I can wear a hat or take it off,
but either way it’s a conversation piece.
[Hedda Hopper]

The whole point to this day-long class at the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival is the steek. A steek is a seam allowance that bridges the gap of an opening in knitting. By bridging the gap, it allows the knitter to knit in the round making it easier to work some techniques like stranded knitting. The steek is cut and finished so that it won’t ravel and so that it will wear well.

I’ve finished steeks a number of ways over the years but prefer working two lines of slipped-stitch crochet before cutting up the middle of the steek. I’ll be showing the knitters in this class how to work the crochet with knitting needles. Although the class project is a doll-sized hat so we can make it in our limited time, I’ll also distribute patterns for a child-size hat shown here in red and white.