I've been going through my stash, looking for nice heavy yarns to make into hats and mitts for the nieces and nephews and came across a few random balls of Lion Brand Homespun. There's enough in one ball for a child's hat and mitts, and here is the hat pattern- mitts to follow.
Notes:
-The small and large sizes are made with needles in size 5 & 7, and the medium & extra large are made with needles in sizes 6 & 8, so gauge is very important to get the right size of hat.
-The small size makes a toddler size hat, medium child size 4-6, large child size 8-10, extra large, adult size. (this is a rough guide as my head fits the large size but then I have a small head and have always worn boy's large size.)
-The hat is worked from the crown down. If you tend to bind off tightly, either use a larger needle for your bind off, or consider working the hat from edge to crown instead, reversing the shaping. I use a Kitchener rib bind off on hats to keep the lower edge stretchy. The only place I know of that has instructions for this bind off (which is really very attractive, professional, and stretchy) is in the book Big Book of Knitting by Katharina Buss. It takes some time to master but it really is worth the effort.
Materials:
1 skein Lion Brand Homespun, any color
1 set of 5 size 5 (3.75mm) and 7 (4.5mm) double pointed needles if you are making the small or large size hat
1 set of 5 of size 6 (4mm) and 8 (5mm) double pointed needles if you are making the medium or extra large size hat
pompom maker
Gauge:
on size 7 needles: 14 sts / 4 inches in stocking stitch
on size 8 needles: 12 sts / 4 inches in stocking stitch
Abbreviations:
c4b: slip 2 stitches onto cable needle & hold at back of work, k2, knit stitches from cable needle
c4f: slip 2 stitches onto cable needle & hold at front of work, k2, knit stitches from cable needle
m1L: insert left-hand needle into the horizontal bar between the last stitch worked and the next stitch from front to back and knit into the back of it.
Cable braid:
over 6 sts
Row 1: k2, c4b
Row 2: purl
Row 3: c4f, k2
Row 4: purl
Instructions:
Crown:
(changes for large are in brackets)
Cast 6 sts onto 3 size 7 (or size 8 for med & xl) needles. Join and knit 6.
Round 1: *k1, m1L* 6 times
Round 2: Knit.
Round 3:(mark the beginning needle) *k2, m1L, k1, m1L, k1* 3 times
Round 4: Knit.
Round 5: *k3, m1L, k1, m1L, k2* 4 times
Round 6: Knit
Carry on in this manner until you have 66 (72) stitches. Do not bind off.
Braided Cable Band (Knitted on as you go):
Using an open cast on (so the stitches can be grafted later) cast on 12 sts onto same size of needles. (If you don't want to graft, you can always cast on and off in the usual way and sew the ends together but that does leave a bulky seam and tightens the hat a little.)
Foundation Row: (back of work) k1, p1, k1, p6, k1, p1, purl last stitch of band together with the next open stitch of the crown.
Row 1: (front) p1, k1, p1, make cable, p1,k1, p1
Row 2: k1, p1, k1, make cable, k1, p1, purl the last stitch of band together with with next open stitch of the crown.
Row 3: k2, p1, make cable, p1, k1, p1
Row 4: k1, p1, k1, make cable, k1, p1, purl the last stitch of band together with with next open stitch of the crown.
Row 5: slip next stitch of crown onto left-hand needle and knit it together with the first stitch of the band, k1, p1, make cable, p1, k1, p1
Row 6: k1, p1, k1, make cable, k1, p1, k1
Row 7: slip next stitch of crown onto left-hand needle and knit it together with the first stitch of the band, k1, p1, make cable, p1, k1, p1
Row 8: k1, p1, k1, make cable, k1, p1, purl the last stitch of band together with with next open stitch of the crown.
Repeat rows 3-8 around the crown of the hat.
Last Row: Insert needle into first stitch worked from crown & pull up a stitch, knit together with first stitch of band, k1, p1, make cable, p1, k1, p1. Do not bind off. Graft the cast on row with the final row.
You will make 3 rows of band for every 2 stitches of the crown. Small: 100 rows. Large: 108 rows.
Ribbed edge:
With smaller needles, pick up 3 sts for every 4 rows on the lower edge of the band. sm: 75, lg: 81 Pick up on more to make an even number of total stitches. K1, P1 in rounds until you have 1.25 (med. 1.5, lg 1.75, xl 2) inches and cast off.
make a pompom if you like and attach it to the crown.
