Well, hurray.

I finished all the knitting (and the finishing except for the buckle) on the Lady Detective Hat last night. And it took JUST UNDER one skein of the Iro - I read someone else's comment on this pattern on Ravelry and she remarked that the hat took "only a few yards" from the second skein.

In my experience, Noro is kind of variable in skein-lengths; I probably just happened to luckily get a skein that was a bit long. It's also possible my gauge was a bit tighter than what was recommended; I didn't swatch (I rarely do for small projects; I figure it's easier to rip out and restart if it's not correct). My hat came out fitting a tiny bit tight - not too-tight, but will-mess-your-hair-up-a-little-tight. Snug. But I like it that way - and I'm glad I don't have to do the grosgrain ribbon trick to make it fit.

(It's also possible that the requirements listed for the hat - 2 skeins - included the amount required to make a gauge swatch).

At any rate - I now have a whole skein of leftover Noro Iro to play with (or to swap with someone, if someone's dying for a single skein of colorway 66). I KNOW there are plenty one-skein projects out there so I'll just have to look around a bit and see what I think is best.

Picture of the hat will come after my break, when it is em-buckled. (I'm either going to dig through my grandma's button-and-other-clothing-decoration box that my mom now has custody of, or I'm going to see if Sewing Studio has something nice).

I will say that I might also have to pin the brim edges down to an ironing board and try steaming it or try some other millinery trick to make the brim stand out more; the finished hat looks more like a cloche than a true brimmed hat. Which is okay, but the effect is then less Miss Marple and more "Tuppence" Cowley. And at this stage of the game, I think I'm more Miss Marple and less Tuppence.

I also started the Child's French Sock using the Schaefer Anne in the blue-green colors. It looks good so far, but I only have 12 or so rows of ribbing done.

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I'll be back sometime around the 26th. To all the Americans reading this: have a wonderful Thanksgiving, whether you're with family, friends, or even by yourself. And to the other readers around the world, have a great next week.