Hello Knitters!

[Ryan Ross]

If you are knitting inward from the brim to the centre and the knitting is domeing then you need to decrease more stitches, or do fewer rows between decreases.

The fabric does need to be firm, so using thicker yarn or smaller needles will help it stay in shape.

As you work you need to stretch the knitting out to its fullest diameter to see how it will lie when worn - be careful if you are using wooden or bamboo needles not to pull on them or you will snap them. It might be better to transfer all the sts to a thread or circular needle to stretch the cap and then knit them off afterwards.

You can reshape quite a bit if you are going to felt it, but it is a bit of a pain to get right. It is better to have the top flat to start with.

I work berets in crochet and start in the middle of the top so I am working the other way round from your knitted ones. When I have a disc large enough for the top I work a few rounds without shaping and then begin the decreasing towards the brim. The bit of extra height gives a better look to the finished cap and it tends not to fall into creases as much as a cap with a more abrupt fold in it.

Anne the Pleater :ootd:

Thanks for the intel, Anne!

Yep, these bonnets are ever so slightly domes, before being felted; that said, they always end up perfectly flat, after the felting. What I'm noticing is that there just isn't enough room in a perfectly flat bonnet to have the top be relatively flat, while the hatband is where it's supposed to be on one's head. I'm starting to think that I'll need to make some sort of hat block, in order to get the same effect as seen in the painting. All that said, I'll certainly try reducing additional stitches on the top, while using the same rate I have been, on the bottom. That and some creative shaping after felting might do the trick!