Thursday, May 11, 2017

Little Birds Hat

Little Birds Hat
Little Birds Hat

Yet again the story behind this hat is simple: while at the Edinburgh Yarn Festival in March, I went on a quest to find the perfect silvery yarn for a hat design. After combing through all of the booths, I finally settled on the subtle luster of this 4 ply from Ripples Crafts. Then, of course, once I had the fiber picked out I had to figure out the pattern, and ultimately decided to let a play on a basic stockinette let the yarn shine through. So if you, too, have a gorgeous 4 ply at home this may just be the design for you! (or - even better - order one of the gorgeous colorways from Ripples!!!!)

Yarn: Ripples Crafts Hand Dyed Yarn 4 Ply - Burras (100% Wool; 400 yards [366 meters]/100 grams); Moonshine - 1 skein (I used 58 grams, or roughly 232 yards)

Little Birds Hat
A look at the finish.
Needles: one 16" circular needle in size US 2, one 16" circular needle in size US 3, one set of double pointed needles (dpns), also in size US 3

Notions: Tapestry needle, two stitch markers

Gauge: 28 stitches = 4 inches in stockinette on size US 3 needles

Using your size US 2 needle, cast on 154 stitches loosely, place marker, and join in round. Then we'll work a ribbing, as follows:

Ribbing Row: * k1, p1; rep from *

Knit this ribbing row until ribbing measures roughly 1.5". Transfer your work to your size US 3 circular needle. Then we'll begin our main pattern, which is Little Birds from page 105 of Barbara G. Walker's A Treasury of Knitting Patterns, and goes as follows:

Rows 1 - 3: knit

Rows 4 & 5: * k2, slip 2 stitches purlwise with yarn in back (sl2 wyib), k10 *

Row 6: * sl2 wyib, drop first slipped stitch to front of work and slip the two stitches you just slipped back to your left-hand needle, pick up and knit dropped stitch, k2, drop next slipped stitch to front of work, k2, pick up and knit dropped stitch, k8 *

Rows 7 - 9: knit

Rows 10 & 11: * k9, sl 2 wyib, k3 *

Row 12: * k7, sl2 wyib, drop first slipped stitch to front of work and slip the two stitches you just slipped back to your left-hand needle, pick up and knit dropped stitch, k2, drop next slipped stitch to front of work, k2, pick up and knit dropped stitch, k1 *

Work rows 1 - 12 until piece measures roughly 9" and you've just finished row 7 or row 1 of the pattern. Then, we'll work the decrease, as follows:

Decrease Row 1: * k5, k2tog * (132 stitches)

Decrease Row 2: knit

Decrease Row 3: * k4, k2tog * (110 stitches)

Decrease Row 4: knit

You're going to want to transfer your work to your dpns about now...

Decrease Row 5: * k3, k2tog * (88 stitches)

Decrease Row 6: knit

Decrease Row 7: * k2, k2tog * (66 stitches)

Decrease Row 8: knit

Decrease Row 9: * k1, k2tog * (44 stitches)

Decrease Row 10: knit

Decrease Row 11: * k2tog * (22 stitches)

Decrease Row 12: * k2tog * (11 stitches)

Work decrease rows 1 - 12 and clip yarn tail. Thread onto tapestry needles, and then thread through final 11 stitches and pull tight. Thread to inside of work and knot. Tuck in ends, and, if desired, block.

Little Birds Hat
Little Birds Hat
Little Birds Hat
Little Birds Hat
Little Birds Hat
Little Birds Hat

8 comments:

  1. What a great hat! I cast on to make this as soon as I saw your post and just finished it this morning. I will be making it again very soon. Thanks for all your hat patterns; I've made several of them. My other favorite is your Rainbow Maze Hat. I've made four versions of it during our church's charity knitting group sessions for the local women/children shelter. I love how different each hat looked depending on the variegated yarn color. Thanks for sharing your work!

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    1. Yay! I'm so glad to hear that you like the pattern, and that it turned out well. :) And the Rainbow Maze is one of my favorites too - especially since the rolled brim can make it grow with the child. My five year old stole it from my littlest some time ago and he still wears it!!!

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  2. Hey Gretchen! I have an indie dyed yarn with violet, gray, lavendar, light blue and sort of a mint green and I think this pattern is just what I’m looking for. Question though: on rows 6 and 12, did you mean to drop the first stitch after the slipped stitches to the front? Basically it’s cable 2 front, knit 1, knit 2 from cable needle? And then I’m sort of confused.

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    1. Hi Mary Kay!

      You're basically just cabling with the dropped stitch - if you prefer, you could think of it this way:

      Row 6: * sl2 wyib, transfer next stitch (which is your slipped stitch) to a cable needle and hold in front; then, slip the two stitches you just slipped back to your left-hand needle, k1 from cable needle, k2, transfer next stitch to a cable needle and hold to front of work, k2, k1 from cable needle, k8 *

      I find it easier to just drop the stitch (since there's only one of them!) rather than actually messing with a cable needle, but the idea is exactly the same. Let me know if you have any questions. :)

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    2. Thank you! I could not picture this, and no matter how I worded it, could not find a tutorial anywhere for it. I guess I needed the visual if the cable needle to make sense.

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    3. Wonderful, glad I could help. :)

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  3. Perfect, thanks! I can envision it now and depending on how frustrated I get with accidentally pulling out the dropped stitch, maybe I won't use the cable needle. You rock!

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    Replies
    1. Perfect, I'm glad to hear it. Let me know if you have any other questions!!! :)

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