Quick and Easy Roll Brim Baby Hat

Knitted From the Top Down. Hat may be worn with the brim rolled, as the pink hat, or folded, as the blue hat.

Size Newborn (6 to 12 months)

Finished Width 14.5 (15.75) inches 37 (40) cm

Shown in Newborn size

Made on GK 370 midgauge knitting machine

Yarn: Any soft yarn of knitting worsted weight, that will knit to gauge may be substituted. This will be listed as 4 on a hand knitting yarn label. Red Heart Soft is one brand, but many others are suitable.

Tension 7 or what is necessary to obtain gauge; many #4 yarns require tension 8.

Gauge: 18 sts, 24 rows = 10 cm (4.5 sts, 6 rows = 1”)

Hat begins at the top. Bring 65 (71) needles all the way forward using the flat side of the needle pusher. For a small newborn, 61 stitches may be used.

With the 1×1 toothed side of the needle pusher, return every other needle to position A, out of work. Place carriage on left side of bed.

RC 000. Knit 1 row.

The yarn is hooked on each needle in position B and needles in position A do not knit.

Carefully fit the teeth of the cast on comb over the loops just formed by the row of knitting. You will need both cast on comb sections, so join them with the connector piece first.

RC 002. Bring the remaining out of work needles forward using the flat side of the needle pusher.

65 (71) needles are now in work position. T 7. Knit even to RC 44 (54).

Remove yarn from the carriage. Measure yarn approximately 3 ½ times across the working needles, plus a few more inches. This is enough yarn to bind off the edge and sew the seam. Clip the yarn.

Finishing

Pull the cast on yarn tail firmly; the stitches will gather up, forming the crown of the hat. Take several stitches around the hole in the crown to close up the hole and secure the gathers. Pass the needle to the inside of the hat, fasten securely, then sew the back seam.

A nice touch is to reverse the seam for the bottom 2” (5 cm) above the cast on edge. This places the visible part of the seam on the outside of the hat, and it will be hidden by the roll or fold. If the bottom edge will be folded instead of rolled, make this seam 2 ½” (6.5 cm) long.

Hat may be trimmed with cords or tassels, if desired. Please remember that babies put everything into their mouths; I prefer not to use pompoms or anything that can come apart. Babies suck, chew, pick and pull on everything; they could swallow a short piece of yarn from a pom pom. Self-patterning and variegated or “painted” yarns add interest, but don’t take any longer to knit.

Let your imagination go and have fun. Happy Knitting!