I shy away from most custom orders.  Felting is unpredictable.  It’s tricky to shrink a knitted hat to the right size for a specific head.

However, if the person is easy-going, not in a hurry and willing to risk shipping hats back & forth, I’m happy to try a special request.

Gayle was just that sort of person!

Gayle’s custom hat color combinations, with possible embroidery yarns, side-by-side

Gayle knew she wanted a dragonfly hat, probably in purple. She chose several yarn colors which I photographed, along with various embroidery ribbons, so she could choose her favorite.

Colors selected, I set about knitting, felting, lining & embroidering Gayle’s hat.

Gayle’s custom felt hat with dragonfly ribbon embroidery.

Generally, I gravitate to tone-on-tone designs, so I suggested some purple-y ribbons for the dragonfly embroidery. Gayle really wanted the dragonfly to “pop” though, so we went with her first choice, turquoise.

Turquoise and jade gemstone beads are the focal point of this dragonfly embroidery.

I’m so glad we did! I love how this hat turned out. Gayle deserves all the credit.

Have you ever helped create a custom design? Did you enjoy the process? The results? I’d love to know your experience…