Needles, hats, and a new book

Yesterday I stopped by at my LYS, Principessa had some business to take care off, and of course I stayed for a couple of hours. The way it goes usually, Paperino goes to the huge box of toys and park himself there, Principessa looks at yarns, and I just sit on the sofa and knit. Before leaving the house I told myself I need to remember to buy some US #6 dpn's - I did found the wrist warmers I am making, and then I remembered why I lost them. I was using some ugly plastic dpn's that made knitting with silk and wool not fun.
So I bought dpn's #7 and a book:



Why did I buy #7 when I needed #6? Beats me. Why have I been wanting a book called "Knitting from the top" forever when I loathe knitting from the top? Again, I have no answer for you, my friends. It's kind of like when I decided to knit socks on two circulars since I do not like circular needles. Maybe I just want to be proved wrong.

I read the book anyway, and it is interesting. Still do not buy into the "knitting from the top is easy because you can try things as you go and there is no math involved". Unless Barbara Walker and I live in two different universes with very different laws of physic, I do not understand why she thinks I can't try things on while I am knitting from the bottom. And there is quite some math in her patterns. I was puzzled, but intrigued by the set-in-sleeves from the top, until I read I need to pick up stitches. No, thanks, I'll take seams over picking stitches every day of the week. And yes, there is another version with no picking up involved, but it is the one with a third of that, a sixth of this, if seems to me that the regular set-in sleeves are way simpler. But maybe it is just me. And I'll try everything once, even two circulars.

As for the dpn's #6, I love them, my favorite, Brittany, I am making mittens so that I can get rid of the almost a ball of Cascade 220 Superwash in red I have left from this:



The pattern is from Classic Elite Yarns, and be warned, my mom, who actually knitted the sweater, said that it is quite wrong. I thought it was because she does not read English, but then, after ripping out the collar twice today, I remembered that mom is always right. And I told Principessa too.

Oh, I said hats? Yes, the hats for the Preemie Project: