Welsh Wig, part two

You may remember that a few weeks ago I went to study the Welsh Wig in the textile collections of St Fagans National History Museum, dated c 1854. I've just finished my first replica interpretation to see if I'm on the right track with the pattern, and so far, I'm very pleased with progress.

I used a 2ply yarn for this one, purely because that was what I had to hand. I also used a paler yarn that the original to make it easier for me to see the details if I needed to make any adjustments as I went along. The original is in a single ply yarn and my next example will use a more appropriate yarn in a darker shade.

The original Welsh Wig is a very small size in appearance, but I've found the replica, which fits the measurements of the original nicely, stretches to fit almost all head sizes. To illustrate this, its shown above on a really large head form, about 24.5 inches, where its really a bit too stretched, but it does mean that on most ordinary real heads its a very flexible fit.

I'm still gathering together a few references to help put the cap into a wider context, and once I've got those together and have worked up another sample in a more appropriate yarn, I should be able to finalise writing up the pattern. Ideal for Crimean and Dickensian costuming, and definitely a bit different!

Update Feb 2014: Pattern is now available