she makes hats

a most bespeckled hat // week one

Oh, how I am loving working on these Bespeckeld Hats!

I cast on for the first hat while on the road between Omaha and Chicago. Yes, I was a few days early, but I knew I had to get one on the needles fast, so I'd have something to work with in between family functions.

There wasn't as much time to knit as I thought there was, and so I've only gotten these two hats done so far. I love knitting this hat however, and I can't wait to whip up a few more in the next week!

In addition to sharing these hats I've made in the last week or so, I also have the pleasure of sharing an interview I did with Alex, the designer of A Most Bespeckled Hat!

You've been a knitwear designer since 2006. At what point did you realize this could be a full-time gig?

Hmm... that's a good question. I started off selling finished hats and scarves on etsy, and it rapidly became apparently that the profit margin on that kind of thing is pretty...sad. So I started selling the patterns as well. I don't think it was until Ravelry came along that I realized there could actually be a big enough market to make it a career- Ravelry really changed the game for indie designers. But it's always been iffy whether or not it could truly be a full-time gig- even now, I'm not sure it's sustainable. I keep my cost of living really low at the moment, but at some point I'm going to need things like "my own health insurance" or "a new car because the old one died", haha.

What's your favorite type of pattern to design? Favorite type of yarn to use?

It's probably obvious, but I gravitate towards hats. They're generally one size and take one or two skeins (which is fortunate, since most of my impulse buys are just a skein or two.) There's no "second sock syndrome" like with socks or mittens, and I can use heavier weight yarns than I would with most shawls. Cowls are fun too, but I wear hats more often. Favorite type of yarn... I like squooshy, soft, worsted weight wools, preferably with some good, subtle color depth. I use a lot of Malabrigo, obviously, and I love Madelinetosh's colors as well. 

If you weren't designing knitwear, what would you love to be doing?

That's something I've been thinking over a lot, actually. I don't think I'll ever stop knitting, but I think I'll probably follow up on another passion or two at some point- the trouble is that I have too many completely unrelated interests. I'm toying with the idea of proper fashion design, or maybe doing more writing or blogging. I've considered going back to school for marketing or to get a further psychology degree, but I don't like the idea of being saddled with major loans and having to take a job I don't love to pay them off. Some days all I want to do is live in the wilderness and have a herd of goats and make cheese... others I want to live in NYC and take photos of people's outfits. It's a problem.

When you knit for others, what do you like to make? Do you have any go-to patterns?

Heh, I'm afraid I don't knit for others, much- usually just a few hats each Christmas. Generally I'll make something really basic and relaxing, like a plain old stockinette hat in some handspun yarn (which is tough to use in designs, so I save it for non-work knitting) with some buttons or a giant pom pom. Occasionally I'll use it as a test run for design ideas- Catacomb's prototype was a hat for my father-in-law. I don't often use other people's patterns, though I have a list a mile long of ones I'd like to find time for. Someday, someday...

Your CAF blog looks like so much fun! What's your favorite non-knitting crafty outlet?!

Well, judging by the blog, it's "gluing glitter to things", haha! I haven't done that in awhile but now that it's warm and I can glue outside again, it'll be back, I'm sure. I recently took an online painting class, and that's been fun, though it's always a little frustrating for me to be at a "beginner" level with something. I need to learn to push through and put in the practice to actually get good at it. I've also gotten way into the nail polish trend, though I don't know if that really counts as crafty.

Don't forget, you can get  10% off the A Most Bespeckled Hat pattern when you purchase it using the code "IMAKEHATSTOO"!

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I'm making 10,000 hats for 10,000 people. These are hats 104 and 105.

the June and July hat: A Most Bespeckled Hat!

I'm super excited to share the hat I'll be working on for June and July ... A Most Bespeckled Hat by Alexandra Tinsley!

While I managed to work through bunches of my smaller bits of yarn in May, I've got bunches of remnants hanging out in a fun clear glass jar in our dining room - not enough to make even a baby hat, the colors don't go together enough to make a striped hat, and so I'm going to use them up making as many Bespeckled Hats as I can!

