Felted Stag Head.....?

Yeah, who knew. I was asked about a year ago to make a felted stag costume for my step-father in law. I said sure. The deadline was not for a year, LOADS of time. Naturally I didn't think anything more about it until the mad halloween scramble hit our house in September. At which time I also needed costumes for two small girls. Luckily for me the girls found princess costumes at a thrift shop and were quite happy for me to do nothing other than their make-up. I was pleased enough to be a witch for the third year running. Sadly for me (though a relief to him) I didn't have time to make or find Boss Hog a costume. I was thinking of Sherlock Holmes for him but will have to save that for next year.

I did manage to drag him outside to pose in the stag hat before we sent it off. It was about three degrees outside and the only white shirt he had was thin linen. Boss Hog was a soldier and let me pose him for about 15 minutes before the camera battery died and I let him go back inside. I am a cruel and unusual task master, no?

The uptown, hair friendly, non-toque, thingy

The hoodzie, the hat wrap, the scourge of hat-hair nationwide even. Canada is of course cold in the winter. Our ability to thrive in frosty temperatures is one of our defining features as Canadians. We are a hearty lot of rosy cheeked wood-cutters and snow-sport enthusiasts. We are unfortunately also all afflicted with hat head from October to March. We are forced out of doors into the nasty weather wearing our toques to stay alive (melodramatic music playing ominously in the background). Until now, that is. Now we have the fantastic, hard to name but highly functional hat wrap thingy. It's many features include being both a hat and a scarf simultaneously. INDEED!!

It is a hat that warms your neck and chest! It is a scarf that handily keeps the top of your head warm and dry! When the weather is bad keep the hood up, but when the sun comes out just let it hang down like the hood on your favourite hoodie. You'll never lose another toque. You'll never have to keep your hat on in warm weather again for the shame of revealing your dreaded hat-hair!
Boss Hog is modeling the one we sent to his dad for Christmas. It's wool lined with flannel and I have one just like it. In fact I inflicted these on numerous family members this year in order to discover their actual appeal. So far it is hard to tell if my family members like them or have just been over generous in their support of my craftiness.