A powdered face, dark dramatic eyes, curled hair and of course a pair of glossy red lips. The components of glamour remain little-changed since the last century, but with one essential thing missing. What's that? Why the hat, of course!

A hat is one of the most amazing things that you could ever own. A good hat that suits has the power to transform an outfit from unremarkable to extra-ordinary and a person from commonplace to alluring, glamorous, or refreshingly distinct - different. Better than a magic wand - and quite possibly without all of the disastrous consequences which always seem to accompany those three magic wishes - hats embody so much character and personality that it really is possible to be a different person with each different hat.

My own hat obsession has been building up for well over a year now, and I've discovered a real love for millinery along the way. I think that it's possibly one of the most satisfying crafts that you could do since it encompasses such a broad range of techniques - and the possibilities of just what can perch atop a skull really are limitless.

If you're just getting into millinery, fascinators are the perfect thing to start with since they are so small, yet nearly always so outrageous. As their shape is generally uncomplicated, you can really go to town on the trimmings. This pattern presents basic millinery for the adventurous knitter: to construct any of the Notorious fascinators, you will need only basic sewing skills and a willingness to experiment!

Materials

Knitshop Mulberry Silk, 100% Mulberry Silk, 250 metres (273 yards) per 100 gm skein.
1 skein of Dark Pink, Black or Khaki Gold (1 skein per fascinator)
2.5 mm (US #13) double-pointed needles, set of 5
Yarn needle

Sewing needles of various sizes and thicknesses

20 cm (8 inches)* heavy weight fusible interfacing
20 cm (8 inches)* lining fabric (such as polycotton or artificial silk)
Sewing threads in colours to match yarns and lining fabrics
1-2 metres (1-2 yards) millinery wire, approx. 0.8 mm (1/32 inch) thick (21 guage)
Dressmaker's carbon paper & tracing wheel, or tailor's pencil/chalk
Wire cutters
Flat-nose pliers
Glue gun & hot glue sticks

* Small remnants will do; I used small pieces of fabric leftover from sewing projects. 20 cm is, on average, the smallest quantity of material that will be cut at a fabric shop.

A selection of haberdashery to trim your hats. This could include: feathers, ribbon, lace, tulle, beads, silk flowers, veiling, sequins, buttons.

The finished fascinators here feature various types of pheasant feathers and small dyed ostrich plumes. They also use sequins, and small amounts of black veiling and tulle.

Finished dimensions / sizes

Circular fascinator - diameter 10 cm (4 inches)
Teardrop fascinator - length 11.5 cm (4.5 inches), width 9 cm (3.5 inches) at widest point

Please note that sizes are an approximation and intended as a guideline. Actual size will depend on a number on things including tension (see below)

Tension required

31 st and 42 rows to 10cm (4 inches) in stocking stitch

It is more important to produce a fabric with the correct form and feel than to reproduce the exact tension. The yarn is knitted very tightly in order to produce a dense fabric which will keep its shape more easily and will be less likely to wear out and/or stretch with time. This is part to counteract the nature of silk yarn, but it is important to bear this in mind even when substituting yarns. If you choose to knit with a different yarn, compare the weight of it to the yarn cited and make sure you knit a swatch. The fabric should be knitted so that it is dense, tight and stiffer than what would normally be required.

Pattern Notes

Print off the pattern template PDF and use them to cut out the linings of the fascinators

Abbreviations / definitions

CO - cast on
K - knit
P - purl
st(s) - stitch(es)
K2tog - knit 2 stitches together
P2tog - purl 2 stitches together
SL1, K2tog, PSSO - slip 1, knit 2 stitches together, pass the slipped stitch over
w&t - wrap & turn

w&t on the right side: Bring yarn forward, slip next stitch onto working needle, bring yarn across and behind, slip stitch back to left-hand needle. Turn knitting around and, pulling the yarn taught, begin working the next row.

w&t on the wrong side: Take yarn behind, slip next stitch onto working needle, bring yarn round to the left and forward, slip stitch back to left-hand needle. Turn knitting around and, pulling the yarn taught, begin working the next row.

Constructing the fascinator bases

Circular fascinator - worked in the round

Pattern

CO 80 sts, join to begin working in the round.

Work 4 rounds in stocking stitch (knit every stitch). This comprises the hem allowance.

Round 5: * K8, K2tog, repeat from * till end of round.
Round 6 and subsequent even rounds: K every st.
Round 7: * K7, K2tog, repeat from * till end of round.
Round 9: * K6, K2tog, repeat from * till end of round.
Round 11: * K5, K2tog, repeat from * till end of round.
Round 13: * K4, K2tog, repeat from * till end of round.
Round 15: * K3, K2tog, repeat from * till end of round.
Round 17: * K2, K2tog, repeat from * till end of round.
Round 19: * K1, K2tog, repeat from * till end of round.
Round 21: * K2tog, repeat from * till end of round.

Break yarn and draw through remaining 8 stitches. Secure on wrong side and weave in all ends.

