Kitty Hat

How to make a square hat and turn it into a Kitty Hat

Making a square, knit hat is so easy.

Although I crochet a lot I really do love the look of a knit hat.  My 13 year old wanted a kitty hat so I tried several patterns that had sewn on ears.  They all flopped over which was disappointing.  I noticed some hats I had seen were square and when worn the top corners would stick out like ears…kitty cat ears?  They did!

Here is all there is to it.

Size 8 needles  (5 mm)

Worsted weight yarn (about 125 yards)

Yarn or Embroidery Floss for adding the face

Ribbon or fabric for the bow and an optional button for the middle of the bow.

My gauge is: 18 st in stockingnette = 4″ (10cm)

To knit in the round – Cast on 80 stitches, ribbing for first 1″ and then stockingnette stitch until work measures 7 1/2″.  Either use the Kitchener stitch (grafting) or a 3 needle bind off to close up the top.

To knit flat – Cast on 80 stitches.  Work in ribbing of your choice for first 1″.  Stockingnette stitch until work measures 7 1/2″ .  Divide stitches evenly onto each of your needles and use either a 3 needle bind off or graft the top shut.  Turn hat inside out, with a large needle run yarn up the back to close up the seam.

Embroider as desired and add a bow if you would like.  I used a left over piece of satin and sewed two 4″ x 3″ pieces together (right sides facing) leaving a small opening, stuffed and gathered in the middle and sewed a button on the front to cover my ugly stitches before attaching to the hat.

Resources:

These are the videos I used to learn both grafting and the three needle bind off.

Here is a helpful video for the 3 Needle bind off:  http://www.knittinghelp.com/videos/casting-off

And also a video from KnittingHelp.com demonstrating how to Finish with the Kitchener stitch/grafting:  http://www.knittinghelp.com/videos/knitting-tips

 

Puppy Dog Crochet Hat Pattern – toddler size

Puppy Dog Hat
1-3 years, Double Crochet

You will need
· Worsted weight yarn
· scrap yarn in contrasting colors if you are adding trim, eyes, nose, or ears
· Size K (6.5mm) and size I (5.5 mm) crochet hooks
· Smaller crochet hook or yarn needle to weave in ends.
· Yarn needle to attach optional facial features

Gauge= End of Round 2 = 2 ¾”

Thanks for using this pattern. I am still fairly new to crochet and even newer to writing up patterns so if you find an error kindly let me know. Chances are you have more crochet experience than I do.
This pattern is for a 12 month – 3 year old toddler hat in double crochet.

The photos shown, and pattern was created using

White Hat — I Love This Yarn acryclic  ( Red Heart Super Saver Café for ears and nose, Red Heart Super Saver Grey Heather for eyes and Red Heart Super Saver Light Blue for eye patch and contrasting trim)

Off White Hat — Red Heart Super Saver in “Soft White”, Cafe for ears and nose and Light Blue for eye patch.

These are heavier worsted weight yarns therefore if you are using a different weight yarn you may need to adjust your hook size and/or number of stitches.

For additional sizes, single crochet, half double crochet or are looking for different types of animal faces for hats please check this page on my website for updates: http://www.allyssite.com/crochet-animal-hats-index.html

HAT Pattern
Hat is crochet in a spiral (continuous rounds) meaning you will not join at the end of each round.  It is recommended you place a marker to keep track of your last stitch in each round.
Crown
Round 1- Chain 2 and double crochet 10 times into 2nd chain from hook or
if you are using magic circle make 10 dc in loop.
Round 2– Make 2 dc’s in each stitch. Place marker on last stitch
made. You should have 20 stitches
Round 3– *1 dc in next stitch, 2 dc in next stitch* repeat
around (30 stitches total)
Round 4 –*1 dc in each of the next 2 stitches, 2 dc in next stitch* repeat around (40 stitches total)
Round 5–*1 dc in each of the next 4 stitches, 2 dc in next stitch* repeat around (48 stitches total).  At the end of this round your circle should measure approximately  6″ across which will give you a hat 18.75 -19.25“
Rounds 6 – 11 (or until hat is approx 6 ½” long when measuring from top center to bottom.) Dc in each stitch around hat making sure to move marker with each completed row.
Leave marker in place –this will be the back center of your hat.
Do NOT cut yarn at end of rounds.
EARFLAPS
Rows:
Ss next 5 stitches. SS in next st, ch1. Sc in same stitch and in next 10 stitches. Ch 1 and turn. (11 sc)
Sc in each sc. Do not ch1. (11)
Sc in each sc. Do not ch1. (10)
Sc in each sc. Do not ch1. (9)
Sc in each sc. Do not ch1. (8)
Sc in each sc. Do not ch1. (7)
Sc in each sc. Do not ch1. (6)
Sc in each sc. Do not ch1. (5)
Sc in each sc. Do not ch1. (4)
Sc in each sc. Do not ch1. (3)
Sc in each sc. Do not ch1. (2)
Sc in each sc. Do not ch1. (1)
Count 17 stitches across front of hat. In the 17th st attach yarn for 2nd ear flap by ss, ch1 and sc in that stitch. Sc in the next 10 dc. Ch1 and turn. (11 sc)
Repeat rows 2-12 of earlfap pattern above. Cut off yarn and weave in ends of both earflaps.

