Floppy Pom-poms

#1

So my hats are done!

Yay! They came out nicely, except the poms poms are rather floppy and not nice and stiff. They look like they’re going to fall apart as they’re just sorta flaying about every which way rather than standing straight up. I’m mostly okay with this, but I’m wondering what may have happened and what I should do in the future to make a pom-pom that would stand up properly.

In other words, they look a bit more like [I]tassles[/I] than pom-poms. The cut strands equal to about 2 1/2 inches, give or take. The pom-pom for each hat appears to be well sewn in, but I am concerned some of the strands will pull out when washed or if tugged on too hard.

The yarn is Plymouth Dream Baby dk, which is relatively fine, so maybe it is just the yarn and not me.

#2


http://www.helloknitty.com/pdfs/pompom.pdf
http://belladia.typepad.com/bella_dia/2006/03/post_1.html

How did you make your pom pom? Maybe you just didn’t wrap the yarn around enough. Above are a couple websites with slightly different but similar directions.

#3

I used a straight piece of cardboard folded in half — the cardboard was about four inches long. I wrapped the yarn about 70 times, inserted a new piece of yarn at the cut edge of the cardboard, tied a few really tight knots, and then cut the yarn opposite the knots. The strands came out to about 2 - 2 1/2 inches once cut.

I’ll check the other websites.

#4

I also did a tutorial on making pom poms, just using your hands and a sharp pair of scissors. No gadgets necessary! You can check it outHERE.

The key to a good solid pom pom is to wrap the yarn A LOT more than you think you need to! When you think you’ve wrapped enough, wrap some more! Also you must plan on trimming at least 1/2 to 1 inch off of your pom pom to get it to look tight and full. And you must also tie it very tightly across the middle. I find wrapping the yarn around once before tying makes it easier to get it tight. Also have someone put their finger on the knot while you tie it so it doesn’t come loose as you are tying. HERE is a project I did where the pom poms turned out great (I thought anyway!).

Have fun!

MGM