Is it the dreadfulness of Winter, memories of Easter Parades or…?

For the second year in a row, I have designed a collection of pretty, pastel-colored hats. I’m not entirely sure why or how this has happened.

You can read about last year’s collection, which was a collaboration with Ruby Dawn Designs, HERE. With an open design brief, Ruby Dawn was inspiring to work with. She shared her color palette, a beautiful color scheme: pink, purple, gold, white and iridescent white.

At this point, only one hat from that collection of seven awaits adoption. So, that’s not too shabby.

Unconsciously, I continued with a similar color scheme this winter. It’s a rather small mini-collection of three hats. As you can see, it’s simpler and has much less ornamentation. No gold and no iridescence. This was because I made it as a sample for the Felted Hat Workshop which I taught at the Society of Contemporary Craft. Also, it only has three layers of Merino wool, versus my usual four layers. Again, this was aimed at helping the students complete a felted hat in a day.

In addition to the above cloche, there was a second pale purple hat in my shop, but it sold at a local event.

So, what is it about pretty pastel colored hats and why have I again been drawn to these colors?

Well, I started both collections in February, a time of dreary weather in Pittsburgh, PA. Working with pale pastel colors, like lavender purple, reminds me of spring and crocuses. Perhaps, there is also the influence of Easter too? Growing up in the 60’s, my neighborhood friends had the most delicious, candy-colored outfits in purples, pinks, and greens to wear to church for Easter.

Likewise, as a girl I wanted my bedroom to be painted pale purple. Somehow, the painter dissuaded my parents, explaining that the color purple faded more easily. Instead, my room was painted a pale blue color. Probably, this color lasted until 2017, when my parents sold their home and moved into a retirement community. Really, we could have had a grand experiment with how the color purple holds up. I cannot find online sources that say that it fades.

Incidentally, if you are in need of more pale purple inspiration, the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose, CA is a pretty color. Although, I’ve no idea how the color is holding up or how often it needs to be re-painted; the last time I was there was when my 18-year-old was a toddler!

According to color profilers, purple is considered a color that encourages creativity and growth. Certainly, this might explain it’s appeal with hats and more.

I find that the color continues to inspire me. Here’s a photo of the raised beds that we are painting.

Yes, they will be purple which will hopefully harmonize with the wild, multicolored, front garden that came with our home. The frame on the left will be repainted the lighter color. We are using milk paint because we hope to grow deer-proof edibles. (We’ll see what the deer decide). Onions?

What happened to the third hat of the mini collection?

It’s now part of my personal hat collection.  I figured that it needed expanding to include some pretty pastel colored hats! Update: after a while, I washed the hat and returned it to my shop. It's one of the perks of being a hatmaker - borrowing hats.

By the by, you can see this felted hat or others when I wear them around town and at Pittsburgh craft fairs. Please, see my EVENTS page for my upcoming ones.

And do stop by and say, “Hello” if you can!

Why do you think we are drawn to these pastel colors as we look towards the Spring? Perhaps, you are more drawn to wearing brights?

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