Buy both Meteor Shower patterns, Beanie and Mittens, for only $6.00! No coupon code needed; the discount will be automatically applied when you buy both. And if you have already purchased the beanie pattern, the discount still applies - you’ll get the mittens pattern for only $2.00! Please note that the retroactive discount will not work if you downloaded the beanie pattern when it was free; only if you purchased it.

Now earthfaire is offering a kit that includes all the yarn and beads you need to knit the Meteor Shower Beanie and Mittens! They have included gorgeous yarns from Malabrigo and the Fibre Company in colors similar to the originals. See it here.

If you’ve never watched a meteor shower, it’s time you saw one of these magnificent cosmic spectacles! Watching the meteors blaze bright white through a silent night sky is truly breathtaking. The annual Perseid meteor shower is the perfect one to start with and may make a convert of you! It’s my favorite meteor shower of the year for several reasons – it’s the second largest of the year, and it takes place in the summer so it’s easier to be outdoors during the optimal viewing hours after midnight. I also consider it my special birthday treat, because my birthday falls during its peak period from August 11 – 13. I always try to plan a little party every year, and I invite those friends who are game enough to stay up until the small hours of the morning and journey out to a remote location away from the lights of town to watch.

This year I decided to make party gifts for my guests, and I designed a beanie hat as a sort of souvenir of the occasion. I thought it would be useful too, because it can get chilly after midnight, even in August! And there are other meteor showers to watch at colder times of the year. I started with a “landscape” made of Noro Kureyon, and made the meteors into a simple repeat for easy stranded knitting. Then my inner science geek took over, and I decided to show the stars in the night sky as they appear in August (in the northern hemisphere) during the Perseids.

Sparkling beads seemed the perfect way to mark the stars, and considering the limitations of a worsted-weight canvas, the crown is a pretty fair representation of the sky as it will appear this August. I couldn’t show every constellation, but the highlights are all shown in their proper positions. (The pattern includes a “star map” of the hat with everything labeled.) Jupiter and Mars are also shown with colored beads, as they will be visible near the horizon at different times during the night. You might notice there is no moon in the sky – that’s because the new moon will fall on August 11, 2018, and this darker sky will make for even better viewing conditions.

The Meteor Shower Beanie is worked seamlessly in the round from the bottom up. The pattern is written for 16” circular needles and double points, but you can easily adapt it for magic loop. It begins with a ribbed brim and a few rows of plain stockinette to carry out the land and sky theme. The meteors are worked in stranded colorwork, and the beads are added with a small crochet hook. (Both are worked from a chart.) There are several options for working the crown – you can work the beaded constellations as I have done, and you could even connect them together as shown in the star map with thin yarn or embroidery floss. You could also add beads at random to make a more stylized starry sky without having to follow a chart, or leave the crown plain. I’ve also included a second chart for a stranded version with a “lice” pattern in the crown for more abstract stars. Any of these versions would be perfect for meteor watching!

Skills required:
• Long tail or other elastic cast on
• Knit and purl stitches
• Knitting small circumferences in the round
• Stranded color stockinette knitting
• Simple decreases (K2tog)
• Centered double decreases
• Adding beads with a crochet hook (instructions given)

Materials:

Worsted weight yarn suitable for stranding in three colors (yarns used in sample are in parentheses):
• Landscape – 36 yds (Noro Kureyon – 100% Wool, 50g/109 yd – Shade 221 – this color has been discontinued, so just choose one you like)
• Night Sky – 110 yds (Cascade 220 – 100% Peruvian Highland Wool, 100g/220yd – Shade 9543 Midnight Blue)
• Meteors/Stars – 20 yds for beaded or plain crown, 45 yds for “lice” crown (Cascade 220 – Shade 8505 White)

Beads: Size 6/0 seed beads:
• 150 x Crystal A/B (this number includes a few extra for loss, etc.)
• 1 x Silver Lined Amber A/B (for Jupiter)
• 1 x Red Peacock (for Mars)