Warmth from the deep blue sea
All it took was a sudden wet, cold and windy spell to snap me out of endless and restless startitis. Indecision about wanting a hat at all was swiftly overtaken by the urgency to finish and wear one. Instead of the deep red, however, I chose the deep blue. Wouldn’t you know it, Malabrigo worsted in “Azul Profundo” makes for a very warm Koolhaas hat.
Soft, snug and very quick to make, in spite of the intense cabling every other row. I love this hat.
My friend and knitting prodigy ManDuka, who, if you remember, embarked on her first ever hat just last November, took on this Koolhaas pattern as her next [you can see her gorgeous, green version in Cascade here.(Ravelry links.)], and is now totally into planning an EPS sweater for herself! Way to go, ManDuka. I loved the pattern after talking to her about it, and am glad that it overcame my ennui. Of course, it does help that the yarn has such lovely tones:
Details:
Pattern: Koolhaas, by Jared Flood, in Interweave Knits Holiday 2007.
Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted in shade Azul Profundo. I used just over 1/2 a skein, I’m estimating.
Needles: Size 6 for the ribbing and 8 for the main pattern.
Notes:
Not much about the pattern itself, except that I cast on fewer stitches (100). When I came up to the decreases, therefore, I had to do some footwork and calculating, which resulted in a slightly different crown than in the pattern; I made half an extra repeat and then decreased more rapidly. But the maths worked out, so I don’t care that my crown is a little different from the other 800 – odd Koolhaases out there!
It’s the yarn that bugged me. Have you seen the adoration for Malabrigo out there? Nineteen comments on the Ravelry yarn page that are gushing, to put it mildly. Sure, it’s incredibly soft, and as you can clearly see above, the shades are gorgeous. These colours are to die for, and I totally get the joy of the finished, subtly variegated look. But shades apart, the look is unfortunately not *that* finished in the end. I am surprised at how loosely the yarn is plied, and what a worn look it takes on even while it’s being knit. It’s not just the gentle, fuzzy halo of some loose fibres, but an almost felted look that well-used handmade items have. If you click on the photos above, and on the flickr page click on all sizes, then large, you’ll see what I mean. Here’s the loose cast-on end before I weaved it in:
Doesn’t it look nearly felted? Just from the agitation of two days of knitting, it was a little stiff, even! I wonder how people make sweaters with this stuff, because even at a very tight gauge, tough as that is to do when you have such a thick yarn, it must not hold up very well. That said, it surely is the softest wool I have ever knit with, and boy, right now, even in the northern California winter, I am grateful for the warmth of the azul profundo.
Yay for breaking the spell of the restless hands! The hat looks great. I agree with you that Malabrigo is soft, that the colors are lovely, and that the worshipful comments about it are a bit baffling. I suspect that it’s because many knitters prioritize “soft” far, far higher than I do.
It looks lovely, even though the Malabrigo was a disappointment. I’m kind of surprised–I still haven’t knit with it myself, but have heard so many good things about it.
I wanted to let you know I’ve bestowed an award upon you:
http://featherandfan.wordpress.com/2008/01/23/awards-wips-and-plans-winter-eats/
What a lovely color!
Knitting prodigy?! Come now, don’t pull my leg.
The Koolhaas was the result of a solid week’s worth of brow wrinkling concentration and drama.
The EZ EPS sweater seems doomed since I’m still dithering over various tweed choices and falling in love with out of stock colorways…I hope it stays cold or else it’ll be spring and I’ll be “sweater, what sweater?”
Great hat! I love the color!
When I made my Koolhaas, my cast-on tail did look quite a bit worse for the wear, but I’m willing to deal with a bit of fuzz for the softness and the colors. I’ve heard that the Malabrigo pilling/fuzzing issue is improved (if not resolved) by shaving the FO, although I haven’t tested that out myself.
that is beautiful. i guess the softer the wool, the more pilling and fuzzing….
Hey, nice hat!
Though it’s soft, Malabrigo isn’t my favorite yarn. I’ve always figured that people find the “homey” nature of malabrigo, like all of the VM in Noro yarns… rustic and part of the charm?
The hat looks great! No matter how many incarnations of it I see, I love them all.
As for the Malabrigo, well, you’re right. I love it, but only for accessories, etc. The yarn IS super soft, but because of the sigle ply, lightly spun nature of the yarn, it does pill and look worn easily. To me, though, it’s a trade-off. Plus, I end up making new hats/scarves often enough that its shorter shelf life doesn’t really bother me. I don’t think a Malabrigo sweater makes much sense, though.
I’m doing something with malabrigo laceweight right now, and I’m totally with you on loving the colors and the softness. And as of now, it’s holding up reasonably well–it might be more tightly spun since the ply is so thin? I don’t know we’ll see. And the hat looks great at the moment, so there’s that.
Oh, and I’ve been wearing my rangoli hat a lot this week, for some reason.
Oh my, this is lovely. My son begged me to make one of these out of a shocking turquoise Cascade 220. He refers to the color as blue raspberry. The ribbing is done but I simply haven’t had the time to concentrate on the cabling so it is languishing. Your Koolhaas is an inspiration for me to get going. Thank you.
Hello!
I was wondering around Ravelry today, and came across the South Asian group and its members!
Wonderful website. I also live in the US, and am currently visiting family in India. And (!), I am also in academia. Crafting keeps me sane
Don’t heet me ( as is your wont). Lovely cap and all that, but bhery nice ear-rings! Weer from?
I love the hat! So pretty! I agree with you about Malabrigo though. I would never knit a sweater with it, though I have knit a shawl with it. It’s soft and the stitch definition is lovely, but it’s very sticky. So no gushing from me!
Pretty! I do love that colorway of the Malabrigo, and it is the perfect thing for a soft, cozy hat.
I knit a sweater from Malabrigo, and yup, it probably wasn’t the best choice. The bottom band was very fuzzy by the time I got to the top, and my yarn tails were literally disintegrating from the trips in and out of my knitting bag. I’ve been contemplating frogging the cardi and reclaiming the yarn, but I’m not sure that the Malabrigo could stand it.
thats a most lovely hat. i did not know rem koolhaas was a knitter. the hat looks a bit like the seattle public library.
At least it is soft and so very pretty!! I have not experienced malabrigo yet, but I knit a shrug with manos del uruguay, which seems to be spun very similarly, and though it is warm and very comfy – it PILLS terribly!! So it gets worn around the house, it’s a good comfort sweater
I gave you a little make my day award – hop on over and check it out if you like!
Happy Friday!
[...] made one for myself early last year with Malabrigo, and thought it turned out a little small. This time I added 8 [...]