I finished this commissioned hat last week while we were visiting family on the north island of New Zealand. It is one of my original grannie square hats, with a knitted top and sassy tassle. A friend of mine ordered it for her mother's birthday.
I put in a lining of some stretchy polyester that looks a little like crushed velvet. Very cozy without too much bulk.
I was almost walking out the door to run into town to send it to the recipient, when news came that the Christchurch earthquake had just struck. From that moment on, everyone in the room was glued to the TV, watching live footage from the devastation in the city. We were especially worried, because so many of our friends were in Christchurch at the time *and* we have a house there.
So, that hat got mailed a few days later, as we made our way south back to our disaster-stricken town.
I am happy to report that no one we know was hurt or killed, but are plenty of people that lost loved ones. My heart cries for them.
