Tag Archives: hats

Gridjunky, I think I love you

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jerome sevilla gridjunky knitted hats

So last night, after a lovely warm weekend away from my computer, I’m sitting on my couch, surfing the web, wondering what this morning’s blog post might be. And suddenly I have an email from Meg about Jerome Sevilla, aka Gridjunky, who buys mass-market sweaters second-hand, unravels them, and knits them into mathematically fascinating hats. I not only love the hats, I love the way he thinks and writes about them. Here’s hoping I can get him to do Our Tools, Ourselves. In the meantime, feast your eyes on his blog and Flickr.

Thanks, Meg!

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Speaking of magnificent hats, this week’s ICYMI post is FO Sightings: Kent Turman’s impeccable headwear.

Knit the Look: Here kitty kitty

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how to knit a kitty hat

Who says you have to stop wearing hats as the weather warms up? Whoever this girl is,* she is likely the only person on earth who can pull off this look — a playful, white, furry, kitty-shaped hat worn with a striking black-and-white skirt-and-top combo (and silver pumps, no less). It’s somewhat subtle, for a cat hat. I mean, the ears are understated. There aren’t any eyes or whiskers. (Although it looks like there might be a tail.) Still, let’s look at a slightly more subtle alternative, for those of us with chutzpah but maybe not quite so much as this girl. Here’s what you do: You knit The Purl Bee’s funny little Cozy Ear Flap Hat, minus the pompom — but instead of working the decreases for the crown, just knit a straight tube. Once it reaches the intended height (or the depth of your head), lay it flat and Kitchener across the top, so instead of being rounded off, it’s square on top. When you pull the hat on, the two corners will stick out a little like these ears. You could knit it in the Purl Soho Super Soft Merino the pattern was designed for, or go full kitsch and make it out of a fake-fur yarn like Lupo. If you want to add a tail, you’re on your own.

See Vanessa’s original post for more shots of the outfit.

*Update: She’s been identified as Olga Sorokina

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Street style photo © Vanessa Jackman; used with permission

Pattern news and updates

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knitting pattern news and updates

Remember those colorwork mitts of Thea Colman’s I was drooling over last month? She’s released the pattern. They’re now officially known as Bartender’s Choice.

Remember that great oatmeal criss-cross cable hat with the mustard edge and pompom? I recently came across a pattern that’s a very close match. It’s from Be Sweet; it’s called the Golden Coast Hat; and it’s free! It has a vertical cable in place of the straight rib, so just skip the cabling in that column and voilà. (Update: See also the Bushwick Beanie, mentioned in the comments.)

Remember Tara-Lynn Morrison of Good Night, Day and loop-stitch collar fame? I mentioned before that she’s done a little printed booklet of her patterns, and the update is that she’s now also selling kits for some of them in her webshop — brown bags containing the pattern booklet and the wool from the ready-to-wear version of whichever design you choose. She’s also been releasing photos of some of her new designs for fall, the lookbook for which you can click through here.

Remember Ysolda Teague? OK, I’m not sure I’ve ever blogged about her before. But in the realm of pattern news, I’m excited about the release of her Blank Canvas sweater pattern — an endlessly customizable, bottom-up, saddle-shoulder pullover.

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Also, remember those beautiful bushel baskets in the Fringe Supply Co. shop? A few of you have mentioned coveting them, so I wanted to note that there’s been a little run on them lately and I’m not sure I’ll be able to get them again. So if you’ve had your eye on them, best to get your order in!

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Knit the Look: Ilva Heitmann’s waffled toque

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how to knit Ilva Heitmann's rust-colored waffle beanie

Ilva Heitmann looks like she was born to wear this rust-colored waffle-stitch beanie, doesn’t she? Knitting your own requires only that you know how to knit and purl, knit in the round, and work the most basic decreases. In fact, this would be a great project for someone looking to advance their beginner knitting skills. All you need is the Breakfast Waffles Hat pattern (free download) from Rosencrantz Knits, and two skeins of Quince and Co’s Lark yarn in Nasturtium. To make it even more like Ilva’s, stop the ribbing a few rows sooner than the pattern specifies. Then switch to larger needles (US7s or even 8s) and add a few extra repeats of the waffle pattern before decreasing. That’ll give it a little more slouch. (Bonus: You might even have enough yarn left over to knit a pair of Hannah Fettig’s 70-yard mitts, which one can never have enough of.)