Block to form a flat circle shape.

Making up

Cut a piece of millinery wire roughly 35 cm (14 inches) long. The wire should bend into a circular shape naturally; form it into a circle which is slightly smaller than the finished piece of knitting. As a guideline you could look to take the diameter to be the edges formed at the end of the decrease lines. Secure the wire by twisting the ends over each other using the pliers. Make sure that there are no ends of wire sticking up.

Working on the wrong side of the knitted fabric, place the wire just inside of the edge. Fold the edge of the knitting (the hem allowance) over the wire, holding it in place with a few pins.

Thread a sewing needle with matching thread (use the thread double) and secure by taking a few stitches into the same place.

Working round the rim, sew the edge of the fabric down over the wire using a simple whipstitch.

When you have worked all the way around, pull the thread taught and secure in the same manner.

The knitting should now be stretched fairly tightly across the wire frame.

To make the lining, use the template (in the Notes section) or create a template by tracing around the finished circle and adding 0.5 cm (quarter of an inch). Cut 1 circle from your lining fabric. Cut a circle that is roughly 1 cm (half an inch) smaller out of the interfacing.

Following the instructions on the packet, fuse the interfacing onto the wrong side of the lining fabric.

Now turn in the 1 cm (half an inch) hem allowance and press folded edge lightly.

Using thread that matches the lining fabric, whipstitch the lining to the hem of the knitted piece.

Teardrop fascinator - worked flat

Pattern

CO 31 st

Starting with a P row, work 3 rows in stocking stitch. This comprises the hem allowance.

Row 4: K21, w&t

Row 5: P11, w&t
Row 6: K11, w&t
Row 7: P12, w&t
Row 8: K13, w&t
Row 9: P14, w&t
Row 10: K15, w&t
Row 11: P16, w&t
Row 12: K17, w&t
Row 13: P18, w&t
Row 14: K19, w&t
Row 15: P20, w&t
Row 16: K21, w&t
Row 17: P22, w&t
Row 18: K13, w&t
Row 19: P27.

Work 12 rows in stocking stitch.

Row 32: K14, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K14.
Row 33 and subsequent odd rows: P every st.
Row 34: K13, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K13.
Row 36: K12, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K12.
Row 38: K11, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K11.
Row 40: K10, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K10.
Row 42: K9, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K9.
Row 44: K8, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K8.
Row 46: K7, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K7.
Row 48: K6, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K6.
Row 50: K5, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K5.
Row 52: K4, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K4.
Row 54: K3, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K3.
Row 56: K2, SL1, K2tog, PSSO, K2.
Row 57: P2tog, P1, P2tog.
Row 58: SL1, K2tog, PSSO.

Break yarn and draw through remaining stitch. Secure on wrong side.

Making up

Cut a piece of millinery wire roughly 33 cm (13 inches) long. Fold the wire in half and use the pliers to form it into a point. Secure the wire by twisting the ends over each other using the pliers. Make sure that there are no ends of wire sticking up. Form the wire into a rough teardrop shape, with the widest end being where you have twisted the ends of wire together. Bend it slightly so that it is concave and loses its flatness.

Working on the wrong side of the knitted fabric, place the wire just inside of the edge. Fold the edge of the knitting (the hem allowance) over the wire, holding it in place with a few pins.

Thread a sewing needle with matching thread (use the thread double) and secure by taking a few stitches into the same place. Working round the rim, sew the edge of the fabric down over the wire using a simple whipstitch.

When you have worked all the way around, pull the thread taught and secure in the same manner.

To make the lining, use the template (see the Notes section) to cut pieces from the interfacing and the lining fabric. Trim the edges of the interfacing by 1 cm (half an inch). Following the instructions on the packet, fuse the interfacing onto the wrong side of the lining fabric.

Use carbon paper and a tracing wheel, or a tailor's pencil, to transfer the markings for the dart (on the template) to the interfacing.

To sew the dart: with right sides facing, fold the piece of fabric in half, matching the two lines, and sew along the dart line using a sewing machine (or by hand if you prefer).

Press the dart to one side

Push the lining out so that it pops out and sits with the wrong side sticking out on top. This way it will fit nicely into the knitted shell.

Now turn in the 1 cm (half inch)hem allowance and press folded edge lightly. Pin the lining to the knitted piece.

Using thread that matches the lining fabric, whipstitch the lining to the hem of the knitted piece.

Finally, bend the fascinator so that it takes on a formed convex teardrop shape.

Trimming the fascinators

When it comes to trimming hats, you can either start with a fixed idea and try to realise it, or else just make it up as you go along, perhaps according to your materials. For instance, for the gold teardrop fascinator, I decided first of all that I wanted the main focus to be the veiling, so I pinned it into place and decided upon the feathers to act as an accent afterwards. It's useful to have a polystyrene head so that you can pin the fascinators on it and arrange things as you please. These can be bought quite cheaply, but if you decide against one, you'll have to juggle with holding your base and ornaments to your head whilst peering in a mirror.

