ribbed baby hat

As promised, here is a hat from the pattern I recommended yesterday, in pictures:

On the left, the finished hat. On the right, with the brim folded up. Unstretched, the circumference is 7.5 inches (19 cm); it stretches to 15 inches (38 cm). I cast this on yesterday using some no-longer-labeled 6-ply sock yarn I had lying around; the hat took well under 50 grams. I wonder what else I can find. . .

just one more thing. . .

I knit a lot for the NICU (for non-US readers, that is the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) at a local hospital, making hats for full-term babies who need special care. The hat the nurses love is this one. I have made at least 15 of these, some in solid colors and others in self-striping yarns. All look great.

You can see many pictures on the Ravelry page, here. Oddly, I don't seem to have pictures of any of mine. I just cast one on; I'll be sure to document it when it's done.

Because it is knit entirely in k2 p2 rib, it stretches or pulls up to fit almost everybody. This is a great feature when you're knitting for an unknown child. The drawback is that it takes a little longer than the quick stockinette caps -- but it is so perfect for this Baby Shower campaign.

I have always used DK weight yarn with this pattern; I think it would also work for worsted that is no thicker than Cascade 220, because the 2 x 2 rib pulls up quite a bit.  (For a thicker worsted, knock the stitch count back and adjust the number of rows.) The first set of instructions is to knit flat and seam up; scroll down for the instructions to knit it in the round (always my preference).

Edited to add: make only the largest size, for full-term babies.

updates, and some requests

I am delighted to announce that I have just two balls of yarn left to mail away (so if you want one, speak up -- send your address to yarnystuffATgmailDOTcom). This was given to me a while ago by local yarn shop Stash specifically for A4A, and I am so pleased that it's finally found the right campaign.

I have been talking to Ann recently (via email) and there are two things I'd like to pass along. First -- if you have things ready to send now, it is so much easier for the volunteers to pack when things come in gradually instead of all at once at the last minute. I was able to mail some things yesterday using regular first class (small packages, because these socks don't weigh much), and it is considerably less expensive than Priority mail. The post office estimates it will take 3 days rather than 2 to get all the way across the country to California, and when you mail early that is not an issue.

Also, a lot of the baby hats that are coming in are kind of big. The guidelines do say up to 1 year of age -- but remember, the hats are being given to women who have just given birth. So a "larger" newborn size would be ideal -- that can be used now, and for some time to come. Hats that measure 18 inches around are just too big, even though in theory they do meet the "up to 1 year" criterion. Besides -- littler hats go faster! Circumferences of about 13 to 16 inches are terrific; a little larger -- and I do mean a little -- would also be OK.

It is going to be about a million degrees here in southeastern Pennsylvania today, and the humidity is already over 70%. I think I will lurk indoors in air conditioning and cast on a baby hat -- nothing to sit on my lap and make me even warmer.

Hope everyone is having a great summer with lots of knitting and no destructive weather events.

question

Hi.  I have a question about size for the baby campaign.  I've started making hats.  Most are new-born size.  I noticed, however, that the guidelines say we can make hats up to 1 yr. of age.  So I made a hat that is supposed to be 6 mo to 1 yr.  The circumference is 18".  Seems large to me, but I have trouble estimating baby heads.  I followed the gauge directions carefully.  Do you think this is too big to send?

a new deadline, and some yarn

Reposting because nothing happened the first time:

We now have until July 21 -- that is 3 weeks from today. So there is time to make one or two more things! In honor of the new extended due date, I am offering these 5 balls of Berroco Ultra Alpaca Fine -- 50% wool, 20% alpaca, and 30% nylon, 433 yds (400 m) in 100 g. That means each ball has enough for an adult-sized pair of socks, or mittens (you could hold double and still make an adult pair of mittens), or a whole lot of baby socks and hats. I realize the colors are not exciting, but this yarn is lovely to the touch.

I will send one ball to each of 5 lucky winners. Send me your name and MAILING ADDRESS (it is surprising how many people forget that) and I will put one in the mail -- tomorrow if you write soon, the day after if you write late in the day.

Send that information to this address: yarnystuffATgmailDOTcom (Please note that there is a letter y in the middle of that address.)

I am making this offer to readers of this blog first; if I don't hear from 5 of you by tomorrow evening, I will open it to members of the Fans of afghans for Afghans group over at Ravelry.

Mailing tomorrow

Although my vacation didn't result in quite as many knitted things for the kids as I had hoped, there were a few. These will go in the mail tomorrow:

Four baby things and one pair of mittens for a bigger person. I will try to do a couple more things for the older kids before the new extended deadline.

Hi all,

I'm putting a few pairs of socks in the mail today.  Is there any more word yet on a final deadline?  I'm trying to figure out when I need to stop knitting baby things, considering 2 days to get to SF in the mail, 2 or 3 days to dry after washing...    also, how is the count coming (if you already know.  Don't go count them just for me!)?

hats

I have made a few of these: http://sasw.blogspot.com/2006/03/infant-earflap-hat.html and love the simplicity of the pattern. I can make one in a couple nights of Netflix/Hulu watching. I am currently working on this one: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/dread-snowboarding-hats with a few simplifications. I am using some Plymouth Select Merino that i dyed with food colours. I will make the dreads with a single crochet chain so it is not so bulky. I made one for my grandson and he still asks to wear it... even tho it it 90+ degrees (34C) outside.

