#Needleworkmonday : Two mini hats for the Big Knit - 101218

Look at those appealing little eyes :D

I've knitted these two mini hats so far with different left over yarn hence the variation. Both are made with acrylic, bits of chenille and wool, and size 4 mm knitting needles. They are the same size but look a bit different in the photo. They’re about 9 cm from pom-pom to the white edge.

I’ve added the photo above as evidence :D

... and because @marblely requested it :D ...

I got this free pattern and it was so simple that I just learnt the instructions - the possibilities are endless including stripes and changing colour yarn.

I have made a few of these little hats before and I’ve written about them in the past.

The mini hats are fun to knit and good practice for beginners too. I’ve even found quite an old video tutorial.

Locally there was a call for knitters / volunteers in a local mag this week so I thought I’d make a few as a small contribution.

Below I will show you how I did mine, but if you’re more advanced you can knit this one in the round to avoid sewing and / or you can follow the other more adventurous patterns.

Process :

Part 1 - Knit your mini hat :

Cast on 31 stitches
Row 1 and Row 2 : Knit 1, Purl 1
Row 3 : Change colour (in this case to red)
Row 3 to to Row 12 : Stocking stitch.

Row 13 : knit 2 together all the way to decrease ( 16 stitches)

Row 14 : Purl
Row 15 : Knit 2 together all the way ( 8 stitches )

Cut your yarn leaving enough length to thread a needle and gather all the stitches.
Tighten to neaten and sew the side.

Part 2 - Pom-pom

As the hat is so small I thought it would be a bit fiddly to make the pom-pom the traditional way so I used this present I received a couple of years ago. This Clover gadget is good because the pom-pom size is very small and the process is fast in comparison.

Still, I spent a long time working out how to use this marvellous gadget:

There are clear instructions but it’s a bit overwhelming to see how all this plastic replaced two perfectly okay cardboard circles with a hole in the middle :D

1- I wound the yarn three times around each semi circle to make the pom-pom nice and plump.

2- Bring the two semi circles together before you start cutting along the groove.

3- After cutting with sharp scissors, tie a long piece of yarn through the groove and tighten and make a couple of knots to secure it all and then to sew it onto the hat.

I shall continue to experiment with other yarns and I will also try and redress the balance between knitting and crocheting. It would be nice to see more crocheted patterns in the Big Knit.

Many thanks for reading and have fun !

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work by @cryptocariad

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With thanks to @crosheille and @needleworkmonday for hosting