 oz more yarn, which seemed to be just the right amount.

Here's the yarn for the first hat:It is so nice and soft. Marisol Sulka in Snow White. Merino/Alpaca/Silk blend of squishy goodness. I had directives for which hat pattern to use, and it must be in cream. After hunting down all softness worthy yarns, I had three yarns to choose from. One was 100% Alpaca-too soft. One was 50/50 merino/alpaca-not soft enough. This one has just enough body to support the cables. We'll see how it looks. I'm making it a bit bigger than mine by inserting only 4 extra purls (2 each into only 2 of the repeats). Hope that gives me the extra inch in circumference I need.

Here's a rundown of the latest:
Garterloc dishtowel-fun and fast
Fetching Mitts-great use of a recently frogged baby hat. Made a smaller version for myself and did a bit of messing with the thumb area:
Socks that Rock Jaywalkers (finally)-also have done some sizing magic. Cast on 52 for ribbing, increased to 60 for leg, decreased to 52 for rest of sock. I'm not doing the zig zag stitch on the foot. The yarn is pretty, but it really leaves dye on my hands. I hope some of the color stays after I wash them. I know dark yarns often have "crocking" issues. Hummm, we shall see.
Off to knit a hat during nap time.