AFSC Basement Update: Good Wool Gifts on a Bad Hair Day

For some mysterious reason, we lost our heads yesterday in the AFSC Basement while opening packages from across the country (and a few from Canada) -- Jill is cradling 24 pairs of exquisite socks knit by Anne D. --

Teresa (who is also our volunteer blog admin) is showing off Kathy's super mittens with the ribbing at the wrist and then longer arms for extra warmth (called gauntlets?) --

Louise in Orange, CA, sent us a rainbow of luxuriously ribbed baby hats --

Christy in the Pacific NW dropped off a box of multi-flavored Frango chocolates when she was in town. The chocolates are for the hard-working Basement volunteers, and the multi-flavored wool socks are for cold feet in Afghanistan. We promise not to mix up who gets what --

Laura, Antje, and Annette were also volunteering in the AFSC Basement yesterday. We did leave some Frangos for the next packing session.

Thank you to all who have sent in packages of wool socks, hats, and mittens for 7 years to adult and socks and hats for the Baby Shower. Everything we have received is first-class and will be deeply valued by the recipients in the winter.

As of yesterday, for the Baby Shower, we have about 100 pairs of wool baby socks and 40 wool baby hats. Based on our past experiences, we estimated that we could offer thousands of socks and items to the Malalai Women's Maternity hospital in Kabul. They deliver about 85 babies every day.

Please let your fiber friends -- online and off -- know about the need for wool socks and hats for babies so we can deliver!

Click here for campaign details on our website.

I have* finally* finished my most difficult sock pattern to date--for myself--so I am eager to whip out some quick baby things.  What do we need more of, socks or hats?  Or do we know yet?

another sock pattern

I was skimming entries on the Ravelry group Fans of afghans for Afghans and stumbled across a nice-looking baby sock. This one uses a light worsted, and the ribbing helps it stay on -- it is the Ribbed Far-Away Baby Socks pattern, which made its debut on this very blog in 2008.

I will post a picture as soon as I have made a pair -- or you can wander over to Ravelry and take a look. A total of 383 projects have been posted there.

June baby shower: a quick hat

Happy Friday the 13th!

We are almost halfway through June, which means we're almost halfway through the available knitting days for the baby shower. Here is a very speedy hat, in case you thought you didn't have time. (Hate double-pointed needles? I tell you how to knit it flat at the end.)

I tend to knit very plain things for afghans for Afghans -- not because I don't think the Afghan kids aren't worthy of my "best," but because by doing that I can finish more things, so more kids get something warm. This hat is as plain as it gets.

I am starting one now, and will add the picture later today -- it goes that fast.

edited to add this picture (the hat is actually a beautiful clear red, but I haven't been able to get the camera to agree)
 
Worsted weight rollbrim baby hat

Materials: 1 ball worsted weight yarn such as Cascade 220, Galway, or Paton's Classic Merino (will make more than one hat)
double-pointed needles of size needed to get 5 stitches per inch (20 sts/10 cm)

edited to add: the yarn I picked out of the odds & ends box was a little thinner and knit up at 6 sts/inch, giving me a hat that's just about 11 inches around, perfect for a newborn. I wrote the pattern to make a hat a little larger, so it will fit for longer. Remember -- these babies are not going home to piles and piles of new clothes, so the longer something lasts, the better.

Cast on 64 stitches. Join to knit in the round, being careful not to twist.

Work in stockinette (knit every round) until hat measures 5 inches (12.5 cm) from cast-on edge.
Work crown decreases:

Rnd 1: *k6, k2 tog,* repeat from * to * around (56 sts remain)
Rnd 2: knit
Rnd 3:*k5, k2 tog,* repeat from * to * around (48 sts remain)
Rnd 4: knit
Rnd 5: *k4, k2 tog,* repeat from * to * around (40 sts remain)
Rnd 6: knit
Rnd 7: *k3, k2 tog,* repeat from * to * around (32 sts remain)
Rnd 8: *k2, k2 tog,* repeat from * to * around (24 sts remain)
Rnd 9: *k1, k2 tog,* repeat from * to * around (16 sts remain)
Rnd 10: k2 tog all the way around (8 sts remain)

Break yarn and thread through the remaining 8 stitches, drawing thread tight. Pull yarn to the inside of the hat through the center of those stitches. Weave in ends.

To work flat: Follow instructions as written, EXCEPT work stockinette as knit one row, purl one row. When you get to the crown decreases, work rows 2, 4, and 6 as purl rows. Work decrease rows 8 and 10 on the purl side, as purl stitches. Break the yarn, leaving a tail long enough to sew up the seam. Draw the yarn through the remaining 8 stitches, and then sew a flat seam to finish the hat. Use mattress stitch or a whip stitch -- something that will leave as little bulk as possible, to make it more comfortable.

Want to control how far the rollbrim rolls? Here are two ways to do that:

(1) work the first 6 rows on needles one size smaller, or
(2) Work 6 rows, then insert a garter ridge as follows:
     (a) if working in the round, purl 1 round
     (b) if working flat, knit the 7th row instead of purling it. Then return to stockinette.