Spindlicity-an online magazine for handspinners

Spindlicity-an online magazine for handspinners

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By Janel Laidman

SPECS:

WPI: 11-12

Gauge before felting: 4.25 sts x 6 rounds per inch

Gauge after felting: 4.25 sts x 7 rounds per inch

Finished dimensions: 9Ľ inches in diameter

Fiber: 4 oz handpainted Blue Faced Leicester

Silk Ribbons: 5 different colors of 4mm silk ribbon, 3 flower colors and 2 greens

Beads: 2 different colors of 4mm swarovski crystal bicones

Button: A sparkly grandma button for the center

I have always loved hats...and I have a secret girlie princess side that has always loved sparkly, flowery things. So I decided to indulge my inner princess with a silk ribbon embroidered flower hat for spring.

I knew I wanted a hat that was felted to give me a fairly even surface to work with for silk ribbon embroidery, so I chose Blue Faced Leicester as my fiber to work with because I knew it felted beautifully and was very soft after felting. I had a pink and yellow hand dyed roving in a colorway called "flamingo sunrise" that seemed just the right combination of sunny and whimsical. I spun this up to about 11 or 12 wpi in the two-ply and started knitting.

Once the hat was knit, I washed it in the washer in hot water with a drop of dishwashing liquid on high agitation through an entire cycle and it felted to the perfect size. Your washer felting will vary depending on your washer, water temperature, fiber used and length of cycle. It is best to knit two small swatches out of your fiber and felt one of them to see how much your fiber will felt.

After felting, I let the beret dry overnight, then embellished it with silk ribbon embroidery. If you have never done ribbon embroidery, you will be surprised at how easy and quick it is for maximum effect. If you don't have any silk ribbon around you can also use yarn to embroider your hat, but it will have a little bit different look to it.

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I added some swarovski crystal beads for extra flash. Finally, I searched my button collection that I inherited from my grandma, to find just the right sparkly button for the center of the beret...And voila! A beret sparkly enough for any princess to wear on a fine spring day!

Garden Beret

Abbreviations:

CO Cast on

K, k Knit

P, p Purl

st, sts Stitch, stitches

K2tog Knit 2 together (a 1-stitch decrease)

S2KP Slip 2 sts together knitwise, knit 1, pass the 2 slipped stitches over the stitch just knitted (a 2-stitch decrease)

M Make a stitch by knitting into the stitch below (M1 = Make 1 st, M2 = Make 2 sts, etc.)

*...* Repeat the instructions between the asterisks for the rest of the round, unless otherwise directed

CO 80 sts onto a circular needle and join, taking care not to twist your sts.

K1, P1 rib for 1 inch.

Next round: *K 3, M 1*, end K2, which will increase by 26 sts. (106 sts)

Next round: *K26, M 1, K27, M 1*. (110 sts)

K stockinette for 25 rounds.

Divide into 5 sections of 22 sts each, place st marker between each section.

Crown:

For each section decrease as below, following chart for color changes.

Round 1: *S2KP, K19*. (100 sts)

Round 2 and all even-numbered rounds: K.

Round 3: *S2KP, K17*. (90 sts)

Round 5: *S2KP, K15*. (80 sts)

Round 7: *S2KP, K13*. (70 sts)

Round 9: *S2KP, K11*. (60 sts)

Round 11: *S2KP, K9*. (50 sts)

Round 13: *S2KP, K7*. (40 sts)

Round 15: *S2KP, K5*. (30 sts)

Round 17: *S2KP, K3*. (20 sts)

Round 19: *S2KP, K1*. (10 sts)

Round 21: *K2tog*. (5 sts)

Round 22: K.

Finish off by pulling the yarn tail through the remaining 5 loops and cinch, then pull thread through to inside of hat.

Felt the hat by washing in the washing machine with hot water, soap and agitation. If you are not sure how much your fiber will felt, it's best to keep checking the hat throughout the washer cycle to determine if you need to stop.

Once the hat is felted to the correct size, shape it by hand and lay on a towel to dry.

Silk ribbon embroidery can be added once hat is dry. See drawing below for placement of motifs. Place motifs along ridges formed by the decreases in the hat shaping to get an even 5-pointed star. Add beads and a button, and book afternoon tea in the rose garden!