A few months ago I came across a tutorial on making a Child’s Elf Hat.  It was written in Russian but the photographs were self-explanatory and I’ve had it in mind to make one ever since seeing it, and here it is.  If ever I get inspired by someone else’s work I will always credit them with a mention but unfortunately, at the time, I didn’t make a note of this persons website and I haven’t been able to find it since!  If you happen to know where I might have seen this please let me know so I can add a credit.

In the tutorial the hat was made in a solid colour using a yellow or orange Merino.  I wanted a mottled effect so decided to make the hat in white and colour it afterwards.

Normally you would colour wool using acid dyes but for this hat I experimented with a combination of Inktense and acrylic paint, both of which are colourfast once they have dried.  I found that when the acrylic paint is sufficiently watered down it will not clog the wool and it retains its soft handle.  The only area where I painted it on thickly was at the base of the top “tail”…..I wanted this to be stiffened and the paint certainly did the trick!  The Inktense didn’t seem to affect the handle of the wool at all.

The two leaves and stalk were made from green Merino and copper coloured Tussah silk and stitched in place.  I’ve started adding Colonial knots……I love Colonial knots so there could be a lot more of these added before I consider the hat finished!