Tag Archive | hats

Bring on the Hats (and Headbands)

Okay, so if you’ve been following along at all (and Thank You to those who have!!) you know I love to make hats. There are so many variations: color, yarn weight, style, size, decorations. They’re fast to make. They keep people warm and make them look cute. They’re just so darn fun to make. But I don’t wear many hats, so I have to find other homes for them, and my kids can only wear so many.

To go along with that, for the coming year I’ve challenged myself to build my bonny knits business. I want to do more craft shows throughout the year and have inquired about a big one in March. I want to grow the audience on my bonny knits Facebook page. I want to add to my Etsy shop. I’m encouraged on that front because I got my very first Etsy sale this week, and it felt GREAT. I sold my Wonder Woman knitted headband, so now I want/need to get some more unusual headbands up for sale. My head is spinning with ideas: superheroes, minions, TMNT, Doctor Who…all those cool pop culture fandoms. What would you want to see?

I want to improve my photography and show off my pieces with better photos. I’m better than I was a year ago, but I’ve got so far to go. I want to start using models (i.e. my family) and take them outside. If I take it seriously and be professional about every aspect of it, I believe the customers will be more likely to see it as worth the money.

Whoops, got distracted there. My point is, I want to focus mainly on hats. I like them and they sell well. I’ve got a lot of yarn and three books devoted to hats. I think what I’d like to do is pick a book and just work my way through it, making each hat in there. Not only would I end up with a large, varied inventory of hats, but I think I’d end up learning a lot of new techniques too. So watch for that; I think it’ll be a fun new regular feature on my blog starting next year.

Until then, you can look at my two newest hats, one from yesterday and one from the day before. The first is another Super Soft Merino Hat. It was supposed to be for me, but I really think I want one with lavender instead of royal purple, so this will go into my inventory. This is my third from this pattern but the first I’ve made with the size 11 needles (which I got for Christmas) and it came out a bit bigger than expected.Yesterday I pulled out my one and only skein of Noro yarn, a pretty rainbow blend of Kureyon. It’s a hugely popular brand and I wanted to see what the fuss was about. I decided to do a spiral hat, choosing this one by Brittany Tyler. It was a fast, easy pattern and I loved watching the different colors emerge as I knit. But I was surprised by the yarn: it’s not really soft at all. It knit wonderfully; the slight stiffness made it easy to work with, and will help it hold its shape for ages. I just don’t think I could wear it, because I have a very low prickle tolerance. For those who like the warmth and look of wool, this is the hat for you! My good-natured son, who has a bigger head than I, was kind enough to model for me. But I think I need to stop posing things in front of the bookshelves. Surely I’m not the only one who gets distracted by looking at the titles in the background?

Today I’ve got a slouchy beanie on my hook. Yes, that’s right, I’m switching it up and making a crochet hat. Don’t worry, I’ll still be making other things, so it won’t be all hats all the time. Just most of the time!

Christmas Presents Unveiled

Dec27

I don’t know about all of you, but I was very tired yesterday. Christmas can wear a person out, what with all the shopping & wrapping & cooking & eating & cleaning & unwrapping & cleaning. But we had a wonderful two days of family time, so it was all worth it. And now that gifts have been given, I can share a few things I couldn’t share before.

