Ric-Rac Panthers Fan Messy-Bun Earflap Beanie

The football team at our hometown high school, the Perry Panthers, has school colors of maroon and gold. They also have white away-game jerseys, and also alternate uniforms that are primarily black. I'm trying to utilize all of those colors in this hat.

Previous times when I've made this Messy-Bun Earflap Beanie (or the regular hat style), it has been using a combination of three colors. This time I'm attempting to make it using four colors. I sketched out several different stripe arrangements before settling on this configuration. I think it works pretty well at incorporating all four colors while still keeping the maroon and gold as the dominant colors.

Let's go, Panthers!!! 2023 GHSA 4A Football champions!

 

Ric-Rac UGA Fan Messy Bun Beanie

Ever since I made one of these beanies for my grandniece Jill almost four years ago, I've been wanting to make one for myself in a messy-bun style (open top). So when Jill's mom, my niece Renee, announced that she would be hosting a party to celebrate the kickoff of Georgia's new football season, I knew that now was the time to grab my yarn and get hooking on this essential accessory. GOOOOOO Dawgs! Sic 'em! Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof! 🏈

I used scraps of yarn I had in my stash to make this, so, naturally, I ran out of the main red color when I was stitching the brim. I switched to another scrap of red that was a fairly close match to the first red, but there is a tiny bit of difference in the colors. But since this hat is for me, I'm OK with that. 😊

The hat works up quickly, and the cluster V-stitch is super easy while giving the stripes their distinct "ric-rac" look. I use this tutorial on YouTube by Hooked by Robin whenever I need a refresher on how to work the cluster V-stitch. The design is great for showing off the colors of any fandom, and the slouchy, stretchy nature of the beanie is amazingly comfortable for all-game-day wear. The 5/6 ribbed brim in alternating FPDC/BPDC stitches also provides complete, cozy coverage of your ears, which is wonderful on windy autumn/winter game days.

As you can tell by my latest posts, I'm on a beanie-making kick lately, thanks to the approach of fall, my favoritest season in the whole, wide world!! Plus, most crochet hats work up super fast, so it doesn't take long to have your latest favorite hat ready to wear. 

And because crochet hats work up quickly, it also means that I can usually finish one before the arthritis in my hands forces me to take a break from stitching. 👍

 

 

Halloween Snow Heart Beanie

Oooh, it's almost my favorite time of the year again!

Designer Leesa Nixon recently shared a photo on her socials of the Beetlejuice/Halloween colors version of her Snow Heart Beanie (paid pattern), and I just knew that I needed to make one for myself in a messy-bun/ponytail style, because Halloween is probably my favorite holiday, too!!

These Sour Apple poms by Dannisdesignscrafts on Etsy add the perfect finishing touch! This is a really fun and quick pattern to crochet, and it doesn't require very much of each color of yarn. Love it!

Taylor's Beanie

When Taylor Swift wore that crocheted beanie to watch her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, play football with the Kansas City Chiefs, all of the online yarnie groups went BA-NA-NAS with people wanting to know how to make the same hat. It's the Taylor Effect, y'all.

Anyway, if you love a Swiftie, like I do, then you simply MUST make them one of these beanies. It works up quickly with simple stitches, so it's an easy project that will bring a huge thrill to your Swiftie's heart, because in no time at all they will be able to rock this hat just like Taylor did.

To replicate Taylor's look, it's important to use a bright white yarn for the main color and a rich, vibrant red with blue undertones for the stripe.

You will notice that I have the jersey number "wrong" on the beanie I made. That's because my Swiftie also loves a football player, and he happens to wear jersey number 84 (whereas Travis Kelce wears number 87). 

For the fur pom, I found an affordable pack of faux-fur poms on Amazon.

Photo showing Taylor's faux fur pompom

I am working on writing this pattern, which will be available as a free download on Ravelry. I will link to the pattern page here once it's available. Ravelry pattern link: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/taylors-beanie-3

 

Iced Gingerbread Russian brioche messy bun hat

I have made this hat pattern a couple times before (here and here) and really enjoy it. It isn't exactly standard brioche; the technique is easier than brioche but still results in a beautiful, squishy, reversible, two-color project, so I love it.

The color scheme I've chosen here reminds me of iced gingerbread, so that's what I'm calling this hat. 😊

The biggest difference this time is that I stopped decreasing after the 48-stitch section to leave the top of the crown open as a messy bun/ponytail style hat. I used a 5mm crochet hook to cast off the knitted stitches into a round of 48 SC, and then worked one more round of SC with a few decreases to get the final stitch count down to 40 stitches.

