Fairy horses tam

Fairy Horses Tam by Sally Pointer

What is Being Made

The Fairy Horses Tam is a knitted hat designed by Sally Pointer featuring a distinctive tam shape with decorative running horses inspired by folklore. This is a downloadable PDF knitting pattern suitable for intermediate-level knitters. The finished hat is designed to fit an average adult head and can be adjusted for smaller sizes through additional fulling. The tam silhouette can be arranged and styled in multiple ways to create different visual effects.

Design Inspiration and Features

The pattern showcases graceful running horses across the hat, with the design drawing inspiration from descriptions of fairy horses found in traditional folklore. The finished tam will feature ten horses distributed across the design. A key feature is the deep, cosy double-thickness hatband that provides extra warmth and ear coverage on cold days, making this both a functional and decorative accessory.

Knitting Techniques Used

This pattern employs fulling as a primary finishing technique. The hat is intentionally knit larger than the desired finished size, then fulled to achieve the perfect fit and create the characteristic dense, felted fabric. Fulling is a wet-finishing process that shrinks and thickens knitted fabric, transforming the structure and creating a more durable, insulating material. The double-thickness hatband is created through the knitting construction itself, providing both structural integrity and enhanced warmth.

Stitches and Construction

While specific stitch-by-stitch details are not provided in the pattern excerpt, the construction involves colorwork knitting to create the horse motifs across the tam. The pattern requires working with multiple yarn shades to achieve the running horse design, with flexibility to use ten or more different shades depending on the knitter's preference for complexity and color variation.

Materials and Yarn Requirements

• Headband Yarn: DK/8ply/11wpi weight feltable yarn in at least three shades. The designer used New Lanark DK in several undyed shades for the sample. This weight is essential for the headband portion as it must be suitable for fulling.
• Tam Body Yarn: Aran/10ply/8wpi weight yarn for the main tam section, though DK weight could be substituted if preferred by the knitter.
• Quantity: Exact yardage varies depending on the specific yarn used and individual knitter tension, but the pattern accommodates this variation.
• Needles: Specific needle sizes are not detailed in the provided excerpt, but would be appropriate for the yarn weights specified.

Difficulty Level

This pattern is rated as intermediate difficulty, making it suitable for knitters with some experience beyond basic techniques. The intermediate classification accounts for the colorwork required to create the horse motifs, the fulling process, and the shaping involved in creating the tam silhouette.

Customization Options

The pattern offers several opportunities for personalization. Knitters can adjust the finished size by controlling the amount of fulling applied. The color palette can be expanded beyond the minimum three shades for the headband, allowing for more elaborate and intricate color work if desired. The tam shape itself can be styled in different ways once complete, offering versatility in the final appearance.