The Most Bespeckled Hat pattern is super customizable, but I'll be doing my best to stick with the pattern as written. I love that it comes with a fold-over brim for extra warmth, and that the pom is made in the contrasting color.

Because we've got big plans to lounge by the pool at my mom's apartment complex as much as possible this summer, I'm combining June and July as far as charity knitting goes. I still aim to knit at least 10 hats per month towards my charity goals, but by giving myself two months to knit up this hat instead of just one, I'm hoping to work through more of my stash, build up a big box of hats for the Chicago Food Pantry and still have plenty of lazy days.

Yep, the charity we'll be making hats for in June and July is again the Chicago Food Pantry. I'm just blown away at all the need, and so I'm focusing my efforts for a few more months in the hopes that I can get as many hats for those kids as possible!

JOIN IN ON THE FUN:

Because last year, over 1,000 kids used the services of this specific Chicago Food Pantry, the need is super great for hats again this year. I'd love to have you join in with me and knit some hats for these kids!

To entice you to join in on the fun, I'll be offering up a few fun suprises throughout the month - think giveaways, incentives, and more!

Even more exciting, Alexandra is offering up a 10% discount on the Most Bespeckled Hat pattern for folks who will be joining me in knitting it up for charity during June and July!

Simply head to Ravelry and the A Most Bespeckled Hat pattern page, and when you purchase the pattern use the code "IMAKEHATSTOO" to receive 10% off on the pattern.

The coupon code will be good until June 14th, so you've got some time to decide if you want to join in on the fun!

May Charity Challenge // The Final Tally

Well folks, I'm calling it. A bout of strep has been running rampant through out house of late and the next few weeks are going to be super full as we get ready for my youngest brother's high school graduation. While I'll surely be making hats, I don't know that striped crochet beanies will be on the agenda (I need something that calls for just one ball of yarn, I think!) so I'm wrapping up this month's challenge a bit early.

All in all, I think May's challenge turned out well. Sixteen hats in total will be taken with as we travel to Chicago and hand-delivered for the Chicago Food Pantry - I can't wait!

I've already got June's challenge picked out, and it's one I'm super excited for! I'm actually planning to knit from the same pattern for both June and July - but you'll hear more about that on the first!

For now, I'd love to know how your charity knitting for the month has been going!

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I'm making 10,000 hats for 10,000 people. These are hats 082 through 085.

earflap hats // week two

Week two of my May hat challenge did not see as many hats finished as week one. You can see above week one hats on the left and week two hats on the right.

That's right, there's only three.

Some weeks mean more hats and some mean less. This past week was a hard week, full of a crabby baby, some test knitting, a few visits with friends and an extended family get-together. All this coupled together to mean less hats made for the Chicago Food Pantry.

But! The month isn't even half over and I've already finished up 12 hats - pretty good if I do say so myself. I'm loving that I've moved from only striping colors with white to browns and greys, and I even pulled a large skein of black yarn from my stash to use with several skeins of neon yarn I've got.

How did your week of charity crafting go?

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I'm making 10,000 hats for 10,000 people. This are hats 071, 072, and 073.

* Read more about the May Crochet hat challenge here, including the pattern I'm using for all these hats.

earflap hats // week one

Week one of the hat challenge for May went pretty well, if I do say so myself! I managed to crochet up nine hats (all pictured above) for the Chicago Food Pantry!

Eight of these hats are made to fit children between 1 and 4 years old, with one hat fitting a child 4 years and older. I also managed to use up three balls of white yarn and a few balls of colored yarn!

Working through hats like this really drive home just how much yarn I actually have - while I see all the hats I made and am super excited at how many I'll get done this month, I also know how little a dent these made in my stash ... you wouldn't even know any yarn was used!

I'm hopeful I'll make at least some dent in my stash this month as I make more and more hats ... this week I'm going to focus on the largest size (4 years plus) to use up a bit more yarn and make hats that will fit a wider variety of kiddos. I'm also going to mix it up color-wise, using grey and black yarn for the neutral stripes as well as white!

How did your charity crafting go this past week? I'd love to hear about it in the comments!

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I'm making 10,000 hats for 10,000 people. These are hats 061 through 069.