Finally, the Gone with the Wind Hat by Annie Modesitt for Romantic Hand-Knits

Ta-da! The Gone with the Wind hat. It's been finished for a couple months, but I just really, really wanted to take a picture of it at the Lincoln Park conservatory. I had it in my mind that I would get great pictures in there, no harsh lighting. It turned out it was difficult to get a good snapshot, although it was better than outside, where I was getting shadows on my face because of the sun and the lacy brim. Any ideas on how to fix that in the future so that my face is adequately lit?

Photo issues aside, this is a great pattern (you'll find it on page 126 in Romantic Hand Knits: 26 Flirtatious Designs That Flatter Your Figure). However, one big caveat. You're going to have to be patient. There are mistakes in this pattern. If you're not an ace at making short rows while knitting lace, this will be challenging. I wish I could tell you the various mistakes to watch for, but would you believe it, I lost my marked-up pattern nearly moments after I finished this hat??? I kid you not. I finished the hat at Arcadia Knitting, boarded the bus home with all my supplies, purse, the hat, etc. I get off the bus, and I realized right away I was missing my supply bag (Short sock pins! a nice set of bambo circulars! Leftover yarn!). I called the bus garage every two hours for the next two days, but they never recovered it. Oh well. Onward, we go. Here are some particulars on the project itself.


The yarn: Classic Silk Color 6953 and 6906. Three skeins total. I love the cotton/silk yarn...I wish had more in different colors, particularly a tweedy brown and a Kelly green. I'm certain I could get more on the Internet, but I really need yarn that's available at Arcadia Knitting 'cuz this project is hard and I need Arcadia's help every step of the way. Any ideas on substitutes, fellow Arcadia regulars? The gauge is 5 sts and 7 rows 1 inch.

Additional supplies: 1 and 1/2 yards, millinery wire, Vogue Fabrics. I used to have this great lightweight hat wire, I think that was from the 1950s, but since that's long gone, I've turned to Vogue Fabric's hat wire. Good, but not great. It's a little unwieldy. All that shaping! And I had to graft a piece of wire for the outer brim, which I hope stays put, although I seem to feel a shift when I ever so slightly shape the brim with my hands even now. Not good.

Size: Medium (21 1/2 inch). Here's my biggest regret. I have a 22-inch head, but this hat is too big on me. It's really more suitable for someone with a 23-inch head. But it's such a beautiful hat! I could undo it, but I really can't! Too much work. I rather start anew, and try again, different yarns and definitely the smaller size. I'm not sure how much I'll wear this hat because I feel engulfed by it. I could wear it into traffic, stop it, and the result would not be good. There the hat would be on the pavement with no person underneath, kind of like that scene in the Wizard of Oz with the Wicked Witch's hat after she melts away. It's a shame. It's so pretty. I can't decide which I like better the High-Society Hat (also in this book) or this one. It's really a tie. They're both grand.

In looking at my picture and then at the one in the book, I made the same styling mistake they did! There's a seam where the two yarns shift on the crown. I put mine in the front, just like the stylist did on the model for Romantic Hand-Knits. And I wanted to avoid that mistake. Funny.

So once I'm finished with the Sun-Ray sweater, I'm ready to tackle a hat again. I never get tired of making them...even I don't always wear them. I think this is the fifth Annie Modesitt hat I've made, if I count the half-finished High Society No. 3 in the Gedifra Wellness yarn...which wants to be finished but I need more matching yarn!

Maybe I'll take some close up photos of the hat sometime soon. I had more photographs but they just weren't to my liking, so I deleted them. I just might wear this hat on Easter Sunday. What do you think? I don't know what to wear it with! It's hard to match. I know for summer, it would look fantastic with a sailor-style pair of oatmeal-colored wide-legged linen pants! And a white short sleeve top of some sort. Somehow, I can see this hat with a lacy top (Krista) from Joan McGowan's book Knitting Lingerie Style: More Than 30 Basic and Lingerie-Inspired Designs and the above-mentioned pants.

What's more, I think this hat demands a pair of matching gloves if I wear it to church on Sunday, don't you? Weigh in please.