The language of the video is Russian, but it's easy to follow along with the designer, Katerina Mushyn, as she knits in the video, so even if you don't speak Russian, don't be afraid to try this pattern. She also provides written instructions in both Russian and English in the video and on her website.

Video tutorial: https://youtu.be/iPabTSvzu04
Written pattern: http://prjaga.com/vyazanie-dlya-zhenshchin/shapka-beret/komplekt-bordo-shapka-i-snud-spicami

It's also helpful to use a row counter that has main/subcounter functionality with this project. I used this free browser-based Row Counter App.

 

Butter Mellow pocket scarf

Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow,  
Turn this stupid, fat rat yellow.

That silly "spell" didn't work for Ron Weasley in "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" as he tried to turn his rat familiar, Scabbers, yellow, but this butter-yellow yarn from my stash knitted up beautifully to make a cozy pocket scarf for Mika and Emmy. 

The sport-weight fiber worked to a gauge of about 4-5 rows per inch. And since I wanted a scarf 80 inches long (to turn up 10 inches at each end for deep pockets, leaving an overall length of about 60 inches), I made the scarf 400 rows long. (Which actually turned out to be a bit too long, but that was OK; I just made the pockets deeper to compensate.) The yarn is an interesting blend of 55% acrylic, 35% rayon, 5% wool, and 5% vinyon (whatever that is!), but the fiber is safe to machine wash and dry, so it's easy to care for.

Cast on with at least 6 rows of waste yarn in a contrasting color to your project yarn, then add your project yarn and crank until you have the desired number of rows. Cast off with another 6 or more rows of waste yarn, then remove project from the machine. Using a 5mm crochet hook, close each end of the tube as shown in this video by Jojo Juju. Fold each end of the scarf until the pockets are as deep as you want and pin them in place with locking stitch markers. Mattress stitch both sides of each pocket and knot securely. Hide all tails inside the tube, and enjoy your new pocket scarf! 

Jojo also has a full video tutorial for how to machine-knit a pocket scarf, which you can view at this link.

The sport-weight yarn is rated a 2, when usually size 4 yarn is used in the circular knitting machines. For me the trick to getting lightweight yarns like that to work in the machine is to maintain a firm tension.

I had just enough yarn left after knitting the scarf to make a matching beanie of 113 rows.

 

Crochet candy corn owl beanie free pattern

Just in time for looking cute on crisp autumn days, this is a messy-bun version of Sarah Zimmerman's Candy Corn Hat, free pattern on Sarah's blog Repeat Crafter Me at this link. 

I didn't have any yellow worsted or aran weight yarn in my stash, so I used some yellow Fixler Brothers Quick Knit sport weight held double, and it turned out just fine. You can read the details about the other yarns I used at my Ravelry project page.

The pattern didn't say what size of safety eyes to use for the owl's pupils, so I used 25mm (1 inch) black buttons instead, from a set I found on Amazon at this link.

My favorite resource for buying safety eyes is 6060 on Etsy, but in the case of this hat project, it was easier for me to use buttons.

Alpine stitch balaclava

At least five years ago, my daughter LadyU asked me to make her a balaclava she could wear while walking the dogs during winter. It took me a long while to finally get around to making it for her, but hopefully she will like it! (There has been a bit of a long saga predating today's project.)

Inspired by the Alpine Ninja balaclava, I used the Crochet with GG video tutorial at this link to learn how to make the alpine stitch in the round (top down), but I worked the top of this hat differently than was shown in the video.

Top part of hat (above the opening for the wearer's face) is worked with a J/6mm hook; bottom part of hat (cowl) is worked with a K/6.5mm hook.

I prefer to work hats top-down, but I don't like patterns where the top stitch count increases so rapidly that the top of the hat curls ferociously until you work far enough down the sides that it helps to tame the curling a bit. That was what was happening on this one when I tried to follow the stitch counts in the video tutorial. So instead I started with 10 sts and made standard increases on that count (next row 20, next row 30, etc.).

My goal was to end up with a total of 72 sts after all the increases, but somehow I ended up with 76 sts on the last increase row; I figured that was close enough (the most important thing was to end up with an even number of sts for the alpine stitch to work). The crown is worked with alternating FPDC and BPDC sts because it's easier to do increases with that combo of sts than it is to try to do increases in the alpine stitch, and I like how the alternating FPDC/BPDC more closely resembles the texture of the alpine stitch at the crown (it looks better than making the crown with all plain DC).