Trim- with contrast color of your choice, attach yarn with slip stitch behind right
ear. Ch 1, and sc around entire hat and earflaps. Cut yarn and
weave in loose ends.

To add a dog face to the crochet hat just crochet and sew on these embellishments. Because these animal hat patterns are for babies please make sure the eyes, ears, noses and other parts are securely sewn to your finished garment. Personally I would not recommend buttons for children under three.

Disclaimer – I am not a child safety expert nor am I providing guidance. My statements regarding safety are only my opinions as a mother and grandmother. By crocheting and adding these embellishments you claim full moral and legal responsibility for the outcome and safety of the hat you create.

Directions given are for sewing the embellishments on with yarn and a yarn needle. If a neat appearance on the inside of the hat is a big concern for you, you may find regular sewing thread to be more invisible. Additionally, I have found I prefer to place facial embellishments onto the front of the hat with a couple drops of fabric glue and let it completely dry before sewing the eyes and nose to the hat opposed to pinning them in place.

Puppy Dog Ears – floppy
Using 5.5 mm hook (US size I)
Ch 14 leaving a long tail (about 12“).
Rows:
DC in 4th st from hook and in all st. Ch 3 and turn(11)
DC in 2nd st from hook and in all st. Ch 3 and turn(11)
Increase by making 2 dc in 1st stitch, dc across and make 2 dc in last stitch ch3 and turn (13)
DC in all st. ch3 and turn. (13)
Repeat row 4 (13)
Repeat row 4 (13)
Repeat row 4 (13)
DC2tog, dc next 10, dc2tog last 2 stitches . Ch 3 and turn. (11)
Dc2tog first two dc‘s, dc in next 7 st, dc2tog the last 2 stitches . Ch 3 and turn(9)
Dc2tog first two dc‘s, dc in next 5 st, dc2tog the last 2 stitches . Ch 3 and turn(7)
Dc2tog, 3 times, dc last st. (4)
Slip stitch into side of ear nearest your hook, ss all
the way around ear. Fasten and weave in end.
Repeat for 2nd ear.
Use tails from beginning chain to sew ears to top sides of hat.

Puppy Dog Eyes
(Make 2)
Using a 5.5 mm hook, Ch 2
Rows
6 sc in last chain from hook
2 sc in each sc. Slip stitch to join.
Fasten and cut yarn leaving a long enough tail for sewing
to hat.
Place on front of hat. Pin in place and use same color
yarn and a large needle to sew the eyes to the front of the
hat. (If you are using an eye patch see below before sewing
on)

Puppy Dog Eye Patch
(optional- shown as blue in photo)
With eye patch color, and 5.5 mm hook, ch 2 and follow instructions for
eyes except add an additional row as follows
Row 3- ch 3 (counts as first dc), 2 dc in each sc around. Ss into top of ch3.
(24)
Fasten and cut yarn leaving a long enough tail for sewing
to hat.
Place on of the eyes onto the eye patch with right sides
facing you. Making sure the eye is centered, sew it atop the
eye patch and trim all loose yarn.
Place on front of hat. Pin in place and use same color
yarn and a large needle to sew piece to the front of the
hat.