The first is the Bumble Hat. He’s the Abominable Snowman from the Rudolph TV special and I found the link on Facebook. I was tempted to make one for myself but ended up making it for my aunt, who commented how much she liked it. I used some fuzzy white yarn from Joann (lost the ball band so I don’t know what it was, but not fun fur) and random acrylic from the stash for the face. He was so fun to make.I made a Jayne hat (from Firefly, I think. Or something like that.) for my sister and I think she liked it. I used Knit Picks Bulky, and the orange wasn’t quite as orange as it should be, but she assured me it was still acceptable. Our mother couldn’t figure out why she would want something like this, or how she could wear it out in public. Some things just can’t be explained.I made the hubby some fingerless gloves. He doesn’t wear gloves often but I figured maybe his hands get cold sometimes, and this way his fingers would be free. By some miracle, they actually fit! The pattern for these is called Maize, by Tin Can Knits, and there’s also a variation for a full mitten. I made them with Plymouth Baby Alpaca.Isn’t he cute? 🙂 You know who else is cute? My girl. I’d knit up another Super Soft Merino Hat for her in pink and gray but I knit it in front of her and told her it was for me. She was quite happy when she opened it Christmas morning. The experience of the boy’s hat did not go so well. I needed a box to wrap it in and in our box of boxes found one a good size. Without thinking, I reused it. The boy pulled off the paper and saw a box for a Doctor Who mug and got all excited, and I had to tell him it was a reused box. There were tears and I felt horrible. But after a few minutes, he recovered and didn’t seem to hold a grudge against the hat. Hmm, anything else? I think that might be all the gifty knitty things that I couldn’t share before. It was lovely because all the things I made were well-received and fit well. And I even managed to finish something new for myself just in time for the holidays: I bound off maybe five minutes before we left the house.That’s the Cupido Cowl knit in Knit Picks Reverie in Wine. I did not enjoy the knitting of it; too much knitting into purls which is not my favorite thing. But I do enjoy the finished project so much. It’s so soft and cozy, and not itchy at all. I have two more balls of the Reverie and I’ll make something else with it, but it’s going to be a very simple pattern next time!

I do hope the holidays went well for the rest of you too. I’m looking ahead to the new year with a lot of hope and optimism, and I’ll be sharing my goals, big and small, with you soon. (hint: there is yarn involved.)

Knitting Disappointments

Dec5

I finished the hat yesterday, like I said I would, but I’m not completely totally happy with it. I love the pattern, love how it’s got a lot of slouch, and it’s unisex. I love the yarn, how it’s soft and washable. What I don’t love is the big glaring mistake I made right in the middle of the hat.See?!? It’s horrible!! Okay, that’s nice of you to lie, but I know you see it. That line right where I started decreasing is because I stopped on the wrong round. I was supposed to stop after a k1, p1 round and I stopped after a knit round. Sighh. I didn’t notice it until I was halfway done with the decreases and…well, I confess: I was lazy. I could have frogged back but I didn’t. If it were for anyone other than a member of my immediate family, I would have, but I really don’t think my 11yo son will notice, let alone care. Plus, the other really cool thing about this pattern is that it’s reversible, so I turn it inside out and the line almost disappears on the purl side. Sorry for the crap photos. Again, I was lazy. Too lazy to get out the good camera so these are phone pictures. Plus black hats are really hard to photograph…on a phone. Inside. In the morning, when there’s no natural light because it’s raining outside. For those who are interested, this hat is called Graham and I do quite like it and I will be knitting it again, correctly next time! I used less than one skein of Knit Picks Brava Worsted in black. Anyway, the most important thing is that the hat is done, and I can wash it and put it aside with the rest of the gifts and move on.

Sure, I can move on to the bag I frogged. (I know, I’m a bundle of cheer today, aren’t I?) Here’s where I was:I love the yarns together but the pattern just wasn’t right for me. I don’t carry bucket bags, at least not as purses, and I want this to be a bag I’ll carry. So this morning I very slowly and carefully frogged it, and it went better than I expected. I think having the strand of wool in there was a huge help. Just the silk along would have ended up a tangled mess. Now I have a nice big ball and a new pattern, and I’m going to start fresh today.

As soon as I walk the dog, and drive an hour to pick up the girl’s flute, that is. In the rain. Just call me Eeyore.

Oh Happy Day: my yarn arrived!