I didn't actually keep count while working the crown, but I think the crown here is 22 rows in purple (the first 6 or 7 rows are alternating FPDC/BPDC increases, then I switched to alpine stitch). If you want to change colors where the balaclava splits to make the face opening, it's important to end the first color on an alpine stitch row where you're working the FPDC/DC sts. The next row is a SC row. I was beginning/ending rounds at the center back. Place stitch markers at each side of the face opening. Then on the SC row,  join your new color and SC to first marker; FSC for however many sts you need to skip to reach the next marker; at the next marker, SC normally to the end of the round. This way when you continue the following row in alpine stitch (FPDC/DC), the color change will look better because the post stitches are reaching across an SC row of the same color (rather than an SC row of a different color).

That's just the way I wanted the color change on this hat to look. It probably could look cool to do the color change over a contrasting SC row as well (so if that's the way you want to do it on your project, go for it!). I also increased the stitch count for the cowl portion to 78 for a bit more ease around the wearer's face.

It only took a few days to complete the crocheted portion of this project. The part that subsequently took months to do was searching for an acceptable pair of buttons to sew onto the folded tab as the last finishing touch. Originally I wanted to use a pair of Pokemon character buttons, but I wasn't able to find any I liked or that would be suitable here. So finally I settled on these washable coconut wood buttons, which I think look nice with the project.

Updated to add a removable 3.5-inch pom:

A tribute to my Purple Warrior, Miss Pam

I designed a gift pack of three chemo beanies in honor of my bestie and purple warrior Miss Pam, who is battling pancreatic cancer. In the photo collage above, the designs are called, from left to right, the Smooth & Simple Chemo Cap, the Sleek & Stretchy Surface Braid Chemo Cap, and the fun and funky Loopy Chemo Cap. It took a few months and a lot of work, but I finally have all the hats made (and also a Purple Power Throw blanket for some extra snuggly comfort) and ready to deliver to keep my friend warm and cozy this winter!

November is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month, so I'm releasing my free pattern pack on Ravelry now to give everyone an opportunity to download the patterns and get stitching on some chemo caps in time for that event.

Making and donating chemo caps to cancer patients is a charitable endeavor that is near and dear to my heart. My hope is that you will use these free patterns to donate caps to patients in need in your area as well.

In my experience, Red Heart Super Saver (and other similar acrylic yarns) can be an acceptable choice for chemo caps because even though it's stiff and scratchy when new, after running it through the washer and dryer, it comes out very soft. The machine drying step is key. (The yarn still feels stiff after coming out of the washing machine. It's only after machine drying that the yarn will soften up.) It's an individual thing whether a particular patient can tolerate the feel of the acrylic yarn. I would say for all-day wear, a natural fiber like cotton would probably feel more comfortable and breathable. 

Prototypes in my photos are displayed on a 21-inch circumference wig form.

A note about sizing: My pattern instructions are based on the type of yarn (a heavy worsted/aran) and size of hook I was using, but even if you use the exact same supplies as I did, your individual tension might produce a different size finished hat. I tend to crochet tightly; if you crochet loosely, "your mileage may vary," as they say. So if you have a specific hat/head size in mind for a specific person, it's important to know what the circumference is of their head, and it's also important for you to measure the diameter of the top of your hat when you reach the end of the increasing rounds (since these are top-down patterns) to have a better estimate of the size of the finished hat before you do all the work of the sides of the hat and then end up disappointed because it turned out either too tight or too loose for the intended wearer. (You can always do the math: diameter x 3.14 = circumference.)

In the photo below of the top of my purple prototype hat with the measuring tape, you can see that the diameter at the end of my round 7 is about 6.5 inches. If you multiply that measurement by pi (3.14), it will give you the approximate circumference of the finished hat, or about 20.5 inches, in my case. Since I wanted a hat to fit a bald head that's about 21 inches in circumference, this should be just about right.

Depending on your unique tension and the yarn you're using, you might find that you need to end up with more or fewer stitches to end up with a finished hat that's the correct size for your intended wearer. Or you might be able to achieve the correct size by changing the size of hook you're using but keeping the same number of stitches mentioned in the pattern.

