When I was little my Grandma Amy taught me to crochet. She said that she'd taught my dad to crochet when he was little and home sick from school because there wasn't any TV to keep him entertained and she needed something to keep him sitting still.
I don't think my dad remembers how to crochet, but I do.
So for most of my life now I've been a closet crocheter, making all sorts of easy stuff that I didn't have to think about too much.
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I started out making a few caps for myself but as friends started seeing them they wanted one too and off it went.
I picked up a crocheted beanie cap in a surf shop in Laguna Beach a few years ago and thought gee, I can make that.So to save myself forty bucks I walked a few blocks down to the Strands & Stitches yarn shop and bought two hundred dollars worth of yarn and taught myself how to make a beanie cap. Because, you see, I had to have the really cool exotic yarns to do it with and not just that cheap synthetic stuff you buy at Wal-Mart.
So yeh, Pussy Caps are made mostly with yarns from the highest quality natural animal fibers that come from all over the planet. Some of the yarns are handspun and some are commercially spun. Some are handpainted and some are their natural color. The one thing these yarns all have in common though is that they're the very best that money can buy. And that's part of what makes Pussy Caps so cool; you can't go out and buy one of these puppies in a store anywhere. It's all about the yarns...
Audrey and her three daughters, Alicia, Teanna and Katrina on the beach in Laguna
Singer Jane Runnalls in a Sherpa Pussy Cap that I crocheted from handspun Chilean angora fur.
You can order a Pussy Cap from the catalog pages or if you have something particular in mind I can make you a custom cap at no extra charge. (Custom orders available again in Sept. '08) If you're really into something outrageous I can make you a cap using only cashmere, qiviut, baby alpaca or yak. Let me warn you though: a Pussy Cap made soley with one of these yarns is so soft and comfortable you might never wanna take it off!
Pussy Caps are a whole different ballgame than the beanies you buy in the store. The natural animal fibered yarns I use in them are softer, more durable and a heck of a lot warmer than their acrylic counterparts.
These babies have a job to do and they do it well.
My buddy Richard, pictured here, has lots of tattoos, some serious piercings, nasty boyfriends and a totally shaved head. He loves his Pussy Caps and wears them 24/7/365.
I mean, come on, where else are you going to find a beanie cap that has buffalo fur, raccoon fur, possum fur, yak down, llama, merino and cashmere in it?
The cap Booker is wearing has all of those and is from the Roadkill series. Only four were made and all four have homes now. But don't worry, I'm always making lots of cool new caps with some of the world's most exotic yarns.
And there is a difference. Knitting uses two needles with sharp ends on them while crocheting uses a single hook that has, well, a hook on the end.
While the end result of both crocheting and knitting is a beanie cap that goes on your head, the look and style of each definitely sets them apart.
Calling me a knitter is like calling Placido Domingo a yodeler. I don't knit and Placido doesn't yodel.
:-)
The L.A. Times recently ran a special feature on beanie caps and among other things staff writer Boothe Moore wrote:
"Maybe the heat has gone to their heads. The mercury is topping out at 90 degrees and LA's mayor is urging energy conservation so we don't blow the grid. But that hasn't stopped men from sporting wool caps all over town. Even in the summer swelter, wool caps have become part of the L.A. messy male uniform."
Gotta love that.
To your left is actor Wes Ramsey in an alpaca/wool Pussy Cap. I'm pretty sure it was at least 80 degrees on the beach the day we shot these pictures.
Pussy Caps are the perfect answer.
With one of these beanies on your noggin it'll never be cold again.
They're so soft and warm you'll wanna sleep in them. In fact a lot of guys with shaved heads do sleep in them.
Try an alpaca or cashmere Pussy Cap - it'll change your life.
My daughter Auri in one of the more exotic Pussy Caps made from natural white handspun angora fur and wool. Above is my grandson Tristan in his very own custom Pussy Cap made with yarns I brought back from Italy with me 20 years before he was born.
Each Pussy Cap is one of a kind and yours will never be duplicated.
And yes, I make every single one of them myself. No helpers, no sweat shops. Just me and my hooks and my yarns and a lot of quiet hours in a comfortable chair.
Crocheting is good for my soul. It quiets my mind and stills the restlessness.
Actors and Hollywood rowdies West Liang and Justin Huen sporting Pussy Caps on the beach in Laguna.
You can check out more of the pictures from our work together here.
If you're anything like me wearing wool next to your skin isn't an option. Not to worry - every single Pussy Cap has to pass my personal softness test. If I can wear it you can wear it!
Actor Steve Sandvoss in his Pussy Cap that's made from soft Japanese wool and Italian mohair. Below he's wearing one made of handspun, natural colored llama.
Each Pussy Cap comes with a signed certificate of authenticity detailing the yarns used in the cap along with a conditional lifetime guarantee and care instructions.
The yarns I use in Pussy Caps aren't necessarily delicate but they do have to be either handwashed or dry-cleaned. Care instructions are here.
Beanie caps have been around forever in one form or another so even though they seem to be riding high on a wave of popularity right now, fact is, they're always going to be a part of our wardrobes because they do their job so well and so easily.
Pussy Caps are about taking an old concept and stepping it up a little bit with exotic yarns and some fun new looks.
Be sure and check out the Yarns page while you're here. It'll give you a really good idea of what Pussy Caps are all about.
Below is a list of some of the types of yarns I use in Pussy Caps. Clicking on them will take you to their respective pages where you can learn more about them.
There's lots more great pictures in the galleries of my friends and clients in their Pussy Caps. Don't miss 'em!
My grandson Tristan in a soft, fuzzy angora fur Pussy Cap
And grandpa on the beach in Laguna in one of his favorite angora fur Pussy Caps
Except for the picture of me directly above, all of the images on this page are my work
copyright 2008 - all rights reserved
You can visit my online photography portfolios by clicking on my name
in the navigation bar
The yarns I use in these caps are meant to be worn next to the skin and not itch, not one little bit. And they don't.
Model Russ Johnson in an angora fur Pussy Cap made with yarns that were hand-dyed and handspun by California artist Lisa Souza.
photo by Richard Weinecke
I confess that when I started crocheting beanie caps it was because I wanted to look cool like the surfers and boarders who were wearing them. I know, I know, that makes me a wannabee.
As I soon figured out though, the hipness factor involved in beanie caps is only a small part of the story. They really do perform an amazingly useful function; they keep our heads warm and protected.