Dec3

Knit Picks had a great sale last week, as I’m sure most of you yarn-people know. I made the mistake of browsing, you know, just for fun. I did *a lot* of browsing. So much that this box arrived on my porch yesterday.I tried to open it slowly, to make the anticipation last, but the puppy was urging me on and telling me to speed it up.I pulled out the lovely yarns one skein at a time, the better to admire them, until they covered most of my dining room table.That’s A LOT of yarn! It’s still there too, because it pleases me to look at it as I walk by throughout the day. I chose my yarns carefully based on what I want to do with my yarn business next year. With a bigger commitment to craft fairs, I want to build my inventory of popular items. So I’ve got perfect yarns for hats, headbands and bootcuffs in a wide variety of colors. And it’s all worsted or bulky, which are my favorite weights. I also bought some wool for felting some cute little bags which can be decorated with flowers or buttons. (Here’s hoping it felts better than the Cascade I used for that silly red tote.) And there on the lower right edge is some furry mohair Reverie in a lovely dark red. It’s going to be a fuzzy Christmas-time cowl for yours truly…unless I get it done and decide I don’t need it!

Today I’ve plucked out a skein of black Brava worsted and have begun a slouchy beanie for the boy for Christmas. I think I can get it done in one day!

Selfish Knitting at Christmastime

Dec2

I’m sorry, I don’t have much to show off, which is sad since it’s been a few days since I posted. Or at least it feels like it. But you know, I *do* have to do other stuff sometimes. Sighhh.

Yesterday I went to my new LYS, Angelika’s Yarn Store, to get some Cascade 220. You know that really pretty fuchsia and blue silk yarn I bought in Weston? I found a cool felted Bucket Bag pattern and decided to actually use the recommended yarn. Crazy, huh? I was hoping for a matching fuchsia but struck out, so I found a good blue instead. I think it’ll look really nifty. I’ve got the bottom knit and the stitches picked up for the body of the bag, so now it’s just a bunch of knitting in the round until it’s tall enough. This is my current waiting-room knitting project.And I loved the Purl Soho Super Soft Merino Hat so much that I needed to make another one, for myself this time! I found two skeins of the Mirasol Tuho in hot pink and cast on last night. Can I say again how much I love this yarn? So soft and squishy and warm. Mmmmmm….And that’s all, folks. I still have one fingerless glove and a little less than half a blanket to knit (it’s boring. Hard to make myself work on it.). I guess it needs to get a little closer to Christmas for the panic to set in enough to get me to abandon the fun knitting. So today, it’s cold and I’m grumpy, so I’m going to take my tea to the couch and knit for a while on my hat.

A Blogging Milestone

Nov24

I have reached a milestone: as of this weekend, I have 100 blog followers! And most of them aren’t friends or family, which is what really blows my mind. I’m so tickled and flattered that so many people enjoy my posts enough that they want to see them regularly! To all of you following me, I say a hearty THANK YOU!! You encourage me to keep this little adventure going and help me believe that maybe I can really call myself a writer.

That’s not the only bit of encouragement I’ve gotten either. I have a new follower on my Etsy page, and again, it’s someone I’ve never interacted with before. Of course I love to have my friends and family follow me, but when it’s a stranger, you don’t question the motive. You know it’s because they honestly like your page. And that feels good.

My Facebook bonny knits page is at 72 likes, so it’s a slow grower, but that’s okay. It’s grown by almost ten likes within the last couple of weeks; that’s encouraging. And I’m hoping that after Christmas when I have more time to put into my business, I can get that number higher too.

