Toy Poodle Hair Scarf

It's been a year now since the woman who ordered this scarf originally contacted me with her request.  I told her how much fiber it would take to make a good size scarf, and she said she would save it up.  I didn't hear back from her until a couple of weeks ago when a package arrived in the mail with a bag of poodle hair!  I had completely forgotten about it, since it had been so long, but luckily had saved her email.  After getting in touch with her and finding out exactly what she wanted, I made this scarf.

It's seven feet long counting the fringe and eight inches wide, and is knitted on #8 needles.  Very soft with little curls of  the hair showing here and there.  I purposely spun it that way in order to create a more interesting texture.  She loved it and sent me this photo of her dog wearing it!

Hemp Brimmed Hat

This extra large and beautiful brimmed hat was made by my daughter, Allie, entirely from hemp.  It was a custom order from a woman who lives in LA.  It's perfect for the usually sunny weather there, providing protection from the sun as well as great style.  The extra fancy flower really works well, and I'm sure this hat is getting lots of compliments.

You can find more of Allie's brimmed hats on her page at www.handpsunhats.com/allie's_hats.htm.  She also has some very cute skull caps with and without flowers.

Big Custom Order

Being as how there is still snow in the mountains here in California, I recently received a custom order for a ski cap and large extra wide scarf to match.  I finished it a couple of days ago.  The scarf is 8 feet long counting the fringe and 9 inches wide.  The materials used were a variety of wools, with some alpaca, llama wool and wool/silk blend.  Big job, but I think it came out well.

And, believe it or not it is in the low 60's today in LA where I'm visiting my daughter and son in law, and it rained last nite!  I'm headed home to Ukiah next week where it's expected to be close to 100 though.

Plant Fiber Hats and Caps

This is the time of year that I usually start making lighter weight hats and caps out of plant fibers such as hemp, cotton, linen, bamboo and silk.  However it's been so cold where I live in Northern California that I just haven't had much inspiration.  People are still wearing their warm wool hats around here, and it's almost June!

So I'm just now getting around to posting the first of my "spring caps" here.  I put this hat up on the website a couple of weeks ago, thinking I would be making more soon.  Hopefully we'll have a shift to warm weather any day now, which will get me in the mood.

This cap is made from medium weight organic cotton, so is actually fine for any time of year, though it's not as warm as wool.  Cotton also works well for those with sensitivity to wool.  The olive and gray/green wide stripes are both cotton, and the thinner accent stripes are tan colored undyed linen and beige colorganic cotton, which is the natural color of the fiber.  

For more views of this hat see http://www.handspunhats.com/green_cotton_round_cap.htm 

To see more plant fiber hats go to http://www.handsunhats.com/spring.htm

Pill Box With Woven Scarf

I made this scarf awhile back.  Since I didn't have a hat to go with it, I put it away and forgot about it.  Then my daughter made some really great thick lumpy yarn and gave it to me.  It was just the right colors, so I got the scarf out and made this pill box style hat to go with it.
 
This is the first woven scarf I've posted on my website, so I'm not sure how it will go over.  Generally I only make woven scarves as custom orders.  They are quite laborious to set up, but after that are fun to make.  I use a small table loom which I can set in my lap while working.  I enjoy the process but doubt I'll ever get into learning how to use one of the larger, more complex looms.

The lumpy yarn at the top of the hat is made from wool, mohair, and silk, and the gray band is undyed Jacob wool. It's all crocheted. This style of hat is meant to fit snugly and cover just part of the ears.

Allie's new hats

My daughter, Allie, has been making some really nice new hats out of organic cotton, hemp, linen and bamboo.  All plant fibers.  She even has some fiber made out of corn.  It looks sort of like the bamboo, which looks a lot like silk.   Hats made from plant fibers are a good alternative for those with sensitive skin or wool allergies.  They're very versatile in that they provide some warmth in cold weather and are fine for warmer weather, too.

 

Aliie's husband, Marshall, asked her to make him one, and this is how it turned out.  It's made from hemp and bamboo and looks great on him.  I love the subtle colors!  She also made one for her yoga teacher.  This one has more cotton in it.  It's a short skull cap, while Marshall's is what I call a round cap, meaning a skull cap that covers the ears.

To see more of these plant fiber caps, go to www.handspunhats.com/allie's_hats.htm

Something for Pink Fans

This hat has bobbles similar to those seen in the green hat below.  It's a tighter knit though, so fits a smaller head.  Probably a smallish medium.  I like the art yarn top that looks sort of like a yarn garden.  It's mostly wool, with mohair locks, silk and some bits of novelty fiber spun into the art yarn.  The pale pink is two ply fine spun Shetland wool.  The bobbles are Corriedale wool, mohair and silk.

Some New Hats

I've been busy getting settled in my new/old home in the country.  Lot's of cleaning up to do, and lots of friends visiting.  I've managed to make a few new hats, though, so am finally getting around to posting them here.

This one is a sort of snood style floppy hat done in a mesh pattern.  It's made out of mostly linen with a bit of cotton in the flower.  Good for warm weather or for those who may be allergic to wool.  See more images at www.handspunhats.com/spring.htm

I've also invented a new style of lumpy knit hat with a stitch I made up for the bobbles.  The yarns in this hat are not quite as bulky as some of my other lumpies.  It's a one size fits all with a slouchy, semi-tam look and plenty of room for big hair.  See more at www.handspunhats.com/lumpy_knit_hats.htm

I've also just finished a modified version of my tassel fez hat that has a slightly wider top that curves under slightly a bit like a tam.  The original tassel fez hat looked like this and seemed to attract mostly male buyers - possibly because I pictured it on a male display head:

 

So I've photographed the new style on a female model.  This does not mean it's only for women though.  Either style is fine for either gender.

 

 

The top of these hats is made with two ply yarns that make it a bit thicker, which helps it hold it's shape very nicely.  The band is one ply natural color soft Romney wool and the beads are hand painted glass.  I didn't use any dyes in either of these hats, though a brighter colored one with dyed yarns would probably look very nice, too.  These hats can be found on my website at www.handspunhats.com/wool_skull_caps.htm