Nightwood

Nightwood Knit Hat by Melissa LaBarre

What is Being Made

Nightwood is an intermediate-level knit hat pattern designed by Melissa LaBarre. This downloadable PDF pattern creates a finished hat using sport weight yarn in a two-color colorwork design. The hat features a classic crown construction with ribbed cuff and charted colorwork patterning throughout the main body.

Knitting Techniques Used

This pattern employs several core knitting techniques suitable for intermediate crafters. The hat begins with a cast-on of 120 stitches worked in the round, followed by ribbed knitting to create an elastic cuff. The construction uses circular needle knitting for the body and transitions to double-pointed needles (dpns) for the crown decreases as stitches reduce. The pattern incorporates two-color stranded colorwork worked from a chart, requiring the knitter to manage both main color (MC) and contrast color (CC) yarn simultaneously. The hat concludes with crown decreases to shape the top, and finishing includes pom pom attachment for a decorative crown element.

Stitches and Stitch Details

• Knit (k) and Purl (p) Stitches: The ribbed cuff uses a k2, p2 rib pattern worked for 8 rounds, creating vertical columns that provide stretch and recovery
• Stockinette Stitch: Smooth knit rounds form the base fabric for the colorwork sections
• Charted Colorwork: The main design is worked from a provided chart using both MC and CC yarns in a stranded colorwork technique, where both colors are carried across the back of the work
• Decreases: Crown shaping is accomplished through decrease rounds worked after the charted pattern is complete, though specific decrease instructions continue on the full pattern

Materials: Yarn and Needles

Yarn: The pattern calls for Barrett Wool Co. Woolens sport weight yarn at 180 yards per 50-gram skein. You will need 1 skein each of "Inkwell" (for the main color) and "Putty" (for the contrast color). If you prefer the pom pom to be made in the main color rather than the contrast color, a second skein of the main color yarn is required.

Needles: The pattern uses US 3 and US 5 circular needles, both 16 inches in length, plus US 5 double-pointed needles (dpns) for crown decreases. The smaller needles are used for the ribbed cuff, while the larger needles are used for the gauge swatch and main colorwork body. Needle size may be adjusted as needed to achieve proper gauge.

Gauge and Finished Dimensions

The pattern specifies a gauge of 23 stitches and 28 rounds over 4 inches when measured in the charted pattern worked on the larger needles. Achieving accurate gauge is essential for proper hat fit and is worked in the two-color stranded colorwork section of the pattern.

Additional Notions and Finishing

Beyond yarn and needles, the pattern requires a stitch marker to denote the beginning of rounds, a blunt needle for weaving in yarn ends after completion, and a pom pom maker for creating and attaching the decorative pom pom to the crown of the finished hat.