Ecliptic
I went through a brief phase this year in which I was obsessed with short rows: I wanted to add them to everything. Short rows are marvelous things, adding shape and depth without disrupting the visual flow of the knitted fabric. Yet I found them incredibly tricky to work, and decided I needed a small practice piece that involved short rows by the dozens yet would be forgiving if my execution wasn't quite perfect. Enter this hat. Nominally it's an exercise in short rows, but the effect is to create a series of concentric ellipses that get smaller and smaller as you move toward the center of the hat. To me, they look like orbits in a solar system; hence the name, Ecliptic. I strongly recommend working this hat using magic loop or two circular needles. It may be possible to work it using DPNs, but because of the frequent turns and the distortion caused by the short rows, I found this unwieldy and difficult. If you haven't worked magic loop before, this hat might be the perfect chance to learn - you can cut your teeth on the ribbed band, and then dive in with abandon in the short-rows!
Yarn:
MC: approx. 110 yards worsted weight yarn. Shown in Noro Kureyon (1 skein, color 188). Suggested substitutions: Knitpicks Chroma Worsted, Crystal Palace Mochi Plus CC: approx. 30 yards worsted weight yarn. Shown in Cascade 220 (color 8505).
Needles:
Size 4 (dpns or circular needle), size 6 (long circular needle for working magic loop highly recommended)
Gauge:
20 sts x 28 rows = 4" on larger needles, worked flat. Gauge is not critical for this pattern; as long as your gauge is not incredibly far off the hat will still block to the same finished size.
Size:
One size fits most adults.
Stitch definitions:
1x1 rib: all rounds: (k1, p1) to end kfb: knit into front and back of stitch w&t: wrap and turn, worked as follows: -- on RS, slip next st to right needle, bring yarn to front of work, return slipped st. to left needle, and return yarn to back of work. Turn. When you later knit past the wrapped stitch, slip the stitch to the right needle, use the tip of the left needle to lift the wrap up on to the right needle, transfer both loops to the left needle, and knit the stitches together. -- on WS, slip next st to right needle, bring yarn to back of work, return slipped st. to left needle, and return yarn to front of work. Turn. When you later need to knit past the wrapped stitch, insert your right needle through the wrap from bottom to top, then through the stitch as normal. Knit, pulling working yarn through both loops. To avoid gaps in the fabric, use tip of left needle to make sure the loop from the wrap sits behind the stitch it was wrapped around. s2kp: slip 2 as if to knit, k1, pass 2 slipped stitches over ssk: (slip 1 as if to knit) twice. transfer slipped sts back to left needle and k2tog through back loops p2tog:p 2 together
Notes:
After the ribbed band, you will work a setup round in which you will place 4 stitch markers. The remainder of the hat consists of sections worked between these markers, and after each section, the beginning of the round will move from one marker to the next. Each stitch marker will be referred to by a different letter in the written pattern; you may find it useful to use a different stitch marker in each position so that you can tell them apart. (pattern begins on next page)
Ecliptic
Section 1: Ribbing
Using smaller needles, CO 105 sts. in CC. Slip 1st st to right needle and join to work in the round by slipping last st. over 1st st. Return 1st st. to left needle (104 sts). Break CC. Join MC. k 1 round. Work 8 rounds 1x1 rib. Join CC. Work the following two setup rounds using CC: Setup round 1: \*PM, (k5, kfb) 4 times, k2 repeat from \* 3 times more (total 120 sts). Label your stitch markers as A, B, C, and D, with "A" referring to the stitch marker at the beginning of the round. Setup round 2: p to end of round
Section 2: Wedges
Switch to larger needles. Using MC, work the following wedges starting at marker A: First wedge: Wedge row 1:k 59, w&t Wedge row 2: p 53, w&t Wedge row 3: k 47, w&t Wedge row 4: p 41, w&t Wedge row 5: k 35, w&t Wedge row 6: p 29, w&t Wedge row 7: k 23, w&t Wedge row 8: p 17, w&t Wedge row 9: k 11, w&t Wedge row 10: p 5, w&t Wedge row 11: k 30, working wrapped sts as you encounter them, ending at marker C. Second wedge: Repeat wedge rows 1-10, ending at marker D Drop MC and leave it hanging at D (do not carry it along as you work the next section). Slip enough sts to get back to where CC is hanging, at marker A. Pick up CC and work the following two divider rounds. Divider round 1: k one full round, working wrapped sts as you encounter them Divider round 2: p one full round Drop CC where round 2 ended, at marker A. Leaving CC hanging at A, slip enough sts from right needle to left needle to get back to D. Pick up MC (which is hanging at D) and work the first and second wedge sections again, this time between markers D and B. Switch to CC and work two divider rounds, again rearranging sts as necessary to return to where CC is hanging, at marker A. You will need to either break and re-join CC or carry it up in a long float on the WS of the fabric; if you choose to leave a float, make sure it is long enough that it won't cause the fabric to pull downward. Repeat wedge sections and divider rounds 2 times more, for a total of 4 times, ending at marker A. Each time you repeat the wedges section, the beginning of the round will move one marker backward (i.e. if you started at A you will end at D; if you started at C you will end at B, etc.). Note: When switching from MC to CC and back, remember to drop your working yarn at its current position and DO NOT carry it along as you rearrange sts to get to where the next yarn was left hanging.