Puppy Dog Nose-
With nose color and a 5.5 mm hook, Ch 2
Rounds:
6 sc in last chain from hook
2 sc in each sc. (12)
sc in each sc around (12)
Repeat round 3.
sc in first sc, 2 sc in next sc, repeat (18)
1 sc in each sc (18)
sc2tog all the way around. Join with ss. (9 sc)
Pin in place on front of hat and use same color yarn and
a large needle to sew piece to the front of the hat.
Hat Ties
With colors of your choice cut 12 strands of 18” long yarn
Use a yarn needle to insert cut yarn into the ss’s at the bottom of first ear flap.
Double the yarn over, split into 3 sections and braid. Tie with scrap yarn in color of your choice to fasten braid off.
Repeat for second braid.

Legend –US Crochet Terms
Sc – single crochet
Dc – double crochet
Dc2tog – double crochet 2 stitches together
Hdc -Half double crochet
ss- slip stitch
ch-chain (ie ch1=chain 1; ch2=chain2)

 

Terms of Service for this pattern: You are free to use finished garments from this pattern as you choose. If you give any credit to the website (www.allyssite.com) it would be greatly appreciated but not required. If you feature this pattern on the internet or any physical publication, do not include the wording or text of the pattern, instead provide a link to our website.

which is a heavier worsted weight yarn. If you are using a different yarn you may need to adjust the number of stitches and/or the hook size.

Tons of Sock Patterns for Knitting

Since I just got done with those Hunting socks for my youngest son I immediately starting looking for more patterns and came across this but haven’t clicked thru the links yet. I did scroll over a few and saw urls like Yahoo GeoCities–didn’t they close down?

Anyway here is the link: http://www.cooperativemainecraftsmen.com/NoJava/free_pattern_by_type.php?Category=-sock-

Grandmother’s Favorite Dishcloth

Another Excellent Gift Giving Idea

This is probably the singlemost popular dishcloth pattern there is.  I made this one for Ally as she picked out the green she has in her kitchen and have already whipped a few more out.  They only take a few hours and are a great way IMO to practice yarn overs if you are considering some lace knitting or a project with eyelets.

You can get the pattern here:  http://www.groupepp.com/dishbout/kpatterns/grfavorite.html

Be warned though.  Just as Thelma’s Great Neice stated, as soon as someone uses one of these you are more than likely to get a phone call requesting more :)

Tawashi Facial Pads

Here is another great gift idea….and ya know, Mother’s Day is just around the corner :)

I made these along with the round Facial Cleaning Pads for Vee but before I hit that great sale on Sugar N Cream yarn when I made Brady’s Easter Chick Beanie hat so the colors shown above are the colors from my kitchen but that worked out just fine as you will read ahead.

I had never heard of or seen a ‘Tawashi’ but in my opinion they looked like they would be a little easier to use than the round face washing pads.  Vee reported that she likes the Round Facial Cleaners better and they are better for removing eye make up.  Then she mentions she has seen similar items like this used as Kitchen Scrubbers so this stack of crochet Tawashis found their way into my kitchen where they are marvelous at fitting right in my hand to wipe off plates, the high chair try or even scrub out the bottom of a skillet.  This week they will get a new companion as I replace the cream, purple and green dishcloth the girls used to clean up a huge nail polish spill.

The pattern takes only about 10 minutes to whip up and is a great way to use up some scrap yarn.  And of course, these pads, as the previous post, are machine washable.

You can get the pattern here at the Shh, I’m Counting Blog by a talented lady name Marte.  The link is here:  http://arpelia.blogspot.com/2008/09/super-simple-tawashi-flower.html While you are there check out her patterns. I am dying to make the beautiful ‘ridiculously huge pom pom hat’ on her site that is crochet with earflaps using ThickThin yarn.

Facial Cleaning Pads

Looking for a very quick gift idea?

I stumbled across these crochet facial pads or face ‘scrubbers’ by accident while Vee was sitting by me.  She said she would love to try one instead of using a washcloth on her face every morning and night.

Each of these literally only took a couple minutes as they are only two rounds of crochet.  This pattern is a great way to use up some of that scrap cotton.  Make half a dozen or so, tie them up with a ribbon or even include them in a basket beauty or facial products for a unique and usable holiday or birthday gift.

