Being nearly six feet tall I’ve (This is Johanna!) always been envious of my cute petite friends, but recently my envy has doubled. And I’m not talking about being envious of your average cute as a button 5ft. 2-incher. I’m realizing more and more how lucky the really, really small people are. Im talking about those darn lucky babies. Their miniscule size makes clothing them ideal. I mean who wants to spend more time making a large hat to go on some run of the mill adults head when you could make an adorable hat that would look oh-so-cute on the head of an itty-bitty baby?
It is for this exact reason that Susan B. Anderson’s book “Itty-Bitty Hats” is so, dare I say it, cute. Anderson’s book contains upward of thirty ways to cover baby’s head. Her patterns are all, of course, adorable, but they are also interesting patterns that are well explained and showcased in lots of colored photos that epitomize cute. As a novice knitter myself these hats feel like a likely undertaking (ones that I would not bore of quickly), that could teach me lots of new stitches, not to mention the very comprehensive beginners introduction.
The hats range from having innovative construction, such as the “vertical stripes” pattern, to taking simple hat designs to cuter heights by adding appliqued animals, bear ears, and crazy poms. My favorite is called the marshmallow bonnet. I’ve been asking myself if I would look ridiculous in a white, fluffy bonnet decorated with pink pom-poms. Unfortunately the answer I keep coming back to is, Yes.
Now, this may seem excessive, but the “itty-bitty” theme has been invading my life lately. This past weekend I attended a knitting retreat in Berkley Springs, WV. Amy and Laurie Gonyea, taught me and four other eager knitters. In order to pack in the maximum amount of information that we could in two days, Laurie and Amy taught everything in miniature. We made a side to side vest, a top down raglan and toe-up socks, all teeny-tiny. As we made all of these items intended for an itty-bitty, one of the students exclaimed “Why does Itty-Bitty get all of the good stuff?!” And I have to agree, that Itty-Bitty, sure is lucky!