Top Down Seamless Felted hat
Jeri Riggs October 2007 Materials: Main color: I skein Cascade 220 ( $100\%$ wool, not superwash!l) 220 yards Contrast color: 50 yards Cascade or other feltable wool OR: 3 skeins Montera (127 yd, $50\%\mathrm{wool}/50\%$ alpaca) (2 of Main Color, 1 of contrast color) Gague: 4 sts and 6 rows per inch (rather loose is best for felting; gauge isn't crucially important here) 5 size 101/2 Double pointed needles ( DPN) Circular needle size 101/2 ( 16 or 24 inches long is fine) darning needle, 8 stitch markers (can be loops of yarn) $\mathrm{\bfSM=}1$ Slide marker $\mathbf{M}1{=}$ increase one stitch, by backwards loop, or by picking up stitch between stitches, or by knitting front and back of one stitch.
Hat
Cast on 5 stitches onto one double pointed needle. Using a second DPN, \*Purl one row, knit one row\* until you have made 5 rows. Do not cut yarm. At end of $5^{\mathrm{th}}$ row, using another DPN, pick up 3 sts along side of patch .Then with a third DPN pick up 5 sts along cast on edge, then with 4th DPN, pick up 3 sts up other side. Using the fifth needle, knit one row in the round, distributing stitches so you have 4 on each of 4 needles. ( 16 sts)
Top of hat:
. Place a marker between every 2 sts. ( for Double pointed needles, place one marker in the middle of each needle and an imaginary one at the end of the needles. When you switch to a circular needle, add the other 4 markers. Be sure to make the first one a different color to mark the start of rounds) Round 2: \* K2, M1, $\mathrm{SM}*8$ times ( 24 sts) Round 3: knit Round 4: \* K3, MI, $\mathrm{\bfSM}^{\mathrm{~*~}}8$ times (32 sts) Round 5: knit. Continue in this manner, adding 8 sts every other round. When you have 10 sts on each needle, switch to a circular needle and add the other 4 markers. Be sure to make the first one a different color to mark the start of rounds. Continue increasing until you have 15 sts between markers.(120 sts total) Remove markers, except for beginning of round marker.. Body of hat: Now knit plain without increasing for 29 rounds. Switch to contrasting color. Knit 12 rounds. Switch back to main color, knit 4 more rounds. Total of 45 rounds
Brim of hat:
Replace marker every 15 stitches, marking end of round also, for total of 8 markers. Now, Increase one stitch every section, 8 times in a round, knitting alternate rounds plain, until you have 21 stitches between markers. Loosely bind off, and weave in end. If you want a larger brim keep going if you have enough yarn. If you want your hat to have an octagonal brim, then make the increases right before each marker. If you want your brim to be smoothly circular, then you must distribute the increases by M1 at different points between markers. Such as: Round 1 of brim: \*Knit 14, M1, K1, SM,\* eight times. Round 2: Knit plain (16 sts between markers) Round 3: \* K3,M1,K13, SM \* eight times Round 4: Knit plain (17sts between markers) Round 5: $\mathrm{}^{\ast}\mathrm{K}8$ , M1, K 9, SM \* eight times Round 6: Knit plain ( 18 sts) When finished knitting, hat should be approximately 17 inches from tip to edge, and 16 1/2 inches wide laying flat. Felting: Place hat in zippered pillowcase, or pillowcase with safety pins along opening. This should keep the fibers from getting loose in the washing machine. Run through hot-cold cycle of washer, with a pair of old jeans or a tennis ball to provide friction, with a little bit of dish soap. Check to see if felting has occurred and that size is right. I usually do this once or twice; different yarns felt at different rates, so you should check to see how it is doing. When hat is size you want and felting is dense enough, remove from washer and let dry over a bowl the size of your head. Smooth out to shape you want. Hat can be stretched a little when wet, but when dry tends to revert to whatever shape it wants. Do not put in dryer because that can set creases in the
