Felted hat

General Knitting
1

I just finished Pollywogs Felted High Brim hat following the directions exactly. After felting, the brim is loose and does not lay to the hat like the photo, but is floppy. Has anyone else made a hat like this? Should the first few inches of a pattern be with fewer stitches to make it tighter? I am so disappointed in this, it was meant to be a gift. Any guidance would be appreciated.

2

I assume this is the pattern…
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/high-brim-felted-hat-pattern

The one project posted on Ravelry does not appear to be quite like the pattern photo either but, the knitter appearred pleased with the results…
http://www.ravelry.com/projects/RuthDknits/high-brim-felted-hat-pattern

Without seeing your hat, I’m not sure what to tell you. Could you post photos of your hat?

3

Welcome to Knitting Help!
Does the rest of the hat fit correctly? Is it just the brim that seems too loose? Did you knit the entire hat with the same yarn and the same color? I’m asking about color because white often doesn’t felt as nicely as other colors.

4

Hi, Thanks for the message. I cannot figure out how to send you an image. The hat fits perfectly except for the loose brim.

5

I knitted it from DK Jamisons which felted very nicely except for the “too big” brim. I am thinking of dunking just the brim in hot water and see if I can get that part to felt some more. However, my main question is, should I have knitted fewer stitches on the brim area? Most patterns of this type call for more stitches on the brim area.

6

Well, for next time you can see that working with fewer sts would would be better but you couldn’t know that the first time around. Would it work to put in a few sewing sts to attach the brim to the body of the hat? Otherwise, yes, you could try felting the brim a bit more by treating with hot water with some agitation. I’m not sure how it will turn out however as I’ve never tried to do that.

7

Thanks for all the great suggestions. I think I will try this again using fewer cast on sts. and for the first few rows, then go to the amt. of stitches the pattern calls for. The hat is actually cute if one wanted a frilly brim (not…)

8

Often a pattern calls for knitting the brim on a smaller needle than for the body of the hat, as having a loose brim is a common problem.