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How to Repair A Pom Pom or Make a Fur Pom Pom



For some reason I'm totally awful at making pom poms. I've mentioned this before and I know you didn't believe me, so now I want to show you proof.

This is the lovely Reversible Smocked Hat by Elisa McLaughlin. I loved the pattern so much, I made two. I never make two of anything! (not even socks, uh-oh). I made this version with Rowan Kid Classic.


So, you can see there is a marvelous pom pom on top, right? And man, did I show it off like a total pom pom dork! I seriously thought I had conquered my pom pom problems once and for all. Here is some of what I wrote in my Ravelry project:
I did a mega pompom tutorial with myself before embarking on this incredibly dense and wonderful pompom... Anyone who has seen me make a pompom in the past has laughed in derision. WELL, I am now an expert.
Oh, gawd.

The pom pom had become a convoluted mess.  


Pieces were sliding out of the center LIKE A BAD HERNIA. I was always pushing them back in before every wear, only to have them herniate out the other side.


A lot of us assume that because we cut up a pom pom, it is unfixable.  I decided to test this.

I removed all the pieces and piled them up neatly into a nice healthy moustache. 


I even managed to salvage the longer piece of yarn that had "held it together" (use these words loosely), and laid them all on top of it.


Then I tied them together again... REALLY HARD. Also, I used the gift-wrap ribbon technique where you hold your finger on the knot until the very end, aiming to guillotine my finger. I then used a doubled piece of thread over the entire binding and tied it even tighter.


Obviously the pom pom won't be as big as the first time, as you have to re-trim all the ends, but hey! Look at this guy! Surgery success!


I got to thinking, though, what about avoiding my pom pom issues all together?  Fur pom poms are all the rage. The bigger the better. Here is a mondo I-Don't-Want-To-Know-The-Cost-Of one that the lovely Lost In Knit just blogged from Free People.


It turns out that I have tons of old fur lying around. Old hats, collars, trims, vintage, new, fake, real... I got to messing around with an old pair of rabbit earmuffs.


And what do you know, the ear was removable, and even had a handy elastic sewn into it!


I stuffed it with some polyester fiberfill... very aptly named:



Then I sewed the midpoint of the two sides together with a doubled thread.



Then I gathered the opposite sides in to make more of a rounded ball (it ended up being a muffin top shape, in the end).  




I'm not sure how long the fur will last, it was already rubbing away on the earmuffs, but I'm very happy with how it came out!

And now I am really eyeing what I should do with this pretty fluffy thing that ripped apart years ago...


See my It's a Total Smock-out on Ravelry


Comments

  1. You are very dedicated to pom-poms. I'm impressed that you actually repaired one and the fur one is stunning.

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    Replies
    1. Haha! And do you know that the next day I saw someone use these sophisticated Clover machines... the pom poms were amazing. It might be worth the splurge to avoid Pom Pom Depression. ;)

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  2. You are too funny! My poms are so bad, I cannot even call them pom poms. I'm always looking at pretty pom poms and thinking, every one is having pom pom success but me! Nice to know that you have found the answer, just relax and go for the faux fur. I've got your BD on my calendar and I hope you all your wishes come true!

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    Replies
    1. Awwwww thanks for the BD wishes! I'm going to start making pom poms out of everything EXCEPT yarn.

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  3. nice job, the fur pompom looks gorgeous!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, I might have made a mistake and promised to give the other earmuff part away... now I want to keep it and pom pom something else!

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  4. Oh my! The fur pom pom is the best idea ever! I wouldn't mind removing and re attaching it each time for washing if it is that beautiful.

    Love of Cuteness

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  5. Oh Dayana your posts crack me up! I have to admit that it gives me a guilty pleasure to see there is something that you are not that good at when you are so very skilled at so many other things - you are definitely an inspiration to me!

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  6. Thanks so much this really helped! My dog ruined my Pom Pom when I dropped it on the floor then I saw what you did to fix it and it really worked! Thanks so much

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  7. Mine came out all stringy and not round and I realized I didn't tighten it sufficiently at the bottom so followed your instructions and it's much better but iIthink my yarn does not lend it itself to pom poms

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