Here's to the Last Blast of Winter! My New Hat.

When there's snow on the ground,

I like to pretend I'm walking on clouds.

Takayuki Ikkaku, Arisa Hosaka and Toshihiro Kawabata,

Animal Crossing: Wild World, 2005

Wet felted hat on a form, then needle felted for the design, Merino wool.

Okay look, it's March 2nd and snowing like a demon out there, so I had to try to find some positivity about the fact that spring hasn't quite arrived, and so there it is, the most positive winter quote I could find. When I go out there later on my daily trip to the coffee shop I'll try to pretend those are clouds I'm walking on and the snowflakes are little packages from heaven that in a few short weeks will be helping the daffodils grow.

If that ain't positive thinking, I don't know what is!

Two reluctant models.

I do have to admit right now it's quite pretty out there.

Side view! Werk it!

Anyway, it also gives me an excuse to wear one of the two felt hats I've been working on. I still don't have felting down perfectly. I decided to try to do more layers this time around to see if that might hold it all together better, but I still had gaps here and there and so I needle felted over the trouble spots. It's a pretty puffy hat but it's warm! Not quite a spring hat.

Not sure if I'll do anything with the very rough brim or not. Depends how much wool I have left! I'd like to line the inside though. My hair gets tangled with little fuzzy black bits without a lining.

So here it is! Cocoon has a similar one which I might need to splurge on. The trouble I think is that I'm using Merino wool and it's soft light, fluffy and likes to pill. In the future I'd like to try felting with a harder wool. (Like the stuff Coccoon has.)

Yes, Zoe, we are done the photo shoot and we can go back inside now.

My very warm and seasonally appropriate hat! Zoe likes it. It means more walks for her when I'm warm enough to take her for a Winter Wonderland Walk! (Good thing she's got a bright red jacket- I often lose her in the snow!)

xxMelanie