I have knitted a new hat. It is probably a beanie, but I think it’s far too complex to be called a beanie.
The hat is the Reversible Lotus Blossom hat from Cat Bordhi’s wonderful book “A Treasury of Magical Knitting”, and it is based on a Möbius strip. Möbius fascinate me and when I discovered I could knit them without putting an artificial twist in the knitting, I was hooked. [side note: if you didn’t cover the concept of a Möbius strip at school or have forgotten what they are, check out our old friend, Wikipedia]. When you knit a möbius, you knit in both directions with the cast on row being in the middle like a spine. Fascinating, huh?
The möbius is only used for the band part of the hat and that’s where that little twist at the front comes from.
The trick with the twist is in the casting on and it was a struggle with this wool as I had two strands held together, making it very thick. The wool is left over from my (as yet unblogged) jumper for the One Year One Outfit challenge I’m participating in. It is from a Corriedale sheep, and the interesting thing about these sheep is that they are born dark brown and get lighter as they get older. Given that this wool is handspun and gorgeous I didn’t want to waste any of it. I have a tiny bit left and plans… :).
The pattern for this hat is rather lovely, with the leaves of the lotus blossom forming the crown, and then a bumpy sort of pattern forming the flowers, which show up in the first photo.
As the name of the hat implies, it is reversible, but only slightly different on the inside.
The crown has ridges and the body of the hat looks like this. It’s tricky to see with the thick wool, but both sides are equally nice and I shall put it on in whatever way comes to hand.
The hat is too big for me – the pattern only came in one size, and I have a child-like head – so I tried to felt it down. I did shrink it a bit, but it still covers my ears and some of my neck at the back. This is a good thing when I am camping in the wilds of rural south west Western Australia, as I am today, where it is freeeeezing!
It is day 8 of Me-Made-May’15, and I am wearing clothes conducive to camping, which means keeping out the cold and supervising my husband in his tree planting activities. I am also doing a bit of sewing, and I’ve made Mark a long sleeve t-shirt and me a Nettie bodysuit, as well as doing some mending, so it’s been a productive day.
In a nutshell: This is the Reversible Lotus Blossom Hat from A Treasury of Magical Knitting
It is knitted from handspun Corriedale wool bought at Bilby Yarns in Willagee. I am also wearing an Archer shirt made from flannelette sheeting bought at Spotlight, knitted socks, and StyleArc Barb pants made from thick 100% cotton fleece which I bought online from somewhere expensive.
You’re a self-made woman then! Too bad that the beanie came out slightly big for your head, but you could wear it as a slouchy beanie, i.e. may more on the back of your head with some bangs peeking out in the front.
I have exactly the same problem. All hats whether bought or made, seem to sit on top of my glasses! I long for attractive but tiny hats. Congrats on your enterprise. Making things while camping is real devotion. Enjoy your holiday.
Sorry but is that an ELECTRIC machine on your table? And you are camping!
P.S. The hat looks great even if it is a bit big.
Fascinating pattern. I gave up on hats years ago, I could never find one small enough for my pin head. You’ll have nice warm ears, anyway.
Lovely! You look quite cozy, and that pattern is very sweet – I might have to track it down & add it to my queue 😉
The whole book is a revelation. Try to find it on ebay, otherwise it’s too expensive.
I’ve discovered that the designer has a e-book version of her book available on Ravelry, it’s delightfully tempting! Thank you again 😉
Good luck. Some of the wraps are lovely – I have made many of them.
Interesting cap/hat however it will keep you nice and warm whilst camping.