Corinne's Knits: Spaceman Nicolino Baby Hat Pattern for Sock Yarn with Earflaps and Blocking Tips

CORINNE'S KNITS

Spaceman Nicolino

Description

I designed this little baby hat to use all the odd ends of sock yarn that a lot of knitters have lying around their house. It would work beautifully with self-striping, plain or variegated yarn or with mixed colour leftovers (check ideas for this at the end of pattern). It reminds me of 1950's science fiction films and makes me think of a spaceman from that era. I named it Nicolino (which means little Nicolas), because I designed it on the day I heard that my friend had given birth to her little boy, Nicolas. Difficulty Easy

Yarn

105 (130, 158) m / 115 (142, 171) yards of 4ply sock yarn or fingering yarn. Shown in Regia 4ply Cotton Surf Color

Notions

Needles

2.5mm (US 1 12) 80cm (32") circular needle or size 2.5mm (US 1 1%2) DPNs Or needle size needed to obtain gauge Accessories Darning needle

Necessary Skills

Knitting in the round, Kfb(f), st markers, picking up sts

Gauge

30 sts and 45 rds = 10cm / 4" in st st

Sizes

3-6 months (6-12 months,12-24 months) to fit approx head circumference of 36-41 (41-46, 46-51)cm / 14-16 (16-18, 18-20)'

About The Designer

Corinne's passion for yarn started around age 8 when she started to knit. Today, she especially loves to design with sock yarn. Although French, she lives in Germany with her English partner and their two boys, where she can fully put her second passion, languages, to the test. Her patterns can be found on Ravelry on the Corinne's Knits designer page or on her blog: corinnesknits.wordpress.com. For pattern support, email: corinnesknits@googlemail.com.

Notes

The flat top of the hat is achieved with the blocking process once the hat is finished, don't worry about the strange shape when you knit it, it will turn out OK, I promise! I have included a picture of how I block the hat to help you with this step.

Stitch Pattern

The hat is knit in stocking stitch and reversed stocking stitch for the body and in garter stitch for the earflaps.

Hat

With circular needle or DPNs, cast on 90 (110, 130) sts. Being careful not to twist, join in the rd using magic loop with circular needle or distribute sts evenly on DPNs. PM to mark beginning of rd. K 6 rds of garter st (\*K 1 rd. P 1 rd\* rep 3 times) \*K 5 rds. P 4 rds\* Rep these 9 rds 2 (3, 4) times K 4 rds Next rd, dec 10 sts. \*K7 (9,11), K2tog\* rep until end of rd (80 (100, 120) sts) P 4 rds Next rd, dec 10 sts. \*K6 (8,10), K2tog\* rep until end of rd (70 (90, 110) sts) K 3 rds Next rd, dec 10 sts. \*K5 (7,9), K2tog\* rep until end of rd (60 (80, 100) sts) P 4 rds Continue in this manner, alternating 5 K rds and 4 P rds, decreasing on the 1st and the 5th K rd by knitting 1 less st each time before the K2tog, until you have 20 sts remaining. If you are a tight knitter, make sure to knit the last dec rd loosely! hen you have 20 sts remaining, inc 40 sts on the next rd: Kfbf of each st (60 st Size 12-24 months only: P 1 rd Next rd, inc. 30 sts: \*K1, Kfb\* rep across rd (90 sts)

All sizes:

\*P 1 rd. K 1 rd\* Rep these last 2 rds 11 times Next rd, K2tog across rd (30(30,45) sts) P1 rd Sizes 3-6 and 6-12 months: K2tog across rd (15(15) sts) Size 12-24 months only: \*K2tog\* until 1 st remains, K1 (23 sts) Next rd, \*K2tog\* until 1 st remains, K1 (8(8,12) sts) Size 12-24 months only: K2tog across rd (6 sts) Break yarn. With darning needle, weave the yarn through the remaining sts. Pull tight and secure on the inside of the hat.

Earflaps

Pick up 24(24, 28) sts on one side of the hat (you can choose where) Row 1 (ws): K Row 2: K1, SSK, Kto 3 sts before the end, K2tog, K1 (22(22, 26) sts) Rows 3-5: K Rep rows 2-5 4(4,6) more times (14 sts) Next row, K1, SSK, Kto 3 sts before the end, K2tog, K1 (12 sts) Next row: K Repeat last 2 rows 3 more times (6 sts) Next row, K1, SSK, K2tog, K1 (4 sts) K 4 sts i-cord for about 15(20, 23) cm / 6(8, 9)": Place your 4 sts on a DPN with the last st knitted (where the working thread is) on the left of the needle. K all 4 sts. Don't turn the needle but slide the sts to the other side of the needle. The working thread should now be on the st furthest to the left of the needle again. Rep until you have reached the right length. Break yarn. With darning needle, weave yarn through the sts, pull, secure and weave in. Repeat instructions to knit the second earflap. Position it 18(25,34) sts from the first earflap for the back. You should have a space of 24(37,40), sts between the earflaps for the front of the hat.

Finishing

Weave in loose ends and block. Here is a picture of how I block the hat to have a nice, flat top. If you want to block the head part of the hat (I don't bother with it myself), I advise you to do it as a second step. A balloon inflated to the right size would be a good solution.

Ideas for knitting with several colours

One of the many ways to knit this hat with different leftover yarns is to knit all the K rds in the same colour and the P rds in a different colour. Each set of Ks and Ps can also be knit in a separate colour. For the garter st rds at the beginning or on the flat bit at the top, you could make each ridge (1 rd of K, 1 rd of P) in a different colour, or alternate with 2 colours. Make sure to change colour on the K rd.