Crested Butte Hat Pattern

It was not just below freezing, but below zero, snowing, and windy when I came in from shovelling, changed from boots to slippers, made a pot of tea, and began this hat, from stash yarns.  I was aiming to make a no-frills hat, really warm, with a lining, that would suit even extreme conditions of cold and wind.  It is named for what is perhaps the last of Colorado’s no-frills, no-fashion extreme skiing towns.

I began it with one strand of Cascade Cloud 9 (deep rose 104) left over from a red sweater, combined with one strand of King Cole Luxury Mohair in Monaco worked on #7 circular needles, to a gauge of 16 stitches/4 inches or 10 cm.

My lining was some leftover Cascade Ecological Wool, which worked to a measurement, on the same number of stitches, about 10% less than the 20 inches, also on #7 circulars, roughly 18 stitches/4 inches or 10 cm.

A second version of the hat, all in Ecological Wool, and has a more masculine look.  Directions are given in the pattern.

The directions fit an average size adult with 81 stitches cast on.  5% more stitches and about another 1/3 inch of depth will fit the largest man; 5% fewer stitches and about 1/3 inch less depth will fit the smallest woman.  

Adapting the pattern:  You  can readily adjust to a number of stitches into which a repeat jacquard motif will fit, and adjust the decreases accordingly.  You can also adjust for any gauge as long as you have about 20 inches cast on—roughly 90 for knitting worsted. 

You may want to do as I did here, and work a thicker yarn or combination on smaller needles than usual, to get a thicker, denser fabric, but as long as you are careful with swatching, it will work.  Just be sure that your cast on will give you a number that will to make the decreases come out even, and any jacquard work you intend to come out even and that will give you between 9 and 12 decreases.