Cosa Nostra del Cappello

It's a Movement!

The Hoghead, hatted:

And prepared for the krotchpunting.  He must be wearing the Green Boot.  Yes yes, he must. 
We can tell that your knee is laughing Samir, and we are not pleased.  Perhaps the Green Boot is destined for you?  Or perhaps, since you have obviously toiled under the (delicately embroidered, silk and linen, with the lovingly hand-tooled accoutrements) sign of the Krotchpunt, you are a man without fear?  Either way, you tempt fate, my friend.  Your employer stands beside you positively kvelling and you giggle. Brave.

Hoghead: Proud as an Ass-yrian God, we say:
 
That man knows how to appreciate a fine hat with fine handles, particularly suited to pulling him out of whatever mess he gets himself into.  And for that, we salute you, oh fourth recipient.  And we encourage you to wear it in cooler weather, so as not to fall down with the heat prostitution er, prostration.  Because if you fall down, someone may take your hat, and then all would be lost.

And here, the first shadowy member of the mafia, finally captured on film.  Eeeet's veerrrrrryyyyy scaaarrrrryyyyy if you clicky clicky . . .

Seriously, she is so scary, that brownie with the fine hat, that she giggles with the delight the entire time she threatens a life.  No joke.  I think she eats babies.  Or at least tender little lambies.  We were fortunate to escape with all of our digits.

Saluti il primo membra, l'uovo.

During our adventures, we measured many many crania and discussed the colors of wool and the options for decorations.  (We love) Drac (and he lives here) was wise enough to name a couple of colors and trust all else to the hatters.  Scaigheach had wishes for leafy goodness, to which the hatters were immediately drawn.  The ladies, during gaity time, discussed hopes for a hat of such masculine aspect . . . but I should say no more lest I betray the vision of my fellow hatters. 

And, as we suspected, Feltuna was too demure for Richard (who the ladies again declared dreamy, and who has apparently been cast in a movie produced by the ladies--of intrigue!).  It will be remade yes yes, and it will be awe-inspiring (but perhaps rather warm and a little itchy). 

Fickle felt

Another cranial creation complete.  But it is smaller than we intended.  Or smaller than we thought we intended.  It will serve some purpose well, though it will likely be replicated.  And not in a Blade Runner kind of way. 
Ultuna:  heah.
Feltuna:

We are almost off to the big P.  Prepare to have your skulls measured, folks.  We can't do the felt-math without knowing the appropriate circumferences.  And if we can't do the felt-math, all of the mad hatters, from the first through the penultimate, will be quite cranky.  The ultimate mad hatter is too distracted by the mercury  wobblies to care.

Mad Hatters: Seeking Employment

Is this thing on?

Some folks--a potter in particular--want hats, but we've hatted everyone bold enough to ask for a hat and careful enough to submit their head measurements. Which is sad, considering there are as yet only four bona-fide members of our shadowy tribe. Think of our safety, here: folks who knit large wool things in the DC summer seem susceptible to spontaneous combustion, but hats are small, so providing hat-data will likely keep mad hatters alive.

If you want a hat for yourself of one of your kin, post a comment with the measurements and suggestions for style,
color, etc. Wishing won't necessarily make it so, but it certainly improves your chances a great deal. Please measure other people's heads while you're at it: we reward those who encourage rank sillyness and felted-mayhem handsomely. We would particularly like to know the following cranial circumferences: Dog, Richard, Ceallagh
(each has a design waiting in the wings, but no measurement on file--tragedy!). We also accept wool donations, as outlined mmmm, heaaah:
http://crazylanea.typepad.com/hatmafia/2005/03/index.html and additional design ideas. 

Hey Bran, what happened to those sketches?

Third delivery

Aes, hatted:

And bouncing gleefully:

Nemesis approves:

But of course , he would. 

Mad-Hatter the first needs a new project.  In the meantime, call me Lanea Magya.  Whoever can tell me what that means gets a prize, unless of course you were with shadowy hatted ones and our companion who came up with it.  Then you've already got a prize, and you should let someone else play, and maybe go have another drinky-poo.

On Point

Another hat, but taller.

And slightly freaky.  Awaiting delivery and blocking.

We Deliver

Olwyn has a spirally felt hat.  I wasn't sure who it was for until I saw her at Sheep and Wool.  It fits well.  Good thing she has a thick wool felt hat in time for summer.

I will find evidence of her inclusion in this shadowy organization soon.

Heads on Fire!

This guy needs a protective felt headcovering.

One man in Kansas has a new protective felt headcovering:

Luckily, dear Hoghead doesn't look like a creepy creepy mannequin Steeleye and Lolo fished out of the Potomac.  This hat will make perfect sense to anyone who has studied their Heironymous Bosch.  Please, please let me not be the only Bosch fan about.  Suffice it to say that folks wearing things other than hats on their heads should be watched, and closely.  Quite conveniently, the hat is also a feedbag and a shoulder bag.  And the straps could arguably be used to drag Roderick away from, well, whatever he should be dragged away from.  We shall call it Capello al Cilindro di feltro verde.

Making strange things for strange heads

This wiseguy gets it.  The Maus gets it.  What, you don't get it?

Wanna speed on the appearance of strange hats in your neighborhood?
Mad hatter the first has one hell of a hat in her living room and another in the sneaky sneaky works, and a head full of amazing shapes blooming like flowers after cavorting with other fullers at the ACC show. Mad Hatter the second may soon create a crimson crest for . . . someone who already has a crimson crest? That second hatter is mad, indeed. She needs to stay away from the mercury.

The madness has spread all the way to Knit Picks, yarn purveyors who have decided to stop making a profit, best I can tell. Wanna see more hats sooner?
A. Measure your friends' heads well and often. If everyone gets measured, no one will be expecting the unexpected.
2. Go through your closets looking for cast off 100% wool sweaters marked dry clean only. Wash them in the hottest water you can make. Dry them in a hot dryer. Laugh at how much they shrink.  Give 'em to me.
III. Buy the food that felt eats, and deliver it unto a hatter:

a han
a do
a tri

A brownie's hat needs 7 skeins to grow up stout and sure.
A witch's hat eats two times that, as does a warlock's tur.
A stately fez eats modestly, but 4 or 5 skeins full.
A dread-locked dome, the madman's home, sups but snips of wool.
A tangle of the ewe's coat falls and twirls betwixt the pins,
And hatters full a rainbow mound to sidhe-helms for their kin.