Okay. Enough with the boring number stuff. I’ve been productive the last few days and have several things to show off. They’re all Christmas gifts, and there’s a slim chance one of the recipients *might* see this blog, but oh well. First is a simple cowl, made to hug the neck closely.It’s modified from this headband pattern. But I honestly don’t remember now how many stitches I cast on, and apparently I didn’t create a project on Ravelry. I *think* I did 60 stitches on size 13 needles, and I just did a simple 3×3 rib until it seemed big enough. It came out a little looser than I intended but I think it will still please the recipient. I used Lion Brand Hometown USA, a thick, warm yarn, in Tampa Spice.Now a hat! Another hat, hooray! I love how this came out. It’s for one of my nieces and she saw something similar in a Delia’s catalog, so this is my attempt to recreate it. I especially like the big pompom on top. 🙂 This was my first time using a Purl Soho pattern, even though I’ve been admiring them for ages. It’s the Super Soft Merino Hats for Everyone. I didn’t have the right size needles so I did the men’s size on smaller needles. I think it came out perfectly. The gray is Cascade Pacific Chunky, an acrylic/merino blend. It’s a yarn I just found recently and it’s a new favorite. The light turquoise is Tuhu by Mirasol Yarns and oh my is it luscious. It’s 50% Llama, 40% Merino, 10% Angora. My SIL bought it and started knitting boot cuffs, and discovered she’s extremely allergic to the angora. It’s sad. But her loss was my gain: I bought the yarn from her and it was heavenly to knit with. I held it double to match the thickness of the Cascade, and I *think* have just enough left to make a pair of the 75 Yard Malabrigo Mitts to go with the hat. Fingers crossed!Last one: the Lucky 7 Felted Tote. I realize it’s not felted yet. This is what it looks like after two cycles in my washer. I think I have determined that my washer just doesn’t felt. There’s no center agitator, so the wool doesn’t get enough action. (haha!) This is made with Cascade 128 Wool. The label said nothing about superwash, so it really should felt. Today I will submerge it in hot water and beat it with a wooden spoon. Tune it tomorrow to see how that goes!

Etsy and The Art of Hat Knitting

Nov21

Wow. I got more views and comments from my Etsy post than almost any other post I’ve done. Sounds like it’s a big concern for a lot of people! I also got a lot of views on my Etsy page–thanks to those who followed the link! None of them have resulted in a favorite or a sale, but it’s a start. I really want to give it my best effort, but I’m still not convinced Etsy is going to be my focus going forward.

I think next year I’m going to put a lot more time and energy into craft shows. Based on my limited experience, it seems like hats, headbands and boot cuffs are hugely popular, and if you’ve got a variety of colors, you’ll sell them. It’s a philosophy I struggle with quite often, because that’s not how I craft. I prefer to find a yarn that calls my name and make the one right thing with it…and then move on to a different project entirely. Headbands and boot cuffs are fun and fast. But, if you’ve been following my blog at all, you know I LOVE hats. They’re my favorite thing to make. And I can get so much variation in patterns and types of yarn that I think I could easily specialize in hats without getting bored to tears.

For instance, I posted about the red cloche hat last time, and it’s been extremely popular. I’ve gotten a lot of compliments on it, and I even got an order for another one the next day! I got to knit this one in some blue-green wool, and I really like how the style works with the stiffness of the wool. I like this version even better than the red one. So yeah, I think I could be a hat specialist. I’d still make other things, bags and purses and cowls, but I want to built up a solid inventory of hats so I can be ready to do more shows next year. Need a hat? I’m your girl!

I just realized: I don’t have a hat on Etsy. Oops. Not the best move for the hat specialist. I better work on that today!

Let’s try this Etsy thing again

Nov19

Several months ago, I listed several things on Etsy and was disappointed that nothing came of it. I got a few favorites but never a sale. Since then, my crafting skills have improved, as have my photography skills. I’ve also got a better idea (I think!) of how to make Etsy work for me. It seems like you’ve got to find a niche, make those unusual specific things that you can tag really well. Anyway, I decided to dip my toes back into the water, and I’ve listed three of my favorite pieces. My shop name is bonnyknitsforyou. I’d love it if you’d check it out!

They’re all different categories and they’re varying prices, so it’s kind of a test, to see which ones get more views/favorites etc. I’ve set a low budget for promoting the listings. After Christmas I hope to get a little more aggressive with it and post more, maybe promote more. Anyone have any great Etsy advice for me?

I also have a finished hat to show off. Remember the red cloche I made on Sunday? I got the buttons sewn on and I love the finished product. It’s really an ingenious design, because you can just button the flap as far over as you want it, so the hat can be as snug or loose as you wish. Too cute. I definitely will be making more.Here’s yesterday’s and today’s project. I’m getting clever and bartering with my favorite flower maker, Junie Balloonie. In exchange for four flowers (two for gifts and two for me) I’m making another headband and two sets of boot cuffs. I can’t show off the headband yet because it’s so flipping awesome and I want her to see it first, but I’ll show you the boot cuffs. This is my favorite boot cuff pattern.And of course I’ll show off the flowers when they get here. I hang them on my purse, but they’re also hair flowers/brooches, and she can make them in any colors your heart desires. You can see some samples on her Etsy page here. If you checked out my shop, you might have noticed that I have one of her flowers on my pink purse.

