what i did today

 You may not remember that first class I taught when I went back to the New Brunswick Bike Exchange, but I do. I especially remember this pic:

 

Ever since seeing that, I've been thinking about that bald spot. (The Excellent Wife [TEW] is graceful enough to call it a "thin spot", but, in an occurrence rare for her, I think she is showing more tact than honesty.)

Today, I made this hat to cover up the bald spot:

I found a not-too-expensive pattern for the flat cap, and, knowing that I usually have to go for the largest hat size available, made up the pattern in the largest size... and it was way too big. So this hat is an adult small. (It's my third try; the second one fit, but I made it up in a print that nobody should actually be seen wearing.)

The print on this hat is skull-and-barbed-wire; Rickety's son had brought some home for some project or other, and this was left over. When he heard I was sewing, Rickety gave me three or four lengths of fabric, and this was among them. I love it for this hat, mostly because I'm so not a skull-and-barbed-wire kind of guy.

I'm going to wear it at the Bike Exchange, and it's gonna get grungy. I'll have to make a successor. (It actually requires some skills; there are some tough curves to match up when pinning it together. Also, the pattern is lined, so it looks a bit of quality.)

The vest in the pic is also my handiwork. I back-engineered the pattern from a vest I own, and then fitted in the pockets. It's mostly a glorified cell-phone carrier, because I'm tired of getting the rolled eyes I see when I use those belt carriers some of us old guys prefer.