The nice thing about these patterns is they are very basic and easily changed to accommodate different sizes. Just keep increasing until the top of your hat reaches the diameter you need, and then stop increasing and continue working the sides of the hat at that particular stitch count. Work the length of the sides until they are as long as you need, and then finish off. My materials list and stitch counts are only a jumping-off point for you to create a hat that works for you.

Click here to download my three-pack of quick and easy chemo caps at Ravelry, and please remember to make a few to donate to your local cancer center. Thank you so much, and happy stitching!

And just for fun, here's a photo of the Purple Power Throw blanket I also made for Miss Pam:

The throw uses the stitch pattern from the Sunny Cardi pattern, except I modified it to have the rounds begin/end in a corner by utilizing the technique for beginning/ending rounds found in the Lazy Diamond Boho Pocket Shawl. I love the way it turned out. Having the rounds begin/end in the corner looks so much neater than my original version of this blanket, my I Am the Storm Throw.

Love you so much, bestie. Keep on being strong.

Panthers Pride

I made this set to gift to the Perry Panther in our family, Daniel. These were both machine-knit. I made the scarf on my Addi King Size (46 pins), and the hat is made on my Sentro 48. The stripe pattern is based on the Years 3/4 scarves in Harry Potter. Perry High School's colors are maroon and gold, so I used Red Heart Super Saver in the Burgundy (main color) and Saffron (contrast color) colorways. I might decide to add some fringe to the scarf later.

Hat recipe on Sentro 48: Main color 30 rows. Stripes section: 2 rows contrast color; 4 rows main color; 2 rows contrast color. Finish hat by continuing in main color for another 72 rows. 110 rows total.

Scarf recipe on Addi 46: Starting/ending block 15 rows main color. Stripes section: 2 rows contrast color; 6 rows main color; 2 rows contrast color. Large block 30 rows main color. Repeat alternating sections of "stripes section" and "large block" five more times (for a total of six large blocks), ending with a "stripes section." Repeat "starting/ending block" to finish. 280 rows total. (Can add more large block sections alternating with stripes sections for a longer scarf, if desired.)

Perry High School's team colors are very similar to Gryffindor House. 😊

 

Puff Hat Addi Express King Size

It took me a week to complete this project because I never had much time on any given day to work on it. If you had a couple of hours available to focus on the project, it would only take one day to finish this.

Designer Claudia Bostic shared her free pattern to make these Puff Hats in the files of the Addi Circular Knitting Machines group on Facebook. This design is a good alternative for making beanies to fit larger size heads.

Since this was my first attempt at making the pattern, it didn't turn out 100% perfectly, but it's not bad for a first try. I attempted to use the kitchener stitch to graft the ends of the large (bottom) tube, based on instructions from Yay for Yarn's tutorial on YouTube. (Grafting the ends of the large tube is an optional technique; you can join the ends of that tube using any method you prefer.)

My First Addi Kingsize Hat

Happy New Year! This is the very first item I knitted on my new Addi Express King Size machine. I used an old hank of what I'm guessing is some Red Heart yarn in a nice red color that I had in my stash (no label). 

Jojo's video says if you want to make a double-layered adult size hat like this you should knit between 140-150 rows, but my yarn hank ran out at 137 rows. That's probably close enough to make a usable hat since this feels like a Red Heart yarn that's on the heavier side of size 4.

Finished hat is about 15 inches long, with the cuff unrolled. Being able to knit and finish an entire hat in less than an hour is miraculous. I will be able to make so many hats to donate to the needy this way that I wouldn't be able to do otherwise. Love these knitting machines.

Total weight: 114 grams

Winter in the South - new free pattern

Hello, everyone! I just published a new free pattern at Ravelry for my Winter in the South hat, so click on this link to head on over to Ravelry and download your free copy. I sincerely hope you enjoy this comfy, wearable design, and if you're inclined to give it a heart or make a project page where we can all see the lovely hat you made, that would just make my day. 😊

 Winter in the South is a top-down, seamless, slouchy ponytail/messy bun beanie made in an airy double-crochet mesh that’s perfect for winter conditions that are chilly but less-than frigid. I used Hobby Lobby I Love This Yarn for the sample in the photos, but most any worsted/aran weight size 4 yarn should be suitable. My sample hat used slightly less than half of the skein of ILTY.

This is a copyrighted, free crochet pattern offered by Yarncraft by Susan in adult/one size only. Written with standard U.S. crochet terms.