Hunter's Orange
Have you ever tried to find yarn in hunter's orange? It's certainly no easy task. A few weeks ago, I scoured my well-stocked LYS in search of a superwash wool in Hunter's Orange, and even with the help of the shop owner, we really didn't come up with more than 2-3 yarns in the appropriate shade.
Why that particular shade? Linh's husband Nick is a hunter. *gasp* Just the word "hunter" does not sit well with me, since I was a strict vegetarian for 11 years. (And although I am no longer a vegetarian, I really don't eat much meat, and when I do, it's usually just chicken and seafood.) Nick requested that I make him a hat with earflaps for him for the chilly early morning hunting outings with his friends and family in Arkansas. If they weren't such good friends, I surely would've said "no."
Most oranges were more rust and a few scary neon ones. I couldn't find any superwash, but I finally settled on a worsted weight virgin wool that was the perfect shade, albeit not superwash. There was some Anny Blatt superwash that came as a close second, but the color still was not right. I ended up knitting the hat by double stranding it and working it on US #7 so that it's extra thick. For the earflaps, I continued the double stranding and thrummed it with some merino and alpaca roving. Nick will surely have warm ears! Because the virgin wool is a little scratchy, I soaked it first in hair conditioner and then later with Soak wool rinse.
Unfortunately, I forgot to photograph the hat. Even more unfortunate is that Linh reports Nick's head is super large and the hat is a little snug. Bummer. Maybe it'll be tight enough to distract him and make him miss shooting Bambi and Mama Deer.
Why that particular shade? Linh's husband Nick is a hunter. *gasp* Just the word "hunter" does not sit well with me, since I was a strict vegetarian for 11 years. (And although I am no longer a vegetarian, I really don't eat much meat, and when I do, it's usually just chicken and seafood.) Nick requested that I make him a hat with earflaps for him for the chilly early morning hunting outings with his friends and family in Arkansas. If they weren't such good friends, I surely would've said "no."
Most oranges were more rust and a few scary neon ones. I couldn't find any superwash, but I finally settled on a worsted weight virgin wool that was the perfect shade, albeit not superwash. There was some Anny Blatt superwash that came as a close second, but the color still was not right. I ended up knitting the hat by double stranding it and working it on US #7 so that it's extra thick. For the earflaps, I continued the double stranding and thrummed it with some merino and alpaca roving. Nick will surely have warm ears! Because the virgin wool is a little scratchy, I soaked it first in hair conditioner and then later with Soak wool rinse.
Unfortunately, I forgot to photograph the hat. Even more unfortunate is that Linh reports Nick's head is super large and the hat is a little snug. Bummer. Maybe it'll be tight enough to distract him and make him miss shooting Bambi and Mama Deer.
posted by Anne at
10:56 PM
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6 Comments:
I know how you feel. My dad and brothers and hunt as well and I refuse to visit them during hunting season. Glad you found some yarn. I know it's really easy to find that color in Wisconsin, but it would probably be acrylic. Hopefully his head will stretch it a bit and it will fit fine. ;)
when he's ready for a matching sweater...i think a dye day is in order! you really are a nice friend to set your hunting aversions aside long enough to knit the cap:)
I think every hunter (tsk) should have a hat that's snug, including my brother. Bambi and her friends should be allowed to roam the forests.
Hi Anne -- Brenda Dayne, on a Cast On podcast from a long time ago, commented about this color (Hunter Orange). I can't recall specifically, but I think she found some at a "boot" (as in US "car trunk") sale. Maybe she also dyed some.... You can probably search the blog for Cast On. Funny how there are similar knitting questions worldwide...
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I am going to make hunter orange hats for people who want to safely venture in the woods with their pets during hunting season.
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