It’s time to walk the dog. But, oh, it has started to rain…not unexpected in the fall in Vancouver! Grab your hat.

I made this hat with a black “Dintex” rainwear fabric that is water and wind resistant and breathable. I sealed the seams so water would not penetrate through the small holes created by the sewing needle.

The brim is designed a bit shorter than a traditional ball cap, providing protection from the rain while allowing an open view of what’s ahead. It has a more curvaceous outline and a soft interfacing, rather than a stiff plastic liner, giving it a more feminine look and feel.

The lining material is polyester, striped with a slight sheen. It adds a bit of pizzazz to the cap. You will feel protected from the elements and, at the same time, stylish.

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We may long to travel to some sun-drenched vacation destination. But this year of the COVID-19 pandemic, we choose wisely and responsibly a summer stay-cation. Here in British Columbia, there are a multitude of scenic places to visit with coastal water, inland lakes, forests, and mountains. There are a variety of outdoor activities to pursue, such as hiking, fishing, and swimming. Or we can just relax on an outdoor patio wearing a reversible sun hat.

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I’ve been having fun sewing reversible bucket hats. Each starts with the selection of two complementary or contrasting fabrics. This can be a most time-consuming step as my hat aficionado friend discovered on our fabric shopping expedition. We both liked the natural slubs of woven linen and geometrical Japanese patterns of “Sevenberry” cotton.

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A reversible hat is versatile, two hats in one! Another thing of interest is that the underside of the brim shows off the second fabric which frames the face. Reversible buckets with chin straps and UPF sun protection are commonly worn by kids at the beach. For all, they are a casual and playful fashion accessory.

Canadian soldiers have gone to work in long-term care homes to fight novel coronavirus outbreaks. A boy fascinated by all things military has a glimpse of unlikely places troops are deployed to in peace time. This hat was made for that boy. It also gives a nod to the unique role played by the soldiers as front-line workers in a time of need.

I sewed the bush hat from a pair of old camouflage pants. As I went to harvest pieces of fabric for the hat, I discovered pant pockets made of a matching light polyester material. There was also a descriptive label complete with washing instructions. Always on the lookout for creating something fun, I decided to use both to line the inner aspect of the bucket.

You might think white is a colour for brides, Wimbledon, and not worn after Labour Day. Think again of a crisp white button-down shirt or relaxed T-shirt with jeans, an eyelet sundress, or sporty white sneakers. Wearing white keeps you cool on warm days, looks fresh, and pops other colours.

I chose a soft Pima Cotton yarn from Peru, the colour of “white noise”, to crochet summer hats. As I fingered the yarn, ideas began percolating in my mind, such as a loose weave in a repeating pattern and a brim to shade the face.

I wanted the hats to be multi-functional, easy to wear on a walk at the beach or at a get-together with friends. And I imagined my hats worn with outfits in floral prints, navy and white, or even all white.

What might you do with a beautiful but outdated wool coat?

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I made my friend’s coat into a hat. First I surveyed the garment for worn and moth-affected areas, then worked around these to cut pattern pieces for a hat. In my sewing cupboard I found a complementary lining fabric and interfacing to construct a basic bucket hat.

The old coat had been trimmed with overcast stitching. I used a blanket stitch to hand embroider and embellish the brim of the hat and I finished the crown with a crocheted chain made from the same silk yarn.

I’ve been exploring colour blocking to welcome spring and bring a bit of brightness into this extraordinary time of social distancing, quarantine, and isolation. 

Colour blocking involves combining two or more solid colours in an outfit or a garment, in my case, a hat. When combined well, the result is aesthetically balanced and simple. Often the colours are bold. They might be complementary colours, that is opposites on the colour wheel. Or, they might be analogous, next to each other on the colour wheel. Alternatively, different hues of the same colour can be used to colour block. A neutral colour can support and complete the look. 

Colour blocking is also seen in paintings, Pop Art (think Andy Warhol), 60s mod fashion, and interior design.

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I’ve been working on a collection of hats for spring. Inspiration has come from my childhood memories of learning to crochet lace doilies. Then, the yarn was white or ecru cotton and the starched doilies adorned mahogany dining tables. Nowadays, the fibres I am using are soft and luxurious and the finished hats are comfortable and easy to wear.

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Midnight blue, cosmic cobalt, deep violet…just a few of the many shades of indigo I saw at the Jing Jai Market in Chiang Mai. Artisans of Walk on the Wild Side explained that tribes people in rural Thai villages produce much of the fibre and fabric used in their handcrafted apparel and they use natural pigments used in the dyeing process.

For thousands of years, materials such as cochineal bugs, yarrow flowers, and tea leaves have been used as dyes. In the case of indigo, many plants contain the indigo dye molecule, but successful extraction of the pigment is limited to only a few. Indigofera tinctorial grows in hot, humid climates and is the most common commercial source. In the mid-1800s, development of synthetic dyes changed the textile industry, largely replacing the labour-intensive practice of natural dyeing.

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Different methods have been developed to dye plant fibres, animal hair and fur, and filaments spun from silkworms. Dyeing methods are also nuanced to produce indigo variations. Multiple dips in indigo vats intensify colour. Over dyeing a base colour such as yellow with indigo can produce an emerald hue. Surface designs can be created when dye is used as paint or dyeing is resisted as in tie dyeing.

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