Gift Hat

My friends are hat-wearers and hat-lovers, too. I don't think I could be friends with anyone who didn't like hats. ;)

So of course I knew a hat would be my gift to my BFF Becca. (And when I finally get men's hat blocks, her husband and mine can get hats, too.) Anyway, after a lot of holiday-crazy-schedule-delays, I finally gave her the hat on Monday night. So now I can share the photos ...

Purple wool cloche - angle 1 (left side)

And my thought process ...

She loves purple, so I knew it had to be purple. This is a royal (almost blue) purple wool felt. And she loves cloches. In particular, though, when she tried on the olive green free-form cloche I had made for myself, she decided that it looked cool with either edge in front, and she really loved that aspect.  So that's why I decided to go with a free-form style for her. 

I blocked it on a "balsa utility block" — basically a head shaped wood block. I added in the folds and curves by hand and cut the edge to suit the shape. I stitched the folds in place so they won't fall out or lose their shape. Inside is unlined and with a grosgrain head-size ribbon. Then I put a decoration on the side cut out of blue wool felt.

It definitely looks better on her than on my "model," but for now, here you can see the hat from different angles ...

angle 1 (front)

angle 2 (front)

angle 1 (right side)

angle 2 (right side)