The 1917 Fleisher’s Yarn Dexter Cap
tl;dr: This vintage pattern is written in such a way it’s really quite straightforward to crochet as is. I have, however, rewritten the pattern at the bottom of this post in modern terms. You can also download a PDF of this pattern, rewritten in modern terms, for free here: [I’ll insert link shortly, I’m still writing it up.]
A few months ago, I acquired a physical copy of the 1917 Fleisher’s Knitting & Crocheting Manual, 15th Edition. I’d already completed a few patterns from the HathiTrust.org copy of this book over the last couple of years but don’t really like that scan, which is why I decided to buy a copy of the book when I found it at a really good price on eBay. It’s not that the HathiTrust scan is poor quality, I just really prefer full color scans or better yet, the actual book! Anyways, while flipping through the book, I came across a nifty big floppy winter hat pattern, the Dexter Cap pattern found on Page 139. I’ve long bounced around the idea of writing up some posts where I work through a vintage pattern in a highly detailed, more or less step-by-step way, explaining (or rather, over explaining!) my pattern analysis, thought processes, assumptions, conversions and calculations behind my interpretation of the pattern and my decisions on how to work the pattern. Hopefully, by seeing my vintage pattern interpretation process, it will help others! This Dexter Cap pattern looks to me like a great pattern to write up in this way, plus I want a new winter hat 🙂 Been wearing my Cabaret Beret hat for the last 5 years 🙂
Now, to be honest, when working a vintage crochet pattern, I usually just do a quick read of the pattern then dive right in and start crocheting while figuring everything out as I go. I’ve been working vintage patterns on and off for at least 40 years by now so I’ve long developed a general instinct for how to crochet a vintage pattern as I work it, but for the purposes of this post, I’m going to explain/over-explain all my mental gymnastics of working this pattern.
As a side note, this pattern also appears in the 13th edition (1915), 14th edition (1916) and 16th edition (1918) of Fleisher’s Knitting and Crocheting Manual. On Page 87 of the 23rd edition (1926), there’s a variation of this pattern named the “Ruth Tam”. I find this variation a bit intriguing, so I’ll convert the Ruth Tam pattern to modern-day terms in a separate post Soon™!
The first step in working any vintage pattern is to read the pattern before starting to work the pattern. Never skip reading the pattern! While reading a pattern, I try to visualize each step in my mind to see if I can gain a general overview and understanding of the pattern and how it is worked. There’s no need to fully “get” every single aspect of the pattern at this point – just enough to gain a general overview. I don’t try to figure out all the details at this point, I just want to see if the pattern makes sense and have a rough idea of the pattern. I do note down any questions that pop out as I read through it. This first read-through brings up two questions: The pattern is obviously worked in the round but I’m unsure of how each round is ended – do we slip stitch to end each row then do a chain stitch as the first stitch on the next row or do we just go round and round continuously? The pattern doesn’t specify and it doesn’t really give any obvious clues so I’ll figure that out when I start crocheting, but most likely, I’ll just work it in the round continuously because I think hats look better without a “seam”. That, and more often than not, hat patterns are crocheted in the round without joining each row. The second question upon first read-through is what is the hat’s size; specifically, what size is the opening of the hat around the head. I’ll need to calculate the stitch count of that row to estimate the head opening size.
Next, I start doing some conversions and math. You know, figuring out what type of yarn, how much yarn, the hook size, the gauge/tension and size of the hat.
Hook: “1 amber hook No. 4½” = 4.5mm crochet hook (US 7)
Through at least the 1930s, Fleisher’s pattern books always use millimeter sizing for crochet hooks and knitting needles, which makes determining what size of hook I need super simple: A 4½ hook is 4.5mm crochet hook! Of course, I may end up using a different size hook in order to achieve the pattern’s gauge/tension and/or hat size, but I’ll start out with a 4.5mm crochet hook. As a side note, it’s my understanding and belief that “amber hooks” are celluloid crochet hooks, which were widely available by this time (1917). Celluloid was an early plastic type material that is, unfortunately, very flammable, so I don’t recommend investing in vintage celluloid crochet hooks.
Amount of Yarn Needed: “6 balls or skeins of Fleisher’s Germantown Zephyr” = 6 ounces of yarn.
