Don’t we all have this proverbial yarn-skeleton in our closet? That ball of yarn that isn’t just ever going to fit any project we’ll start. Because it’s simply not you. Right?

I never hid the fact that I am completely not in love with the colour pink. My dislike for it even seems to spark some amusement among my friends, so one of my closest friends wrapped her wedding gift for us into a whole 300 yards of baby pink cotton yarn that she wanted me to knit up before I got to the gift. Well… obviously I couldn’t wait THAT long (an eternity) and decided to wind it into a ball for, well, never later use. But somehow I couldn’t bring myself to throw it out and now decided to make somthing out of it. Or – well, of part of it. It really is a LOT of pink yarn…

As my whole family is blessed with boys only and the only girls in my closer circle of friends seem to share my distaste for pink things I was left with the charity-option and will hope these will find someone who appreciates them. As the ball of pinkness in this picture is only one of three I guess you can imagine how many hats I’ll have to make until it’s all used up. Or maybe I’ll come up with another idea.

So if you have the same yarn-skeleton in (or under) your stash, please consider knitting for charity. There are millions of options!

Here is the free pattern for the

Summer Skies Hat

This simple and lovely hat is an adorable addition to the new baby’s wardrobe but will also look great on older children and adults. Knit in cotton or ligther yarns it will be a light summer hat with simple but beautiful eyelets that will knit up in no time. And why not add a crochet (or knit) flower or a Cute-as-a-Button? Whichever you chose it will be lovely, I’m sure!

Techniques used are

• knit-in-the-round,
• purls and
• simple decreases (k2tog).

This is not a complete stitch by stitch pattern.

Instructions are given for various sizes, it’s really easy to adapt it to your needs.

Mix colours as you like, it’s a great way to use up leftovers, too! In case you don’t like pink, either 😛

What you need:

• For an adult hat : Approx. 50g (~130yards) DK / 8 ply (11 wpi) yarn in your favorite colour/s, mix and match as you like!
• 1 Circular or 5 double pointed needles (US 4 or 3.5mm) you can easily adapt the pattern to your favorite needles for your yarn)
• Tapestry needle to weave in loose ends.

Abbreviations:
CO = Cast on
St = Stitch
Rd = Round
k = Knit
k2tog = Knit two stitches together decreasing 1 stitch.
p = purl

Sizes and variations:
For knitting this hat you’ll need to cast on any even number of stitches. You can easily vary the size of your hat, using thicker/thinner yarn or different sized needles. I knit with a very loose tension, so if you are not, please knit a tension check before starting the hat, so that you know how many stitches you’ll need to cast on for your desired size.

The hat in the pictures is a baby hat (0-6months) and made with Hamburger Wollfabrik Cotton yarn DK / 8 ply (11 wpi) yarn on needles US 4 or 3.5mm.

How to knit the hat:

CO your desired number of stitches and join to round without twisting the stitches.
Knit in k2, p2 ribbing until the hat measures approximately 4-5cm (1.5-2in) for the brim for a baby hat(more if you are knitting an adult hat).

[Next Rd: p all
Next Rd: [yo, k2tog] around
Next Rd: p all
knit 6/8/10 rounds (baby/children/adult size)]

Repeat this block 3 times to a total of four eyelet sections.
After this you can start the decrease rounds.

The decreases are worked in a simple pattern you can calculate as follows:
Your total amount of st divided by 4, minus 4 st, divided by 2 =?

EXAMPLE: I use 80st for my baby hat, divided by 4 = 20 -4 = 16 divided by 2 is 8. So 8 is MY number of stitches I have to knit in between the decreases (k2tog).

So I have to knit in the first decrease round like this: [k2tog, k8] x4
In each decrease round you’ll now have one stitch less in between the decreases (k2tog),
until finally there are no more st in between the decreases.
Second decrease rd: [k2tog, k7]x4
3 rd decrease rd: [k2tog, k6]x4
and so on. Got it?

Continue knitting in the same pattern as before (add another eyelet section even during the decreases), but decrease as follows:
decrease round
k2/3 rounds (baby + child / adult size)
decrease round
k2/3 rounds (baby + child / adult size)
decrease round
k1/2 rounds (baby + child / adult size)
decrease round
k1/2 rounds (baby + child / adult size)
decrease round
k0/1 round (baby + child / adult size)
decrease round
k0/1 round (baby + child / adult size)
decrease in every round until you have only 8st left.

Cut yarn, thread through remaining st and pull tight, weave in ends.

Decorate hat with button, crochet flowers, ribbons or what you like and give to a lucky recipient. And please don’t forget to share your projects with me, I’d love to see them! Give me a shout out on Ravelry, Instagram or Facebook, or wherever you are!

Happy knitting!