Ecliptic
Section 3: Decrease Wedges
Working in MC, work the following decrease wedges between markers A and C. Stitch counts given below are for all stitches between markers A and C; you should have 60 sts on the left needle when you begin working this section (120 sts total). Note in this section, unless explicitly stated otherwise, you do not need to wrap the stitch when you turn at the end of each short-row. When you knit past the turn, you will work a decrease which will close the gap. Decrease wedge row 1: k 31, s2kp, k25, turn. (57 sts on left needle, 1 on right) Row 2: p 52, turn
Row 3: k 25, s2kp, k19, turn (50 sts on left needle, 6 on right) Row 4: p 40, turn Row 5: k19, s2kp (you will need to remove marker B), k13, turn (43 sts on left needle, 11 on right) Row 6: p 28, turn Row 7: k13, s2kp, k7, turn (36 sts on left needle, 16 on right) Row 8: p 16, turn Row 9: k7, s2kp (re-place marker B), k5, (ssk, k3) 3 times, ssk, ending at marker C. Repeat decrease rows 1 to 8. End with only half of row 9: k7, s2kp (re-place marker D). Working in CC, starting from marker A: Decrease divider round 1: k4, k2tog, (k3, k2tog) 3 times, k5, s2kp, k17 (to marker C), k4, k2tog, (k3, k2tog) 3 times, k5, s2kp, k4, (ssk, k3) 3 times, ssk (back to marker A; 80 sts total) In MC, beginning at marker D, work second set of decrease wedges between markers D and B as follows. Stitch counts given below are for all stitches between markers D and B; you should have 40 sts on the left needle when you begin working this section (80 sts total). Row 1: k17, s2kp, k4, turn (22 sts on left needle, 16 on right) Row 2: p9, turn Row 3: k3, s2kp, k2, ssk, k3, turn (23 sts on left needle, 12 on right) Row 4: p9, p2tog, p3, turn Row 5: k5, s2kp, k4, ssk, k3, turn (23 sts on left needle, 8 on right) Row 6: p13, p2tog, p3, turn
Ecliptic
Row 7: k7, s2kp, k6, ssk, k3, turn (23 sts on left needle, 4 on right) Row 8: p17, p2tog, p3, w&t Row 9: k9, s2kp, k8, ssk, k3, end at B
Section 4: The Home Stretch
Work final decrease rounds in MC: Round 1: (k4, k2tog) 3 times, k5, (k4, k2tog) 3 times, k5 Round 2: k around Round 3: (k3, k2tog) 8 times Round 4: k around Round 5: (k2, k2tog) 8 times Round 6: k around Round 7: (k1, k2tog) 8 times Round 8: k around Round 9: k2tog around Repeat rows 1-9 starting at marker B and ending at D (total 46 sts). In CC, k one round, working two wrapped sts as you encounter them. p one round.
Section 5: Finishing
Break MC. Draw end through remaining 8 loops and pull to close. Weave in ends. Block over a 10.5" dinner plate.
Questions? Comments? Found an error?
Please email knit@splowey.com. You can also send me (splowey) a PM on Ravelry, but I can't guarantee I'll see it immediately.