The pattern calls for six balls or skeins of Fleisher’s Germantown Zephyr 8-fold. As is true with most pattern books even today, the book serves as one big advertisement for the publisher’s yarns. Having access to the entire book and not just a single pattern makes all the difference when working vintage patterns for this reason above all – they almost always contain descriptions and/or photos of the publisher’s yarns!
At the back of the book, the yarn description for Fleisher Germantown Zephyr states that both 4-fold and 8-fold Germantown Zephyr are packaged in one ounce balls. Based on this description alone, it appears I need six ounces of yarn because it says 8-fold Zephyr are produced in one ounce balls. While I’m pretty confident that I need six ounces of yarn based solely on this information, I go grab an old hat I crocheted some years ago that’s similar in style and size to this pattern (crocheted with wool worsted weight yarn), pull out my kitchen scale and weigh the hat to see if its close to or around six ounces in weight. The hat weighs 5.8 ounces. My confidence is now high that I will need around six ounces of yarn to complete this pattern.
Size of Yarn: “8-Fold” = a yarn twice as thick as 4-fold (worsted weight, 4-Medium) yarn; i.e., modern 5-Bulky yarn classification.
As I happen to have a yarn sample card for Fleisher’s Germantown Zephyr, I next look at that to get a “feel” for the pattern’s yarn and see if I can figure out the thickness/width of this yarn. Since the card has lots of colors but states that the 8-fold version of Germantown Zephyr is only available in a few colors (marked with a ★ on the card), and all yarn samples are the same size, it’s obvious that all the yarn samples on the card are samples of 4-fold Zephyr. Dang. I was really hoping at least one of the yarn samples was an 8-fold yarn but nope, it’s all 4-fold Zephyr – i.e., worsted weight yarn (4-Medium). A quick comparison to a few yarn scraps confirms that the samples are virtually identical to my modern-day worsted weight wool and cotton yarn scraps. Oh but wait! *sidetrack alert on* The yarn sample card says 8-fold comes in TWO ounce balls – does that mean I actually need 12 ounces of yarn and not six ounces? Ack! Then I remind myself that I while I’m not sure of the date of my Fleisher yarn sample cards, I’m pretty confident they date to the early to mid 1920s. The 15th edition of this book was published in 1917 so it’s possible that in 1917, Fleisher produced 8-fold yarn in one ounce balls and then later on produced them in two ounce balls … quick rabbit hole trip … I look at the 1918 and 1926 yarn description pages I have and note that the 1918 yarn description states 8-fold Germantown Zephyr is in one ounce balls and the 1926 yarn description says two ounce balls … I do some more searching and find that the 1920 book also states 8-fold is in one ounce balls. Now I squirrel again briefly as I realize I never updated my yarn description page with scans of the yarn reference pages in the 1917 book … updated now! I pull myself out of the rabbit hole. This supports my hypothesis that production changed to two ounce balls … but it’s also possible that there is a typo in the 1917-1920 descriptions of the Zephyr 8-fold yarn. After all, errors and typos do exist in many vintage – and modern – pattern books, and those typos and errors often carried over through multiple future editions! But since the yarn description in the back of the book says one ounce balls, as does the yarn description in the 1918 and 1920 editions of Fleisher’s Knitting & Crocheting Manual, I’m back to high confidence I need about six ounces of yarn. *sidetrack alert off*
In general, vintage 4-fold yarn is usually (but not always) described as most equivalent to modern worsted weight (4-Medium) yarn, and vintage 8-fold yarn is usually described as equivalent to bulky or rug yarn (modern 5-Bulky). Technically, 8-fold yarn is double the thickness (double the plies) of 4-fold yarn, which is about the thickness of many modern 5-Bulky classified yarns. Some modern yarns that should be a good size match include Red Heart Soft Essentials, Patons Alpaca Blend, Bernat Maker Home Dec or Lion Brand Yarn Homespun should all work. Chenilles, Red Heart Hygge and Lion Brand Yarn Hue & Me might work but also may be a bit a hassle to crochet with a 4.5mm hook. Crocheting with two strands of worsted weight (4-Medium) likely would work also, although may also be a hassle. 😉 Rug yarn (such as vintage Aunt Lydia’s) definitely would be too thick.
