Gather hat method verses drawstring

I had a little chance to read though posts from groups lately, being down and not able to get on the Internet all that much I have been behind on reading.

So I hear about a new method for doing the top of a hat. Rather then doing a gather you do a drawstring method. This is exciting news, or so I thought. Then I read on and do some searches to find this new method of removing a hat without a gather. When I finally find it and read about the method, I am terribly bothered by a problem. Oh it is a big problem. It is a rose by another name.

OK first I want to say this is a learning post. It is only meant to teach you something, and to have you understand the differences between the gather method for a hat and the drawstring method.

With a gather method you cut the working yarn, load a needle and run it through each stitch around the loom taking off the stitches as you go or after you have run the needle through each stitch. When the piece is completely off the loom you pull the yarn to gather the top and finish off.

With the drawstring method you cut the working yarn, and with your pick you pull the cut working yarn strands down through the stitches and then take them off the loom. When the piece is off the loom you pull the yarn to "gather" the top.

Now look at those two sections and tell me what the difference is. Do you see it? There is only one difference, instead of a needle to pull the working yarn through the stitch, you are using a pick to pull the working yarn through the stitch. Other then that there is no difference. You are just using a different method to "gather" the top of the hat.

It doesn't matter what way you use to pull that working yarn through that stitch to work it off. You can use a needle, you can use a pick, you can use a crochet hook, you could use your fingers, the end result is the same, a gathered top. You are putting your stitches in each of these methods on a holding strand that will be pulled to "gather" the stitches.

Call it what you may there is no difference. Sorry folks it is a gathered top of the hat by whatever name you want to give it. Giving it a different name doesn't make it any less of a gathered hat top. I cannot believe that someone else has not mentioned this on any posting that I have read.

It can get really confusing in the world of crafting. I think it is the responsibility of those of us who have been around crafting a while to show others that a rose by any other name is still a rose. It can be a bubble bursting thing to find that what you thought was new, is really still old but now you move on to finding that truly new to everyone method. Rebel that I am, I cannot see letting misinformation continue in this manner. That is the stuff of confusion and the world of knitting has enough of that to satisfy everyone.