Now it’s back to the yarn. The puppy is sleeping and the house is silent. It’s the best time to create!

Two Finished Hats, One Stupid Cowl

Nov11

Seriously? This purple Cascade Magnum is driving me bonkers! Last week I blogged about my challenges finding the right pattern for it, and I really thought I’d figured it out. I even bought the right size needles. Last night I cast on for the Red Rasta Cowl and it was going swimmingly: simple pattern, super bulky yarn, quick progress. The problem is I don’t like it.It’s not the yarn’s fault; I love the yarn and think it’s knitting up beautifully. But it’s so snug and stiff, and it’s already as tall as my neck with another 10 rows to go. It’s not going to drape around my neck the way it looks in the pattern picture. So I have two choices: frog and start over with more stitches and bigger needles, or frog and do the Marian pattern that I know works so well with the Magnum. What would you do?

In good news, I did manage to get a couple more projects completed. Remember that blue stripe hat that was too big? I got a new one knit up over the weekend. I even managed to knit in the dark for the first time! It was really fun, actually. As long as I was just doing simple stockinette in the round, it was easy. Anyway, hooray, that order is complete and I’m sending it off to my SIL for the embroidery.

I also finished my most recent travel-knitting project. I had a simple seed stitch slouchy beanie going for when I have to sit and wait somewhere, and I thought it would never be done. Yesterday I got close enough that I decided to finish it off at home. I used the Pompon and Seeds Hat pattern, which has been in my library for ages, and some black and gold Red Heart Fiesta yarn. I think an MU hat will be a hit at my next craft show! If I’d had some solid gold yarn, it would have a pompom. Finally, I thought I’d share my little penguin friend. A week or so ago my daughter was a little stressed out from all her activities, so I pulled out a crocheted penguin I’d made last year. I made him a hat and scarf and left him on her bed. She was delighted when she found him and named him Franklin. I’d make more…except I didn’t really like making him! Maybe I’ll look for a knit penguin pattern.Thankfully, she has survived the marching band season and the fall musical. She’s sad to see them end, but we’re all breathing easier to see our schedule open up a little bit. She was a wonderful nun in The Sound of Music, AND this weekend she auditioned for the All-District Band and earned the 9th chair in flute! That means she gets to move on and audition for All-State! Plus, she found out yesterday that she received the highest score on their school chair placement tests. As a freshman, she is the first chair flute at her school! Can you tell I’m a little proud?

Today my schedule is empty so I have a date with my couch and my yarn. I have an interesting endeavor that I’m working on, and I can’t wait to tell you about it, but I can’t yet. Maybe if I get a lot of knitting done today, I can share tomorrow!

Finished Object Friday … almost

Nov7

I got SO close to a five-day stretch of daily finished objects. This morning I had about fifteen minutes of crochet to finish off the second scarf and last piece in a 2-hat, 2-scarf order. I wove in ends and got out all the pieces to photograph…and the first hat slid down the styrofoam head. Bad sign. I tried it on, and it was loose. Since it’s for a young boy, that’s not going to work. Sighhhhh. I *thought* it looked big but I was afraid to try it on for this exact reason. Still, I’m glad I found out before I had the name embroidered on it! And I’m also glad that it’s a hat I have to re-knit and not a scarf.These are for two brothers who both like blue, so I used the same shades but alternated the starting color for the stripes. The hat is a simple beanie and the scarf is garter stitch (for the squish factor) with a single crochet border (for visual interest). I used Caron One Pound in Sky Blue and Midnight Blue, and each piece will have the boy’s name embroidered on it. But first I need to knit a smaller hat!