Having said all that … the thought of using a worsted weight yarn possibly with a larger hook is bouncing around my mind. Why? Well, most patterns in this book using the Germantown Zephyr 8-Fold yarn are using a 6mm crochet hook, which is consistent with many modern bulky yarn patterns that typically use 6mm to 9mm crochet hooks, yet this pattern is using a 4.5mm crochet hook. That means this hat is intentionally crocheted to have a tight stitch density (like commonly done when crocheting amigurumi), likely to provide warmth and some structure/shape/form to the hat. I find crocheting bulky yarns with smaller hooks irritating and slow, and I usually don’t like how stiff/tight it often ends up feeling, but I won’t decide which hook size I’ll end up using till I do some swatches and determine the pattern’s size.
It’s time to dig through my yarn stash, pick a few yarns, and make a few swatches! Before I can make some test swatches, I need to determine what crochet stitches to use in making the swatches.
Stitches Used: “[23]” and “[31]” = “[23]” is US single crochet (UK double crochet) in both loops; “[31]” is US single crochet (UK double crochet) in back loop only.
I now reread the pattern as I need to determine the predominant crochet stitch in order to know what stitch to use when making some test swatches. The top of the pattern states “Stitch No. 23”. Some of the older editions of Fleisher’s Knitting & Crocheting Manual listed directions for all stitches used, along with photographs, at the beginning of the book. Each stitch is numbered, and each pattern in the book refers to stitches by their number instead of their name. As I already know that all Fleisher Yarns patterns and pattern books use what we now call US crochet terminology, I’m not going to go into how you determine if a pattern is using US or UK terminology in depth here but simply put, read the pattern or book’s stitch descriptions to determine if it’s describing a US single crochet or a UK double crochet.
The crochet stitch guide at the front of the book states Stitch No. 23 is “[23] Huntington”. [23] Huntington is described as “Single crochet [2], taking both loops.” Visually, it definitely is a US single crochet/UK double crochet stitch. No doubt at all, but … *Sidetrack alert on!* defining a stitch separately and distinctly as a single crochet using both loops raises the question: Does this book by default assume single crochets are in back loop only?
You see, in many pattern books of the 1800s, single crochet (UK double crochet) was routinely stitched in the back loop only; stitching in both loops was used much less often. It was not uncommon to name and describe a single crochet (US) in both loops as a different stitch than single crochet in back loop only. In other words, stitching in the back loop only was often assumed to be the default way to stitch a single crochet (UK double crochet). If you’ve ever tried crocheting what you assumed was a simple single crochet vintage pattern and were stymied when you couldn’t get it to work right, it’s a safe bet that the pattern assumed you were stitching those single crochets in the back loop only while you were stitching in both loops because nowadays, we assume single crochets are always stitched in both loops unless otherwise stated.
By 1917, the year this book was published, most crochet pattern books had shifted to describing single crochets (by whatever name they used) as through both loops and/or written with the assumption that a single crochet (UK double crochet) was stitched through both loops. However, every now and then, I come across an early 1900s pattern and/or pattern book that still assumed and/or described the single crochet stitch (by whatever name they used) as stitched in the back loop only. For this reason, when working vintage crochet patterns from the 1800s through the early 1900s, it’s always a good idea to double-check whether the pattern assumes back loop only or both loops.
I next flip to “[2] Single Crochet” in the book and read its description to double-check if single crochets are back loop only or both loops by default. Unfortunately, the description doesn’t specify back loop only or both loops. The stitch photo doesn’t give us any clue either since it’s just one row of single crochets (US) on a chain. I go back to the pattern and take a close look at the picture of the Dexter hat. I scroll in on my scan as much as I can and visibly, it very much looks like single crochet in both loops.
Suddenly remembering that the pattern uses a third stitch later in the pattern, I go back and read it again – yup! It says “Make 1 row of stitch No. 31”. Back to the stitch guide! Stitch No. 31 is “[31] Kinderkoat” and is defined as “Single crochet [2], taking back loop.” Obviously, this 15th edition of Fleisher’s Knitting & Crochet Manual defines back loop only and both loop single crochets as different versions of the single crochet (UK double crochet) stitch and therefore, the “[2] Single Crochet” description is simply describing the mechanics of stitching a single crochet and not the specifics of how to stitch it. *Sidetrack alert off!*
Alrighty! Now that I know the gauge/tension is 99.9999% based on single crochet (UK double crochet), and since single crochet in both loops is the predominant stitch used in the pattern, it’s a safe assumption that I need to crochet swatches using single crochet in both loops. Now, I’m finally ready to stitch some test swatches to the gauge/tension called for in the pattern.