See Vanessa’s original post for recommendations on the coat to go with.

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Street style photo © Vanessa Jackman; used with permission

The next big hat trend — but what’s it called?

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Victoria Beckham giant knitted hat

Is there a name for this kind of Russian-y rolled-brim beanie? The mega version above was worn by half the models at the Victoria, Victoria Beckham show, but I’ve been noticing them popping up here and there. Witness the bright pink one on street-style darling Miroslava Duma, and the vintage YSL green number on Refinery 29′s Christine Barberich. I don’t think I’ve ever stumbled across a pattern, so if nobody beats me to it, I might have to work one up. Because I’m telling you: all the rage next year.

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Knit the Look: Jemma Baines’ big black cable beanie

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how to knit jemma baines black cable beanie - vanessa jackman photo

I’m over the moon for the look of Jemma Baines’ oversized black cabled beanie and want to knit it immediately — because it’s adorable and because what’s more fun to knit than cables? I’d go with Eveli Kaur’s Bulky Hat pattern (free), knit in Blue Sky Alpacas’ Bulky Alpaca Naturals yarn in Black Bear, pictured above. Lengthen the ribbing a little bit, and add a pompom at your discretion. For a slightly bulkier hat with a little more complex cabling, try Stephanie Pearl-McPhee’s An Unoriginal Hat knit in Cascade Magnum in Black.

See Vanessa Jackman’s post for the rest of Jemma’s outfit.

(Note to beginners: If you haven’t knit cables before, Kaur’s pattern would be a fantastic place to start. You’ll die when you realize how simple a basic cable is.)

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Street style photo © Vanessa Jackman; used with permission

Lost and found and Elsewhere

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name that hat pattern

I found it!

Long before Jo taught me to purl, she was our number one hat supplier. And this is my favorite of all the hats she’s made me. Well, actually, she made this one for Bob and I stole it. I love the minimalist stitch pattern; it suits my head like no other hat does; and it’s the most awesome charcoal gray — with the exact dark sheen of graphite. For a long time, when I was commuting by ferry to San Francisco, I wore it every single day. One of the ferry crewmen actually mocked me for it each morning as I passed him, as if I didn’t need a hat around here in the middle of summer or something. And then somewhere along the line I lost it. And I cried. So I was thrilled when I found it yesterday, waiting patiently in the bottom of a tote I hadn’t used in a long time. Not only because I have it back! But because it’s one thing I’ve been dying to knit ever since learning how, but there was no photo, no record of it in Jo’s Ravelry, and I couldn’t describe the poor lost thing well enough for her to recall it. (This is a woman, after all, who knits a lot of hats. Hi, Jo!) And, to my great dismay, I have never run across the pattern in all my trolling. So I’ve got a Fringe project bag to send to the first person to correctly identify the hat pattern in the comments below. I’m counting on you!

UPDATE: Thanks to Meg for identifying it — it’s Bamboo Stalks by Mandy Funderburk.

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Meanwhile, a few links:

— The funnest news in knitting this week is a months-long Project Runway-style competition for knitting designers, called The Fiber Factor and produced by Skacel (aka Addi). Given that we’ve had everything from food to Fine Art to sci-fi movie makeup submitted to this format, I think knitting may actually be the only creative exploit left unaddressed. And with good reason: You can’t exactly create knitwear on a TV production company’s schedule. So The Fiber Factor will allow for multiple weeks to finish challenges, and the whole thing will play out online. Cheers to Skacel for giving this a go! If you want to apply to be a contestant, the info is here.

— There’s a good interview on the Colette blog with Elizabeth Cline, author of Overdressed: The Shockingly High Price of Cheap Fashion. Everything being said about sewing in this regard is obviously also true of knitting. The book also factors into Amy Christoffers’ roundup of books on this subject.

— The Boston Globe finds that men are taking up cooking, reading “and even, yes, knitting.” (h/t Clara Parkes)

— It turns out I’m going to need to get my hands on a copy of The Gentlewoman, which everyone’s been raving about. I don’t want to miss the feature titled “Terribly nice jumpers with Yasmin Le Bon,” spied in this paean at Pugly Pixel.

— And this is too funny-cute for words.

Happy Friday!

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