The pattern for these is at Crochet Spot  http://www.crochetspot.com/crochet-pattern-facial-cleaning-pads/

Crochet Dishcloth -easy, easy, easy

Easy and quick to make crochet dishcloth pattern

Although faded from some serious abuse by tweens this crochet dishcloth is holding strong

Keep in mind this was made about 7 months ago and has been in regular use at least once a week since.  And keep in mind this poor dishcloth suffered some serious nail polish, polish remover and then hot bleachy water ‘before mom sees our mess’ (Yeah I saw it…..sigh)  abuse, and is still holding strong.

I picked up some cotton Sugar n Cream yarn at Hobby Lobby right before Ally and Vee went to Knitting Club for the first time.  Since they were both learning I figured a dishcloth or pot holder would be a good project for them.  The instructor was quick to get them working with some worsted acrylic and they brought the cotton home to me.

I’m thinking this is probably the very first thing I ever crochet.  This is single crochet with colors being changed after every second row.  The only hook I had back then was an “N” and because I had no idea how many to chain to make a cloth (didn’t even think to look online for patterns then!!!)

I just got out a dishcloth I liked the size of and chained til it was as long as that,

single crochet across,

chained 1, turned

and repeated the process til it was square.

If you want to make home dish dishcloths and would prefer not to knit then crochet is your ticket.  I hooked this up while watching a movie so it couldn’t have taken more than a couple hours even in my newbiness.

 

60 Minute Headband

 

Knitted Headband or ‘Ear Warmer’ in One Hour

 

Knit a thick earcover headband in an hour

Knitted in an Hour

Remember that Lion Brand Wool Ease Thick and Quick that I had bought to make Jen’s Crochet Loop Stitch Pillow with last month? Well I kept looking at that yarn wondering what I was going to do with it.  It was cold out so when I took the dogs for their walk I slipped on my pink half double crochet headband and ‘lightbulb’ I bet I could knit one just as fast as I crochet that one.

When I got back in the house I grabbed my yarn and my size 13 needles.  As I started knitting I thought it just needed something else so I frogged it and grabbed a small amount of that Patons Stretch Sock yarn in Plum that I used for Ally’s Yoga socks.

  • Knitting with both strands I cast on 6, knitted until it was 2″ then k1, *k1, m1* til the last stitch, k1 which gave me a total of 10 stitches.
  • When the headband was 16″ I K1, *K2tog* to the last stitch, k1 for 2 inches and cast off.
  • Seamed up the ends and wallah had a very warm, very thick and soft headband.

I still am not a huge fan of the Lemongrass shade of green—just reminds me of Split Pea Soup or Grammy’s carpet when I was in Kindergarten but mixed with the variegated sock yarn it could be worse. :)   Given that this is so quick and used far less than 1/2 a skein I think this makes a good candidate for a quick and easy beginner’s Christmas Gift Idea

Spruce Up Cheap Stretch Magic Gloves

I don’t know about anyone else, but I started working on my Christmas gift list just before the beginning of April.

Years ago my mom worked in a craft store.  It was a Piece Goods Shop (are those still around?)  One of the managers there was a young woman named Nicole, who really should have been a designer.  I swear she could look at anything and make it into something beautiful and usable.  She could take lace and sew it to the edge of cheap white socks or cut a t-shirt and add a Chintz skirt to it, or wrap fabric around a garage sale lamp and make it look like a decorator item.  The lady was amazing and try as I might my projects never resembled anything of her craftiness.

Browsing Crochet Pattern Central when I was looking for a trim for the Easter Chick Hat that I crochet for Brady I found this idea to spruce up those cheap little magic gloves with crochet thread.  It reminds me so much of something Nicole would make and it may be something I can handle since it does not require sewing!!

My girls love those little Stretch Gloves because they fit into a pocket and I love them because you can pick up two pairs for a buck at the Dollar Tree.  This pattern to add crochet trim to Magic Stretch Gloves is here:  http://shala-beads.livejournal.com/109358.html

 

Formula for a basic Knitted Hat

This link was provided in a post at the Knitting Help forum (ever been there? It’s a nice forum with genuinely friendly members, admins and mods). It is a basic formula for figuring out how many stitches you need to knit a hat regardless of the size needles or weight of yarn you are using.  If you know how to knit and know how to knit and measure a gauge swatch you can knit a hat.  Check out the Knitted Basic Hat “Formula” Pattern