Gauge/Tension: “10 stitches = 3 inches. 4 rows = 1 inch”
Simply put, gauge (UK tension) is the number of stitches needed per inches/centimeters in order to achieve the pattern’s stated completed size. Quite often, vintage patterns don’t list the size of the pattern and/or what the gauge/tension should be but fortunately, Fleisher’s patterns almost always contain at least a gauge. The Dexter Cap pattern’s gauge/tension is “10 stitches = 3 inches. 4 rows = 1 inch” using Fleisher’s Germantown Zephyr 8-Fold yarn, which I’m confident is equivalent to modern yarn classification 5-Bulky.
Since vintage patterns tend to be sized somewhat smaller than modern patterns, I’ve often found that using yarns and hooks that match the vintage pattern exactly does match the stated (if any) gauge/tension but the final size of the pattern ends up too small for me. For this reason, I swatch what I think is the best possible match to the pattern’s stated hook size and yarn types and also swatch several different but similar yarns and hooks to determine what, if any, changes I need to make in order to either match or adjust the pattern’s gauge/tension and pattern’s size to what I need. Ultimately, I end up using the yarn and hook size that I feel works best for me regardless of what thickness yarn and size hook the pattern calls for. The trick is figuring out what gauge/tension the pattern is using, what size the pattern is, what size you need, then deciding what, if any, adjustments are needed to achieve the gauge needed for the size needed. That sounds like a lot of work but in reality, it’s simple: Pick a few yarns, crochet a few quick swatches and measure them, see how close they compares to the pattern’s gauge/tension, pattern’s size, or size you need. Most often, only a minor tweak such as using a hook one size larger or smaller is needed to achieve the pattern’s gauge and/or size you need. Sometimes, using slightly smaller or larger yarn works; other times, you may have to add stitches or rows which is a hassle I personally try to avoid!
Modern 5-Bulky yarn classification contains a lot of variation in yarn thickness, so I’m going to swatch with a “thinner” 5-Bulky and a “thicker” 5-Bulky yarn. I’m also going to swatch with a 4-Medium worsted weight yarn because I always use 4-Medium worsted weight cotton yarn as my “standard” to compare to. Since technically, 8-fold yarn is double 4-fold yarn, and I know that Fleisher’s Germantown Zephyr 4-fold is identical in width, texture, etc., to a scrap of modern-day worsted weight cotton yarn (Peaches & Cream cotton yarn), I hand-twist two scraps of cotton yarn to reasonably closely imitate/match an 8-fold yarn to swatch with, too.
I pick, from top to bottom, vintage Aunt Lydia’s Rug Yarn (brown, wool, 5-Bulky), Bernat Maker Home Dec (yellow/green/blue variagated, cotton tube filled with nylon batting, 5-Bulky), two scraps of Peaches & Cream Worsted Weight (pink and purple twist, cotton, 4-Medium) that I twisted together to imitate an 8-fold yarn, and also just plain Peaches & Cream worsted weight (pink, cotton, 4-Medium) yarn as my semi-universal “standard” to compare to. I will make swatches using my favorite Boye “G” hook from 1968, which measures 4.38mm – the closest to 4.5mm hook I have without using one of my inline-head bamboo hooks. If I have to, I’ll use my exactly 4.5mm bamboo hook, but I don’t like crocheting with wood or inline hooks, I find them slower and kinda annoying to crochet with.
As you can see, the brown Aunt Lydia’s is thicker than the yellow/green/blue Bernat Maker Home Dec even though both are classified as 5-Bulky. The purple and pink twisted together Peaches & Cream cotton is virtually identical in thickness to the Bernat Maker (it’s thicker in some places, thinner in other, due to my hand-twisting them together), and of course, the pink Peaches & Cream is the thinnest of all samples. Starting with the Aunt Lydia’s, I make a quick 10 stitch, 4 row swatch. As a reminder, this pattern’s gauge/tension is “10 stitches = 3 inches. 4 rows = 1 inch”.
