Contempt headband : Winter 2013

by fecknom

Winter can be brilliantly fun. Snuggling on the couch with yarn while covered in shawls and blankets: magnificent! A mug of mulled cider after a long walk: exquisite. However: standing on a train platform at 7:00 a.m. with a windchill of -10°? Waiting for a delayed bus while trucks speed past and send waves of slush? No, thank you. This cozy, double-knit (and thus reversible!) headband is the perfect outlet for winter frustrations. The harsh words are delightfully surprising when paired with the traditional aesthetic of many wintry woollens.

But why limit your frustrations to a single language?

Ich hasse Winter!

¡Odio el invierno!

Я ненавижу зиму!

Choose from German/English, Spanish/English, and Russian/English.

(For those with conflicted feelings, there's also an all-English version, which allows you to also say "I love winter", too.)

model: Alyx J. Hanson, Caitlin Leah Keeler, Ben Brighoff, Elisa Arespacochaga

photos: Ethan Lyn Draeger,


SIZE Adult S[L] shown in size L

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS
Circumference: 20[22] inches, will comfortably stretch to fit a 22[24]-inch head
Length: 3.25[3.25] inches

MATERIALS
Yarn
Harrisville Designs Shetland [100% virgin wool; 217 yd/198m per 50g skein]; 1 skein each of MC and CC
English:
[MC] Oatmeal; 1[1] skein
[CC] Russet; 1[1] skein

Spanish/English:
[MC] Silvermist
[CC] Black Cherry

German/English:
[MC] Mustard
[CC] Midnight Blue

Russian/English:
[MC] Silvermist
[CC] Midnight Blue

Recommended needle size
[always use a needle size that gives you the gauge listed below -- every knitter's gauge is unique]
1 16-inch US #2/2.75mm circular needle
1 32-inch US #2/2.75mm circular needle

Notions
stitch markers (at least 4)
yarn needle

GAUGE

21.5 sts/37 rounds = 4 inches in double-knit stockinette stitch, after blocking
25.5 sts/40 rounds = 4 inches in single-knit stockinette stitch, after blocking

PATTERN NOTES
[Knitty's list of standard abbreviations and techniques can be found here.]

Double-knitting in a nutshell: Two layers of fabric are constructed simultaneously, back-to-back. Facing the knitter is the right side of one layer and the wrong side of the other layer, and the stitches alternate one-by-one between layers. To maintain the separation between layers, the two strands of yarn should always travel together between stitches. So, in stockinette (as for this headband), you bring both strands to the back, knit one stitch of the layer that's facing you (using only one color for the new stitch), then bring both strands to the front and purl one stitch (again, using only one color) of the layer that's facing away from you.

KfMCpbCC: This is a two-color increase, worked as follows:
(k1 MC into front of st, bring both yarns to front, p1 CC into front of st) into one st

Charts
The charts for this pattern are very large. Each fits on a letter-sized page.
Click below and print the appropriate resulting page.

English/English

German/English

Russian/English

Spanish/English

DIRECTIONS

Using MC, shorter circular needle and long-tail CO, CO 108[118] sts. Pm and join to begin working in rnd, being careful not to twist.

Join CC.
Using both colors and longer circular needle (to ease tension):
Rnd 1: KfMCpbCC in each st. 216[236] sts.

Change back to shorter circular needle.
Rnd 2: [K1 MC, p1 CC] around.

Rnds 3-6, English/English, German/English Version: Work Border Chart 1 around.

Rnds 3-6, Spanish/English, Russian/English Version: Work Border Chart 2 around.

Rnd 7: [K1 MC, p1 CC] around.

Rnd 8: Work as for Rnd 7, placing markers after the first 39[59] sts, and every 59 sts thereafter, to mark the chart placements.

Next round, size Small only: Work Chart A sts 21-59 across first 39 sts, work Chart B across next 59 sts, chart C across next 59 sts, and Chart D to end of round.

Next round, size Large only: Work Chart A across first 59 sts, Chart B across next 59 sts, chart C across next 59 sts, and Chart D to end of round.

Rnds 21-22: [K1 MC, p1 CC] around, removing pattern markers.

Rnds 23-26, English/English, German/English Version: Work Border Chart 1 around.

Rnds 23-26, Spanish/English, Russian/English Version: Work Border Chart 2 around.

Rnds 27-28: [K1 MC, p1 CC] around.

Bind off: Cut CC, leaving a 6 inch tail.
BO all sts in MC as foll: *ssk, ssk, slip both sts to left needle* to last 2 sts, ssk.
Cut MC and pull through last st.

FINISHING
Weave in ends. Block to desired measurements.

ABOUT THE DESIGNER

designername Ethan Lyn Draeger (fecknom) knits, designs, pretends to be a dinosaur and generally bumbles about in Chicago. A midwest US native who has also lived in Volgograd, Russia, ze has yet to escape the humid continental climate, and is just kind of resigned to it by now.

Ze can also be found here.