Hi!
I finally finished my Foliage Hat from knitty.com, and it looks great, but is a [I]little[/I] big. Will a warm water hand-wash shrink it a bit? Any thoughts on how I could do that? I can wear it but it doesn’t fit snugly, and I’d be worried about it in the wind.
Thanks if you can!
Karen
[COLOR=DarkOrchid][SIZE=3][FONT=Comic Sans MS]Depends on what you made it with… If it’s 100% non-superwash wool or other animal fiber:
To full it, put the hottest water you can in the washer at the lowest water level. Add a half cup or so of white vinegar. Add a couple tennis shoes, tennis balls, rubber dog balls and let it agitate for a couple minutes. Check and see if it’s the size you want. If not, continue until it is. Then squeeze out the water, roll in a towel and step on it to squeeze out even more water.
Block and dry.
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can I shrink a hat?
can I drink a lat (te)
can I sink a fat rat?
:roflhard: Sorry… I teach children and I went right into the Dr. Suess thinking… 
Just know that it will change the texture of the fabric! I looked at the hat on knitty and it very likely won’t look the same once it’s been shrunk/felted.
Dearie me, I think not being able to knit is going to your brain!
Since you say it is only a little too big, maybe you could run some elastic through the bottom of it. I would also avoid felting it if possible.
candice
the dryer???
[Or into BK’s new deep fryer?
Better yet, I’ll take my hat
And run it over with my cat!]
Seriously, though, wouldn’t 5 minutes in a dryer do the trick?
Last year I finished a hat that was too big. I sprayed it with warm water so it was quite damp and then put it in the dryer on high heat – checking it every few minutes. It shrank a little - enough to fit. However over time it has stretched out. If that doesn’t work, try so hand felting…
Dip it in hot, hot water, stir with a long handle spoon to get some agitation so you don’t burn yourself. Then immediately dip in ice water to shock it then back into the hot water. Wrap in a towel to soak up the water and either dry it over a form or in the dryer.
Do the above with caution and remember this will only work if the yarn is 100% wool and NOT superwash. Felting will change the look of the hat.
:roflhard::roflhard::roflhard::roflhard:
good luck though… you could also puff your hair when you wear the hat…