Cecily

Cecily Beret by Melissa LaBarre

What is Being Made

The Cecily Beret is a lightweight lace beret designed by Melissa LaBarre. This knitted hat features an elegant lace pattern combined with a practical ribbed band, making it suitable for both everyday wear and special occasions. The beret's construction emphasizes delicate lacework while maintaining structural integrity through strategic increases and needle transitions.

Knitting Techniques Used

This intermediate-level knitting project employs several key techniques to achieve its finished design. The pattern begins with a ribbed band knit on smaller needles, which provides elasticity and a secure fit around the head. After completing the ribbed section, stitches are increased to expand the fabric for the main body of the beret. The construction then transitions to larger needles when introducing the lace pattern, a technique that allows the yarn to relax and create more open, decorative stitchwork. The pattern includes helpful guidance for knitters new to lace, suggesting the placement of additional stitch markers every 18 stitches to help track lace pattern repeats and maintain consistent stitch placement throughout the project.

Stitches and Stitch Details

The Cecily Beret incorporates ribbed stitching in its band section, which creates vertical lines of texture that provide stretch and recovery. The main body features a lace pattern, which involves yarn overs and decreases worked in coordinated sequences to create openwork designs. The specific lace motifs are worked across the expanded body stitches, with the pattern structured in repeats that can be tracked using stitch markers for accuracy.

Materials and Specifications

• Yarn: Fingering-weight yarn from The Plucky Knitter in the colorway "bitters"; 1 skein required (100g/385 yards per skein)
• Needles: US 1 (2.25mm) 16-inch circular needle for the ribbed band; US 2 (2.75mm) 16-inch circular needle and a set of 5 US 2 double-pointed needles for the lace body
• Notions: Primo stitch marker; blunt needle for weaving in yarn ends
• Gauge: 28 stitches and 38 rows measure 4 inches in the lace pattern

Pattern Notes

This is a downloadable PDF pattern intended for personal knitting use. The pattern was designed to work with fingering-weight yarn, which creates a delicate, lightweight fabric ideal for a beret. The gauge specification of 28 stitches and 38 rows over 4 inches in lace pattern is essential for achieving the correct finished size. Knitters are encouraged to use additional stitch markers beyond the primary marker if they find it helpful to track their place within the lace pattern repeats, making this design accessible to intermediate-level knitters who may be developing their lace-knitting skills.