Getting out of a rut

With the weather getting cold and possibly rainy mid-week, I've been in a bit of a rut with my knitting since not finishing the Twinkle top I started a while back. So today I pulled some new yarn out and have started whipping up a hat that I was inspired by in the Sundance Catalog. It's in a nice, inviting plum color that I plan to add natural shell buttons evenly spaced around the band. I cast on 45 stitches and knitted a moss stitch border then changed to a crossed rib stitch (44 st). Here's how I'm running with it so far...