Starstuff hat

Starstuff Hat by Amy van de Laar

What is Being Made

The Starstuff hat is a stranded knit beret designed by Amy van de Laar as a coordinating piece to the Starstuff mitts. This adult-sized hat features decorative star motifs worked in two contrasting colors throughout the design, with a crown of stars positioned around the brim and star-shaped decreases forming the crown shaping at the top of the hat. The finished hat is sized to fit an adult female head with a circumference of 22 inches and is intended as a comfy, stretchy fit.

Knitting Techniques Used

This advanced knitting project employs stranded colorwork as its primary technique, requiring the knitter to work with two yarn colors simultaneously to create the star patterns. The hat is constructed using the top-down method, beginning with ribbed cuffs and progressing upward through the colorwork sections before shaping the crown. The construction utilizes circular needle knitting for the main body sections, transitioning to double-pointed needles (dpns) for the crown decreases when the stitch count becomes too small for circular needles. The ribbing at the base is worked on slightly smaller needles to create stretch and recovery, a standard technique for ensuring a secure, comfortable fit around the head.

Stitches and Stitch Patterns

While specific stitch abbreviations are not detailed in the provided pattern excerpt, the hat incorporates ribbed stitching for the lower edge, which provides elasticity and helps the hat stay in place. The main body features stranded colorwork stitches that create the star patterns in the two-color design. The crown shaping employs star-shaped decreases, a decorative decrease method that maintains the visual theme of the hat while reducing stitches to close the top.

Materials and Yarn

The Starstuff hat is designed for 4-ply, fingering, or sock weight yarn, a fine yarn weight that creates a lightweight, fitted garment suitable for a beret style. The pattern requires a minimum of 40 yards in the star color (SC) and 160 yards in the background color (BC), for a total of approximately 200 yards. The designer, Amy van de Laar, used Zealana Kauri Fingering yarn in the colorways 'Kea' for the star color (35 yards) and 'Tuhi' for the background color (154 yards). The pattern notes that leftover yarn from the coordinating Starstuff mitts can be repurposed for the star color, making this an excellent project for yarn stash management.

Needles and Tools

The pattern calls for multiple needle sizes to achieve proper gauge and construction:

• 2.75mm circular needles or dpns (US 2, UK 12) in a length suitable for hat knitting, used for the main colorwork sections
• 2.75mm dpns (US 2, UK 12) for the crown decreases when working in the round becomes impractical
• 2.25mm circular needles or dpns (US 1, UK 13), one size smaller than the main needles, for the ribbed cuff to create stretch and elasticity
• A needle for weaving in yarn ends after completion
• A stitch marker if needed for tracking rounds

Knitters are advised to adjust needle size as necessary to achieve the correct gauge for their specific yarn, ensuring proper fit and fabric drape.