First finished project in 2015. Hoping the other UFO’s take notice and follow suit.

The main reason for the project was to find a way to use the Plain Yarn. My co-worker often brings me back local yarns from her vacations. It has been a great challenge to find ways to use the single skeins that do them justice. She picked up this skein, made from a sheep called The Boss, at the Lancaster Yarn Shop.

This yarn has a great hand feel and I had no trouble with any knots or uneven spots. There was some vegetation but I didn’t mind dealing with it. Please just keep it in mind if you are only used to commercially processed yarns or non-natural materials. Looking forward to her next PA trip!

I originally tried to make the tam with just the Plain Yarn, but it knitted up too small for my head. I added the purple Mermaid after finding it during a stash dive. I ran one row shy and repurposed the yarn from my earlier Shawl for a Silkie. I also incorporated the Storm Mermaid from that shawl into the ribbing.

I soaked the tam, towel stomped it, and blocked it hard over a cardboard cake round. I used my t-pins to really pull the pattern open and to help ease any stress on the ribbing. I placed the whole contraption on top of a can of soup and left it in the room with the dehumidifier.

Things I learned: Don’t knit during the last throws of a migraine. It doesn’t help and you’ll just have to tink the rows back later.