More Hats Than Heads

I always tease my baseball hat collecting son that he has far more hats than he has heads. Seems I'm getting that way myself. I'm now storing 4 hats on just 2 wicker heads.

After a lifetime of never wearing hats I've been told, in a roundabout way, that I must wear a hat when outdoors. Yes, in part it is for sun protection after a bit of a problem with a "precancerous lesion" that needed treatment, but mostly it has to do with my eyes. My eyes are very sensitive to the sun but if I wear polarized sunglasses I find that direct sunlight on the lenses makes it difficult to see anything! I have to have some sort of hat visor overhanging the sunglasses.

I've written before about the "Upcycled Hat" made of denim patches. That was the first one. It fit so well and worked so well for my purposes that I went on to sew the black velveteen one later on. It's great in the winter but rather hot when it's not chilly out. Then came the white one with denim trim. I don't think I blogged about that one? I was hoping it would be a bit cooler, but nope. I guess with my volume of hair any hat at all is HOT.

I've added yet another hat to my growing collection. The wildly patterned pink/orange/purple hat was sewn from a loosely woven cotton tablecloth I found on sale at Value Village for $3. It's a little cooler and lighter than the others.

All four are sewn using my go to pattern, the "Gardening Hat" from "Happy Hats and Cool Caps". At one time the book was available for 1 cent plus shipping but I see it has gone up in price.

Mild Lagenlook

I originally took this photo for a Lagenlook sewing forum I belong to. Most of the ladies there wear layer upon layer of things like bloomers, petticoats, slips, dresses, pinafores, shawls. I'm not comfortable with that level of foofy-ness and femininity. It looks great on them but it's just not my thing.

This is the sort of thing I wear on a day to day basis. It's more me. I don't concern myself with following a certain fashion aesthetic. I wear what I like and what I enjoy making. If I had to name it I'd say that I see it as toned down version of Lagenlook. It's more along the lines of Swedish Lagenlook. Layered, but not with the volume, length, or ruffles. 

If you're interested in the sources: The black cotton jersey 3/4 sleeve top was drafted and sewn by me but I started with the Jalie 2805 T-shirt and added width and an asymmetrical hem to the bottom.

Under that I'm wearing another self made top, this time of a polyester knit fabric and using Jalie 3245 Racerback Tunic as a pattern.

The hat was made using the "Gardening Hat" pattern from the book "Happy Hats and Cool Caps" but with scrunching added to the stand using the guidance for hat alterations in that same book. Great book if you need custom sized hats or want to sew hats to coordinate with your wardrobe.

Jeans and scarf both purchased long ago. Boots are vintage "Pillow Boots" by Cougar worn here for warmth, not fashion -- but I do like them enough that I went and had them repaired last year.