This custom handspun lace rib hat was so much fun to make- and it was completely from scratch! Sweet, soft, snug and supercool! So much goes in to making a hand spun hat - I love every single part of the process, each offers me different ways to express my creativity.
Planning a hat from scratch:
I started with three wools - I hand dyed some white wool to teal, raw local unprocessed wool locks dyed to olive- the grey I left natural. I took the three and ran them through my drum carder to blend them up - sort of like making a paint color - the more you blend, the more even your color becomes. I carded(brushed) this batch at least 8 times - I wanted the grey and teal to be very combined, and did not add in the olive locks until the 6th carding or so - to offer some standout between the primary teal grey heathered blend. Once I got that where I wanted it - on to the wheel!
Most fibers that I run through my drum carder are formed into rolags(rolls of fiber) - fun to spin from directly, no other special prepping, which I love. I spun this up quick, I knew I wanted it to be funky - some super thick spots, super thin ones - some nips and noils from the olive wool locks - it needs to have character like its owner :)
Once I had it spun up, I set the yarn's twist in a bath of warm water and lavender, hang out the yarn and let it dry. Time to figure out what I'm knitting with this!
I knew the pattern I wanted to use for the detail edging - a sweet lace rib pattern - practically speaking, it offers give on the head, and if worn as a beret, it holds on. This pattern also offers a feminine detail of a lace pattern between the ribs.
Oh, and double bonus, that hat is completely reversible!
I used big needles to let the yarn show off - each part of the hat has interesting detail, lacy, delicate, but super soft and warm. I wasn't expecting the soft delicate edging that came about, but it is a very pleasant addition, something I plan to recreate very soon for my shop!
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