The most important rule you should ever learn about millinery is not to be limited or controlled by your materials. Don't think of them as being precious (this applies to the knitting as well) and never be afraid to manipulate your materials: if you don't like the length of a feather, cut it in half. If it is too downy and difficult to work with, trim off the excess and use just the main detail. If something is sticking out in the wrong place, just glue it into the correct position.

If the thought of constructing feathered superstructures terrifies you (and it really does take a bit of getting used to), just buy some ready-made ornaments and glue those on instead. It will look equally beautiful (and will probably save many burned fingertips). The techniques used to create the trimmings on the featured fascinators are described below. However, other simple ways of trimming could include:

• Ruched veiling enveloping the whole hat
• Artificial flowers on a bed of tulle (a classic)
• Ribbon bows with long, draping tails
• Sequins or beads sewn in a pattern
• Feathers glued onto the whole surface

This kind of millinery is not an exact science, and that's one of the things that I like the most about it. If you have an idea in your head but can't find prescribed instructions on how to go about realising it, experiment with methods of construction until you come up with a solution. (This is how I managed to create the aforementioned feathered superstructures.) I'm a firm subscriber to the Practise Makes Perfect mentality, and if your first attempts at putting together these fascinators don't work out, just keep trying until they do.

Circular fascinator with ostrich feathers

This is the simplest method out of the three. The most fiddly part is sewing on the sequins, but you could always avoid that and glue them on instead!

Although it is the tips which are traditionally the popular part of the ostrich feather, I trimmed the tip of this feather off as I liked the angular shape that this lent it. If you prefer you could make the feather smaller by trimming off the sides and thus making it narrower - or just use smaller, shorter feathers.

Sew a ring of sequins around the edge of the fascinator base as follows: bring the needle up and out of the fabric where the edge of the sequin will be.

Thread a sequin onto the needle and sew it onto the base by taking the needle into the fabric through the hole.

Come out of the fabric on the other side of the sequin.

Take needle back through the centre hole and come out of the fabric where the edge of the next sequin will be.

Repeat the above steps, trying to space them out as evenly as possible.

Sew a second ring of sequins just above the first, in the spaces in-between.

Sew a third ring just above the second ring of sequins, but this time sew a sequin in every other space.

Notice that the 2nd and 3rd rings of sequins don't go all the way around the fascinator base. This is simply because they would be covered up by the feather, therefore there is no point in sewing them here.

Glue the feather onto the fascinator base by applying a moderate amount of hot glue to the spine of the feather, pressing it firmly onto the base at an angle.

When the glue has completely set, attach a comb to the underside of the fascinator by taking firm stitches across the two teeth at either side, as well as a few across the top.

Circular fascinator with tulle and feathers

Cut a rectangle of tulle approx. 12 cm x 40 cm (4.75 inches x 15.75 inches). Using the sewing machine (or by hand if you prefer), gather along one long edge to form soft ruffles.

Fold in half and pin in place on the fascinator base. Sew down firmly.

To create the feather superstructures, cut 2 lengths of millinery wire approx. 22 cm (8.5 inches) long. Using the pliers, fold one end back on itself a little so that it does not stick out sharply. Bend the wire into curved shapes.

The feathers I used were quite fluffy. As I was only really interested in the pattern at the top of the feather, I simply cut away the excess down. This makes the feathers much easier to work with.

To attach the feathers to the wire, squeeze dots of hot glue on the spines of the feathers.

Using tweezers, press the down quite firmly.

Working downwards, continue to glue the feathers onto the wire, overlapping them as you go along.

When you reach the end of the wire, leave it until the glue has completely set, then trim away any excess large blobs of glue with a small pair of sharp scissors.

Decide on the placement of the feathers on the fascinator base. Attach firmly to the fascinator base using hot glue, using tweezers to press the feathers down into the base so that they are securely fastened. Cover up the join using an extra feather or two.

When the glue has completely set, bend the wire gently so that the feathers take the shape you want. Attach a comb to the underside of the fascinator by taking firm stitches across the two teeth at either side, as well as a few across the top.

Teardrop fascinator with veil and feathers

Cut a piece of veiling approx. 12 cm x 20 cm (4.75 inches x 7.75 inches). Decide on placement and how it hangs by ruching the veiling and taking small tucks. Pin down on the underside of the fascinator base.

Attach the veiling to the base by taking small, regular stitches over the filaments where they are pinned down. Make sure that you try on the fascinator as you go along so that you can see how the veiling will hang.

Decide on the placement of the feathers. To attach them, squeeze a small amount of hot glue along the spine and press down firmly onto the fabric using tweezers.

When the glue has completely set, attach a comb to the underside of the fascinator by taking firm stitches across the two teeth at either side, as well as a few across the top.

Find out more about Anushka by visiting her blog byanushka.wordpress.com

This pattern is not to be used commercially or to be resold.  Copyright © Anushka Tay 2009