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FAL Finish: Brim Extension (AKA Keeping Mam's Ears Warm)

Finish A Long 2016

As stated on my current FAL list, the hat I knitted for Mam's Christmas present (find the pattern here) needed a little adjusting as the lazy wind kept creeping up the small gap round her ear lobes and making her chilly!  I had enough yarn left to extend the brim, but didn't want to pull the hat out and start again (all those cables!), so I decided that the best way would be to pick up around the brim (the original cast on edge) and add lengthen the rib on it - upside down, if you like.

Here's how the hat looked at the start of the quarter (it's the one on the right):
Two iced hats

And here's how it looked after another 2.5" of rib had been added to the brim:
Brim extension

I made sure to pick up the stitches going from the wrong side, so that the ridge was on the right side of the hat.  This was important because that ridge needed to be hidden in the fold of the brim, rather than pressed against Mam's forehead (which would have made her look like she'd had serious brain surgery when she took it off!):
Brim extension - the join

Unfortunately, and I don't know why I didn't spot it/think of it at the time, my cast off edge (at the bottom of the rib and therefore partway up the hat once the brim was folded up) was too tight, so I had to undo the cast off, join in more yarn (grrrr!) and cast off a bit looser.  Rather than doing a special stretchy cast off, I just cast off on 4mm needles rather than the 3mm I'd been using.  This was enough to provide a bit of give along that edge without it being wavy or too stretchy (and then pinging off Mam's head in a strong wind!).  If you look at the photo below and compare it to the last-but-one photo, you can see that the cast off edge isn't pulling in.
Brim extension
That's another item crossed off my FAL list and makes five finishes so far this quarter!  I've got one more finish to blog about, but I'm unlikely to finish anything else before the end of the quarter as my ME and my shoulder are conspiring to keep me away from sewing and knitting for all but a few minutes a day.


Archie's new bag of food arrived today and he's very excited at the thought of 14kg of biscuits!
b-when-can-we-open-it_25766414261_o
When can we open it?  Now?!
It's laid in the middle of the floor (I'm giving my shoulder a rest before moving it any further!) and he keeps going over to sniff round it, just in case there's a hole in the bag...

Don't forget that the end of the quarter will soon be here - the finishes link party opens a fortnight today (31st March at 6am for those of us who will be on BST/IST/GMT+1 by then) so if you haven't already, then it's time to get cracking!  We'll all be posting about how (and what) to link up when the time comes, so don't worry if you're not entirely sure what to do!

Thanks for popping in!

Comments

  1. Marvellous expression from Archie!! Lucky Mam having this hat, great for Winter, the shading in the yarn gives it a lovely effect.

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  2. I've no idea what you're on about but that's a very pretty hat! Hope Mam's ears stay warm :)

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  3. You've had a very productive quarter! And well done on improving your mam's hat! Looks great! Jxo

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  4. Your Knitting is so clever.
    My Mother (fab knitter) never quite mastered how to add extra length to the jumpers she knitted we kids . . . as we kept growing. And my cast off is always extra stretched because its as loose as an old woman's chin!
    Poor Archie . . . Mummy teasing you again.
    Hope the ME settles.
    I got 3 FAL's done. So thats still about a katrillion to add to the next 1/4 list :(

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  5. Bravo! You seem to have got lots done

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  6. I can't knit to save my life but yours looks so fabulous ! its a pity Archie can't put away his own biscuits !!

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  7. I'm content to be awed from afar by knitting skills. I used to keep trying...and failing. Now I know I'm a needle-ninja on a different scale: tapestry needles are as large as I go! Love the shaded yarn on your Mam's hat, and great fix to keep the drafts out! Archie thinks you are a great big tease to leave all that food in plain sight without giving him any. There's definitely reproach and just a hint of calculation in those lovely big dark eyes...

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  8. That extension to your Mam's hat worked brilliantly! Hope your shoulder and the ME settle down soon 😕. On the FAL side you'll pleased to know I have actually finished 2 things! I've also got this week off work so am hoping that I might turn my 4 nearly finished items into actually finished ones!

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  9. That extension to your Mam's hat worked brilliantly! Hope your shoulder and the ME settle down soon 😕. On the FAL side you'll pleased to know I have actually finished 2 things! I've also got this week off work so am hoping that I might turn my 4 nearly finished items into actually finished ones!

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  10. Thank you for linking your list and for participating in the FAL, on behalf of the 2016 global FAL hosts! Teehee!

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