Pierowall Tam

Named for a village on the island of Westray, Orkney Islands, the Pierowall Tam is worked in the Fair Isle technique. With a 13.5-inch (34 cm) diameter, this is an oversized tam that provides a large canvas for the colored stitch patterns.

It begins with the Old Norwegian Cast-on (aka German Twisted Cast-on), which provides a firm yet elastic, non-curling base for the corrugated ribbing, then expands into alternating bands of peeries and large patterns, before decreasing into an 8-sided wheel.

The charts for this pattern use Mary Rowe’s notation for designating the colors. This system allows for easy color substitution if the knitter chooses a different palette. A color printer is not required to produce the easy-to-read charts.

To finish, 3 buttons are sewn to the ribbing for a dash of style.

Techniques Used: • Decreases: k2tog, s2kp • Increase: M1L (make one left) • Knit, purl • Old Norwegian Cast-on • Stranded knitting

Yarn: Fingering/sock/4 ply/1