Friday, January 14, 2011

A Hat for Keagan

My aunt bought my daughter her first winter coat. Its mint green and lilac. And I've been meaning to knit a new hat for the little girl, too. What a great time to do so. And I don't have to decide the colors.

It also works out that I don't have to choose a pattern. Before she was born, my husband and I created a little hat for her, a little bug hat. But she has the curse of a large head (from me) and outgrew it in about 4 days.


So, her new hat is like her old hat, but bigger and different colors. I decided to write up the pattern as I went and share it with the world. It is my first time writting a knitting pattern, so hopefully its understandable. I'd love comments or pictures if you make it!


Keagan's Bug Hat

Fits about size 6-9 months. Finished size: 7.25" by 6" tall , when laid flat.

Uses less than half a skein each of 2 colors of yarn. I used I love this Cotton in a light purple and a light green.

Worked on size 6 DPNs.

Cast on 64 stitches with the long tail method. Distribute evenly among 3 dpns.

Rows 1-5: Work in 2x2 ribbing around in one color.
Row 6-35ish: Work in stockinette stitch around. Change colors after every 5 rows.

Bind off using your favorite method.

With seam line (where color changes occurred) at the middle back, stitch the top of the hat together, except for the last 5 stitches in each corner. I don't know what the name of the stitch I used is, and you may know of a neater way to do it. But I basically used a mattress stitch to join the two sides.

In one corner, pick up the last 5 stitches and use it to make I-cord. I changed the color every 5 rows again. My I-cords are about 8" long each. When you're done with the first corner, cut the yarn and go to the second.

Weave in all your ends and that's it! A hat with little bug antenna.

Notes:
  • My daughter likes to chew on the cords, so I'm glad I made them long.
  • You can make your color change at any point you'd like. If you want smaller or larger rows, or a mix, go for it!
  • I also made her a scarf to go with it. I just cast on 16 stitches and did 2x2 ribbing for about 33 inches,changing color every 10 rows. Oh, I also slipped the first stitch of each row.