A Stitch in Time: Beginner's Beanie FREE knitting pattern

I am about to embark on my third term of teaching knitting at Copthill School. At the end of last term, the group requested that I design a beanie pattern especially for them. They were all very keen to knit their very first hat, it seemed. I promised to do so, but in my usual fashion of leaving things a tad late (not last minute exactly, but fairly close to the wire) I only sat down to start designing and knitting the hat earlier this week, with the first session being today. I completed the pattern in one sitting - which was immensely satisfying! There's nothing like a bit of pressure from a group of under 11s to keep you focussed! The children are all going to choose the colour of their hat from the shade card I am taking along with me today, so we won't be starting the project until next week, but I wanted them to see a sample knitted up, as I thought it would help them choose. 

Designing a hat for a beginner knitter is no mean task. Hats usually have quite a bit of shaping, which requires not only shaping techniques, but also precision in counting stitches. I could visualise a lot of queries, frogging, frustration and dropped stitches if I designed the crown in the way I would normally write it, with gradual decreases, spaced at even intervals along the row, with a precise number of straight rows in between each decrease and so on. So I decided that the hat would be knit straight right up until the last three rows, and the decreases would take place on the last two knit rows, so only one purl row to count in between. The decreases could therefore be quite sharp - the number of stitches is halved on each decrease row, which means that you repeat the SAME two stitch pattern across the entire row, apart from the first and last stitches. The first and last stitches are knitted, as these stitches will be incorporated into the seam, and it is hard to sew up a seam neatly if you are sewing into decreases. 

The second problem I pondered was the rib band. I wondered about not doing a rib band - we haven't done k1, p1 rib yet in the classes. But I decided to include it in the end, as it gives a much better finish to the hat, and I can teach it as part of the lessons this term. This means that the hats might be slow work to start with, but once they have got beyond the rib band, I think the rest will be a breeze. I have kept the rib band quite short, to minimise the frustration at the early stages, but you can make the rib band longer if you wish - just reduce the number of stocking stitch rows by the same amount. To make the rib band easier, I decided to include a knit row first. It is hard to rib into a cast on row as a beginner, particularly as the simple cast on method that I have taught them does have the downside of having a tricky first row. Again, just omit this, and do six rows of rib, if you are confident enough.

I also decided to write out a garter stitch version for those who haven't yet mastered the purl stitch.

The beanie had to be topped by a pom pom. They are all mad on making pom poms!

I hope you enjoy this pattern. If anyone uses it with their own kids or school knitting club, please let me know, and send me some photos! Many thanks.

Materials
1 x 100g ball Magnum Chunky yarn or 2 (2, 3) x 50g balls Libby Summers Chunky Yarn
Pair 8mm needles
Pom pom maker

To fit
Age 7 - 8 (9 - 10, 11+ or adult).

Finished measurements
42 (45, 48) cm circumference

Abbreviations
k knit
p purl
k1 knit one stitch
p1 purl one stitch
skpo slip one stitch onto right hand needle, knit the next stitch, then pass the slipped stitch over the top of the knitted stitch (to the left)

Tension (in Magnum Chunky or Libby Summers Chunky)
15 rows and 12 stitches to 10cm square

Notes
Stocking stitch is when you knit on the right side rows and purl on the wrong side rows. Another way of putting this is simply knit one row, then purl one row, then knit one row then purl one row and so on.

Cast on 50 (54, 58) stitches. This will be the bottom of your beanie.
Knit one row (this is the right side of your work).
Work 5 rows in k1, p1 rib, as below:
Rib row: (K1, p1), repeat the stitch pattern in brackets until you get to the end of the row.
Work 20 (24, 28) rows in stocking stitch starting with a knit row. This is the right side of your work.

Shape the top of your hat (called the ‘crown’)
Row 1: K1, (skpo), repeat skpo until you get to the last stitch on your left hand needle, k1. Count your stitches - you should have 26 (28, 30) stitches left.
Row 2: Purl every stitch.
Row 3: Do the same as you did for row 1. This time you will have 14 (15, 16) stitches when you have finished the row.
Row 4: Purl every stitch.

Cut your yarn leaving a long thread. Thread the yarn onto a darning needle then run the yarn through all the stitches on your knitting needle. Pull the needle out, then pull the yarn tight to gather all the stitches together, and fasten tightly at one end with a knot. This is the top of your hat, and the place where you will sew your pompom onto later.

Making Up
Fold your work in half width ways. Sew up the seam down the side of the hat, preferably using mattress stitch. This stitch is done with the right sides facing you. If you prefer to sew the seam up using an overstitch, then turn the hat inside out to sew it up, then don’t forget to turn it the right way round to sew the pom pom on. 

Make a pom pom using your pom pom maker. Make sure it is really thick and fluffy and trim it to make it neat.

Garter Stitch version
If you can’t get the hang of the purl stitch or haven’t learnt it yet, you can knit the hat in garter stitch. Bear in mind that it will look very different!

Cast on 50 (54, 58) stitches. This will be the bottom of your beanie.
Knit until work measures 16 (18, 20) cm from the beginning. To measure your work, lay it out flat, and place the end of the tape measure under the needles.

Shape the top of your hat (called the ‘crown’)
Row 1: K1, (skpo), repeat skpo until you get to the last stitch on your left hand needle, k1. Count your stitches - you should have 30 stitches left.
Row 2: Knit every stitch.
Row 3: Do the same as you did for row 1. This time you will have 16 stitches when you have finished the row.
Row 4: Knit every stitch.

Cut your yarn leaving a long thread. Thread the yarn onto a darning needle then run the yarn through all the stitches on your knitting needle. Pull the needle out, then pull the yarn tight to gather all the stitches together, and fasten tightly at one end with a knot. This is the top of your hat, and the place where you will sew your pompom onto later.

Making Up
Make up as for the stocking stitch hat.

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