Tam Love

Foggy Cove Tam

I've been happily knitting away on a collection of classic tams in different colorways! What a fun, low-stress way to explore how colors interact. 

Tams are, at their simplest, tall beanies that are blocked to the flat shape we are so familiar with. Mary Rowe's book Knitting Tams will teach you everything you need to know about knitting and designing tams—sadly out of print, but I expect that you can find a copy on some yarn shop shelf somewhere (makes a good excuse for LYS visiting, doesn't it?).

I use an 11-inch dinner plate turned upside down as my blocking form. Once the tam is stretched over the plate, I balance it on a bowl (this looks a bit like a UFO or one of the dancing mushrooms in Fantasia):

I don't do anything special to shape the band; I neaten it while the tam is on the blocking form by tugging downward. Once freed from the plate, the band looks like I spent a lot of effort making a sharp turn:

This tam is one a series I'm developing to teach Fair Isle color use. I'll be teaching this class for the first time at Churchmouse Yarns & Teas on Bainbridge Island, Washington (near Seattle), on April 1. I choose the colors but you choose how to arrange them!

And if you want to choose your own colors, I'm teaching the 2-day color class at Churchmouse as well on April 2 & 3. It looks like this will be the only time I'm teaching this in the Pacific NW this year, by the way.

Comments

[Deb]

Just found the book at KnittersBookshelf.com for $14.95 - they have a FEW copies from a back shelf (yes, I took one); it's a small company. Amazon.com has a new one at (wait for it) $375.00 and used from $47.95; Powells.com does not have it at all. It took two pages of Bing to find it - may be more elsewhere, but most are showing around $50.

Janine - thought this would also be a good way for me to get more involved with FI. Love the 11" plate idea.

I'm glad you are feeling better - I didn't get your flu, but did get a cold that hit the day after I got home. Has been a great excuse to lay low (with out snow) and knit!!

Would love to go to Bainbridge, but not an option at this point. Have fun!!

[Anne]

Lovely colourway!

[Pamela]

Oh, I have that book; maybe I will also use that as my foray into Fair Isle.

I have to tell you a story; about 5 years ago I knit a hat that was a bit more "beanie" than "beret", and I thought I might be able to fix it with blocking. I was at a knit night, and mentioned to the woman next to me that I would try to put a dinner plate in it. She said: "permanently?"

Ha ha Ha!

[Gail]

I am very, very sad that I don't live closer to where you are! Here in the chilly Midwest, we need your gorgeous colorful fair isle tams to keep warm. In fact, isn't Knitted Tams by a fellow Madisonian? I follow your blog and lust after all your gorgeous colorwork. Yes, I know I could attend one of your classes, but I'm a teacher and have NO flexibility. I attend in spirit!

[Lydia]

I'll be there! I've signed-up for the two-day class!