Monday, March 4, 2013

Smocked Slouch from Genuine Purl - Day 5


Closing in...

I’ve finished the prescribed rows of stockinette, and am starting the decreases needed to make the crown of this hat.  Decrease rows are always fun, because you pick up momentum as the rounds get shorter and shorter.  You’re rounding the last corner, careening toward the finish line, and that’s always fun.

I never truly get a sense of a hat’s shape until the decrease rows.  Mathematically, it’s a small percentage of the hat, but it seems to dictate shape almost more than the band does.  Perhaps that’s because it’s so visible.  Or just that the structure takes its cues so strongly from the crown.  That’s not a bad thing; it strengthens the creative process of making a hat--you’re never really done until you’re done.

I’ll admit, doubts are creeping in about my extra-slouchy choice.  I look at this hat and it looks, well, roomy.  Not sloppy, just slouchy.  Aptly named, I guess.  One thing I’ll say for this design and this yarn; this is a cozy hat.  It’s warm without being bulky or hair-smushing.  

Come on, northern girls, you know what I mean--most knitted hats can ruin a hairstyle in ten minutes flat.  You get inside a restaurant and remove your fetching headwear only to find your bangs plastered to your forehead and the volume sucked out of your hair.  Not to mention enough static to power a small country off your noggin.  This one sits far enough back on your head (if the style magazine instructions are to be believed) that my hair might just survive the day.

That alone would be a deal-maker for me any day.

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