I've got a fun twist on my very popular ribbed knit hat pattern! Jude requested a new cap for our trip to the snow and I was happy to oblige. He fell in love with the neon orange by Caron Simply Soft and while I love being able to spot him from a mile away, I thought the design could benefit from the addition of a calmer color. Adding navy made the hat more interesting and warmer!
To make this version of the hat I made two simple modifications to the original pattern. The first change was to use two strands of slightly thinner yarn at the same time. Caron Simply Soft* is technically a worsted weight yarn but I find it to be significantly thinner than other worsted options (such as the Vanna's Choice I used for the first hat) so holding two strands helped create a squishier fabric. If you'd like to use a different yarn I'd say any sport weight or thinner worsted would work. There is really no trick here, simply hold two strands together and knit as though it a single yarn. You will get a natural mix that is fun and funky.
The next modification I made was to bump up the needle size to a US 9 (5.5mm). I didn't see any significant change in gauge from doing this so I didn't change the number of stitches. This pattern is so stretchy that it gives you a lot of leeway. This hat fits Jude, his toddler brother, and even me!
We had such a fun time visiting the snow. My dad rented a big house on the Truckee river for my whole extended family and it was so great. After so many years of drought and disappointing snow in California it was such a treat to sled in powder. Our only complaint? That we couldn't stay longer. Here's a few pictures, because this is as close as I get to a scrapbook!
I'm already looking forward to next year's trip!
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