(H)at Long Last
December 7th, 2012
*Lest I forget to mention it — you can purchase the hats here*
The pixie hats are done. Finished. Completed. Along with 54 assorted pin-on ribbon & felt flowers. Leaving me only sort of cross-eyed.
Once again, I am left wondering about the D. H. Lawrence connection, but I swear it made sense at the time.
I had a little too much fun adjusting colors on the outdoor shots in Adobe Lightroom …
And of course, the all important interior shot, complete with a view of my brand new embroidered labels.
I think it’s fair to say I would never make it in a sweat shop. I tried to find shortcuts to speed up the production of the hats, but in the end sewed the exteriors completely by hand — including the ribbon binding. I like to think it’s because of my exacting standards, but in truth, I’m sort of lousy at machine sewing. Things just turn out better when I do them by hand. Plus I’ve gotten addicted to the control of hand stitching; I can’t understand why my machine balks at 1/4 inch seam allowances.
Pixie Prototype
October 9th, 2012
Last year, in the midst of a D.H. Lawrence kick, I knitted myself a grey pixie hat. For some inexplicable reason, I attributed a portion of my inspiration to Women in Love. Go figure.
So many people have asked me where I got my hat, that I finally decided I should try to make some and offer them for sale. Knitting is too time-consuming, so I made a felt version. It’s still mostly hand-sewn, but I can make one in a matter of hours instead of weeks.
Since felt is less forgiving of differently shaped heads, I graded my pattern into three sizes: Small (child), Medium (average woman), Large (average man). And of course, I’m decorating them with felt flowers.