Hat Heads for Home

Meladora's Butterfly Stitch Slouch Hat
Version 1

My friend loves the colour and style of this hat but she discovered the band to be a bit too tight for her head.  Obvious solution: rework the band to make it larger and looser.

When my friend visited recently to try on her finished hat, we were both pleased that it fit her nicely.

Three cheers and a sigh of relief!

I had feared that the new band might still be too small. The circumference might need to be a fraction larger but it was already the same size as the main body of the hat.  

If the new band were too tight, a whole new hat would be necessary—not an altogether bad idea because then it would be as good as new, without reworked sections—but I didn't feel like starting all over again.

"When Minor Modifications Turn Into Major Repairs" explains how I got from this:

… after frogging the band (and a little bit more by accident!)

… and this:

A whopping great hole!

… to this:

Meladora's Butterfly Stitch Slouch Hat Version 2
This photo shows the gathered top and the slouched style.

The hat had been in storage for a while since mending; I was quite pleased when I got it out again to photograph, because I couldn't find my seams or joins easily despite close examination. 

Eventually I found the repaired sections and they are easy to see in this photograph of the reverse side:

Meladora's Butterfly Stitch Slouch Hat Version 2
Rear view.

Luckily, these imperfections won't be visible when the hat is worn because they will be obscured by the slouchy nature of the hat.

At first I was upset to have made a mistake by frogging too far, but then realised that mistakes are not necessarily failures but opportunities for learning and personal growth.

Have you ever needed to alter your handmade items?  

What lessons have you learned from unexpected or undesirable results? 

I watched with bated breath as my friend donned her hat. 

"Perfect!" she exclaimed as she arranged the new, looser band into a comfortable position while admiring her reflection in the mirror.

From imperfect beginnings, the pink Meladora's Butterfly Stitch Slouch found its home; a happy partnership of hat and human!  

Links & References

Lupey Loops, "When Minor Modifications Turn Into Major Repairs", blog post, 11 June 2014: http://lupeyloops.blogspot.com.au/2014/06/when-minor-modifications-turn-into.html

Meladora's Creations, Meladora's Butterfly Stitch Slouch Hat, free crochet pattern, 2013-2014: http://www.meladorascreations.com/butterfly-stitch-slouch-hat-free-crochet-pattern/