Newsboy Cap Knitting Pattern
(called a Baker's boy hat in British English)
Newsboy Cap
Materials: Aran/ Worsted/9wpi weight yarn. 100g/ 312oz (approx 150 metres), on 4.5mm (Us size 7) needles. 6 hours. Gauge: 9 stitches & 11 rows to 5cm or 2 inches The hat has eight leaf shaped 'segments, knit in stocking stitch - with the bumpy side being your 'good' side, divided by a line of Vs (made by knits in the purl rows and purls in the knit rows). The peak can be soft or hard (you will need to cut a plastic brim to insert). An experienced knitter will be able to complete this project in six hours. The peak is shaped like a lime leaf, folded in half lengthways. The brim is about 40 rows long. As with the hat, it is knitted mainly in stocking stitch - with the bumpy side being the 'good' side and a line of V's indicating the centre point. Leave a tail of wool when you cast on and cast off to sew the join with the main cap. Stitch guide: make 1 - knit into the front and back of the stitch. Starts off as one stitch and turns into two. To check that your hat will be the correct size, follow the first three rows of the pattern, slip the stitches off the needle (without casting off) & sew together the short edges. If this band is too large or small to fit your head comfortably, try again with larger or smaller knitting needles until the desired size is achieved. If you would like a slouch version of the hat use 5.5mm (Us size 9) needles & a gauge of 7 stitches and 9 rows to 5cm or 2 inches.
Hat
Leaving a thread ot $20\mathsf{c m}/8$ Inches for stitcning up, trom your sllp knot, cast on /4 stitches using a cable cast on (taking new stitch from behind, not through the loop). 74 stitches $=8$ repeats of the 9 stitches and 2 stitches for sewing up. Row 1: knit, Row 2: purl, Row 3 knit. Row 4 : this is where you establish the pattern of V stitches - purl 1, (knit 1, purl 7, make 1) 8 times, knit 1. (by end - 82 stitches on needle, 10 in each of 8 repeats, plus 2 extra) Row 5: (purl 1, make 1, knit 7, make 1) 8 times, purl 1, knit 1. Row 6: purl 1, (knit 1, purl 11) 8 times, knit 1. Row 7: (purl i, knit 11) 8 times, purl 1, knit 1. Row 8 same as row 6. Row 9: (purl 1, make 1, knit 9, make 1) 8 times, purl 1, knit 1. Row 10: purl 1, (knit 1, purl 13) 8 times, knit 1. Row 11: (purl 1, knit 13) 8 times, purl 1, knit 1. Row 12 same as row 10. Row 13: (purl 1, make 1, knit 11, make 1) 8 times, purl 1, knit 1. Rows 14, 16, 18 & 20: purl 1, (knit 1, purl 15) 8 times, knit 1. Rows 15, 17, 19: (purl 1, knit 15) 8 times, purl 1, knit 1. Row 21: (purl 1, knit 2 together, knit 11, knit 2 together) 8 times, purl 1, knit 1. etc. From this point on, you'll be decreasing every 4th row, until there are 6 stitches left in each of the 8 sections. Decrease by knitting 2 together either side of the purl stitch on every 4th row, until you reach row 39. Row 39: (purl 1, knit 1, knit 3 together, knit 1) 8 times, purl 1, knit 1 Row 40: purl 1, (knit 1, purl 3) 8 times, knit 1.(34 stitches) Row 41: (purl 1, knit 3 together) 8 times, purl 1, knit 1 (18 stitches) Row 42: purl 1 (knit 1, purl 1) 8 times, knit 1 (18 stitches) Row 43: purl 1, knit 2 together 8 times, knit 1. (10 stitches). Using a darning needle, fix the base of the last stitch, then thread the wool through the 10 loops from the knitting needle. Stitch the seam of the hat, using mattress stitch (picking up 2 ladders from each side alternately) from the bottom of the hat where you cast on, upwards. Tie the two threads together firmly at the top and stitch them into the seam on the reverse side. Brim Cast on 3 stitches. Row 1: knit into the front and back of the first stitch (make 1), purl 1, knit into the front and back of the last stitch. (5st) Row 2: purl 2, knit 1, purl 2. (5st) Row 3:, knit 1, knit into the front and back of the stitch (make1), purl 1, make 1, knit 1. (7 stitches) Row 4: purl 3, knit 1, purl 3. (7 stitches) Row 5: knit 2, make 1, purl 1, make 1, knit 2 (9 stitches) Continue as above until you have 19 stitches on your needles. When you have 19 stitches, carry on, without the increase stitch till the knitting measures 15cm/6 inches. You then need to decrease down again. On each knit stitch row, knit 2 together each side of the middle purl stitch, until you have 3 stitches left, then bind these off. If you are using a brim insert, fold your knitting in half and use it to roughly draw the shape of the brim, very slightly smaller than your knitting (with one straight edge, one curved!). Then loosely tack the brim together over the insert. Finally - attach the peak using the wool reserved from where you cast on and cast off. If you have any questions or comments, you can contact me on nic@500yearvision.com.
Key ${\mathfrak{o}}=$ stockingstitch $\mathsf{v}=$ reversestockingstitch mm $=$ make 1 $\left(\ \right)=$ knit 2 together (() $=$ knit 3 together
