Sunday, November 14, 2010

Day 35, 26 hats, oh my!


Oh my goodness, am I behind or what??? 9 hats behind, in fact! This is a tough time of year to be keeping this schedule. There are winterizing things to do and Christmas things to do and Thanksgiving things to do. Howmsoever...I'm sure I'll have lots of time to catch up after the first of the year, so why worry? It only takes 4 hours for me to make a hat; one would think I could fit that in every day. But, stuff happens and, well, here I am. This picture is one of the hats I made in the last couple days. It doesn't show as well as I'd like in this picture, but the yarn is really beautiful. It is so gorgeous in person that I called the company I bought it from originally to see if I can buy more. They are going to send me pics of what is available now, but this one is not. I'm so sad. The color is called Mermaid and includes blues, purples and greens. The derby is definitely my favorite hat style. I looks great on everyone and it's easy to add flowers and other embellishments.

Friday, November 5, 2010

Day 27, Catching up today


Here is an example of a felted hat using one of the fancy yarns. I added a popcorn style yarn and knitted it along with my wool yarn to get this effect on a cloche style hat. It has an adorable bell shape, but could have been shaped into a regular cloche type flair. If you want a pattern for this hat, just leave me a comment asking for it. Today I get to knit all day! Hopefully I'll get two or three knitted so I can begin to catch up with my 365 goal. Also, I will be putting some of the hats in a local shop so I can provide more support this year. Yesterday I scouted out other people doing things like this in other communities and I'm so heartened by how many are involved. Sometimes a great idea just happens.

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Day 25, What a surprising process

Making felt hats by knitting them first is always a risky process when you are using a yarn you’ve never used before. I knitted a small square in the yarn and processed it in the washing machine to see how it would shrink. It came out really short, so I decided to knit a really tall hat, and just hope I could stretch and pull it into shape. It looked like a long veil when I finished knitting. (She was cracking up under there!) Then I washed it in the washer for 10 minutes in hot water with a little soap and an old pair of jeans. After the first wash it looked like something the cat-in-the-hat would wear and slid right down over her head. So, I washed it again for 10 minutes using the same process, but omitting the soap. It was a much smaller version of the cat-in-the-hat. And so the work began. I used a large bowl to stretch it over just to get the basic shape to change from long and tall to short and round. This can only be done when you take it out of the washer and it is still wet. Once dry, the felt is set. Then I formed it on a hat form. The mannequin was still laughing when I tried it on her, but I think she was expressing how much she liked the finished hat, don't you?


If you are interested in the pattern for this one, drop me a note.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Day 24, Election Day



Here is a finished hat using Lion Brand fisherman's wool. I wish it came in more colors than the basic beiges and browns, but it is really nice to work with. We might be able to get color by dyeing it. I thnk I'll try that.

I'm still working on the blue hat using the lacey yarn. Yesterday was completely scheduled with appointments for a local homeless charity. But, today is the first day of the rest of the year!!! I will finish it today! I will! I will! Right after I go out and vote!