“To be called a refugee is the opposite of an insult; it is a badge of strength, courage, and victory.”
—Tennessee Office for Refugees

Every year during the Yarn Crawl, we highlight a yarn company that exemplifies who we are and what we believe at String Theory. This year, our free pattern is made with Garnsurr Socke Merino, a yarn that refugee women in Norway create. Garnsurr is an integration project for refugee women. Garnsurr gives them a job that contributes to society and helps them become integrated into Norwegian culture and customs.

The Garnsurr dye artists are from Afghanistan, Eritrea, and Somalia. They all fled to Norway between 2013 and 2015, from war-torn countries, and have had traumatic experiences.

I believe that working with colours can be a way for them to express themselves instead of speech and writing. When they arrive in Norway, they have a very limited vocabulary in Norwegian and are practically illiterate. The use of colours to express themselves can give them an identity—and it also gives them a way to communicate with others. We hope that our yarn is a sign of liberation for these women. They have suffered a lot, and I hope that the colors and the work at Garnsurr, can help them build a new identity for themselves in Norway.
- Ann Helen, founder of Garnsurr

Pattern Notes
The hat is made with a full skein and a contrasting mini skein (approximately 94 yards).

The hat pattern starts with a provisional cast on, so you won’t have to sew the hem under at the end of the project. If you haven’t done a provisional cast on before, I recommend the tutorial below. If you just don’t want to be bothered, you can do your normal cast on and
sew your hem into place.

Tutorial
If you haven’t made a hat with a folded hem, check out this video. It demonstrates the provisional cast on, how to remove the cast on, and how to join the hem. Folded Hem Hat: youtu.be/CHXVVW_EKXI