Hat Florence

Hat "Florence" by Yelena Chen

What Is Being Made

The Hat "Florence" is a handknitted baby and child-adult hat designed by Yelena Chen. This pattern offers two finished sizes: a 3-6 months baby size to fit head circumferences of 14"-17", and a child-adult size to fit head circumferences of 21"-23". The hat features a finished height of 5.75"-6" for the baby size and 8" for the larger size, making it a versatile accessory suitable for multiple age groups.

Techniques and Construction

The Hat "Florence" employs classic knitting techniques including in-the-round construction using circular needles and double-pointed needles. The pattern utilizes cable stitches as a primary design element, requiring knitters to work with a cable needle to create twisted stitch patterns. The crown shaping is accomplished by transitioning from circular needles to double-pointed needles, a standard technique for decreasing stitches when the circumference becomes too small for circular needles. This intermediate-level pattern combines ribbed border work with cable stitch details throughout the main body of the hat.

Stitches Used

The pattern incorporates the following cable stitches:

• C2R (Cable 2 Right): Slip 1 stitch to cable needle and hold to back, knit 1 from left-hand needle, then knit 1 from cable needle
• C2L (Cable 2 Left): Slip 1 stitch to cable needle and hold to front, knit 1 from left-hand needle, then knit 1 from cable needle

The pattern also uses stockinette stitch as the base fabric, with a gauge of 4 stitches per 1 inch in stockinette stitch. The border likely incorporates ribbed knitting to create an elastic edge that fits snugly around the head.

Materials and Tools

Yarn: The pattern calls for approximately 60 yards of yarn for the baby size and 130 yards for the child-adult size. The designer recommends Lion Brand Vanna's Choice 100% acrylic yarn in Pink or Premier Basix 100% acrylic yarn in Crepe, though any #4 medium worsted weight yarn (10 ply) is suitable. Worsted and aran weight yarns are specified, providing good stitch definition for the cable work.

Needles and Notions: The pattern requires US #7 (4.5 mm) circular needles measuring 16" long for the ribbed border, US #9 (5.5 mm) circular needles measuring 16" long for the main body, and a set of 4 or 5 US #9 double-pointed needles for shaping the crown. Additional tools include a cable needle for executing cable stitches, a stitch marker for tracking rounds, and a tapestry needle for weaving in yarn ends.