The Aunt Lydia’s Rug Yarn swatch measures over 3.5 inches wide, definitely too thick. Needless to say, to me, it’s also a bit annoying crocheting a thick yarn like this with a smaller than usual hook for this size yarn. I do like how it looks even though I prefer bright colors for hats and I like that it’s wool – the Germantown Zephyr yarn is also wool so using wool would be more “true” to the pattern, but using this Aunt Lydia’s yarn would make the hat way too big (even for me). I would have to make adjustments to the pattern’s stitch counts to make this yarn work and that’s something I’m loath to do.
It took me a bit to get the hang of crocheting with the Bernat Maker Home Dec yarn – it’s oddly springy but not stretchy, a weird combination. This yarn is a “5-Bulky” yarn and isn’t really a yarn per se; it’s a woven cotton tube filled with a sort of nylon or polyester “batting” – it’s a really nifty yarn and I bought a bunch of it on clearance at my local Bi-Mart a couple of years ago for $1.00 per skein – score! By crocheting somewhat tighter than I naturally crochet, I get a swatch 3.125 inches wide (pictured). Crocheting using my natural tension, it comes in at just about 3.3 inches wide (not pictured).
Crocheting a swatch using two strands of the Peaches & Cream cotton worsted weight yarn comes in exactly at 3 inches wide. Four rows come in at a smidge above 1 inch tall. Out of all the swatches I made, this one actually does come in as the closest match to the stated gauge but … I don’t like how it looks or feels. Very stiff, no flow to the swatch at all. Having crocheted with two strands of worsted weight yarn before, I expected that, but because it’s crocheted with a smaller hook than I normally would use when crocheting with two strands, it’s even stiffer and kind of annoying to crochet because it’s so tight and stiff.
My swatch using cotton worsted weight yarn measures a smidge under 3 inches wide. Four rows measure just a smidge shorter than 1 inch. Normally, I would consider that close enough to a pattern’s gauge to go for it but … knowing that vintage patterns trend smaller than modern patterns, I’m also aware that this will likely result in a hat that’s too small for me – especially taking my big hair into consideration! 😀
I also made a few swatches using one size smaller and one size larger crochet hooks and two other yarns mostly because I was curious. Looking over my swatches, the Aunt Lydia’s rug yarn and the double strands of worsted weight I’m definitely not using. At this point, the Bernat Maker Home Dec is my first choice even though my swatch is somewhat wider than 3 inches. I prefer wearing hats on the larger size and I have a lot of big, thick, curly hair which makes finding hats to fit over my hair challenging at times. Using ordinary worsted weight (4-Medium) yarn with a 5mm hook is my second choice but I suspect I’d have to add a few rows to make sure the height is “tall” enough to fit over my head and hair.
Pattern Size = about 24″ around the head from nape of neck to top of forehead
Speaking of big hats … let’s see if we can get a clue what size this hat pattern is at its stated gauge/tension. The Fleisher Dexter Cap is shown worn angled on the head from the nape of the neck to the top of the forehead, which on my head measures 23.4 inches. The pattern doesn’t list a finished size but using a bit of math, we can quite quickly figure out at least one specification: The likely size of the hat’s opening; i.e., where you place the hat over your head. In this pattern, it seems that the smallest point of the hat’s opening occurs at or just before the “ear tabs” section of the pattern:
Ear Tabs – Work 20 stitches, turn, chain 1.
Decrease 1 at each end of every row until 1 stitch remains. Fasten off.
Skip 22 stitches, join yarn in next stitch and work 20 stitches in same way.
The 22 stitches are front, the remaining 18 stitches are back.
The pattern states make 20 single crochets, skip 22, make 20, skip 18. 20+22+20+18=80 stitches. The gauge is 10 stitches = 3 inches so 80 divided by 10 = 8 times 3 inches = 24 inches. The opening of the hat at the point where the ear tabs begin should be roughly 24 inches around. This makes sense because typically, modern hat patterns that are worn “headband style”; i.e., from the back nape of neck to the forehead (presumably with hair tucked in the hat), typically measure between 22″ and 24″ inches. I do a happy dance in my chair now because some vintage hat patterns I’ve done in the past measure closer to 18 to 20 inches around, causing me to adjust the stitch counts in order to get it to fit me!
The pattern doesn’t list total number of rows so at a glance, there is no way to calculate how “tall” the hat is. I’ll have to write out the pattern and determine the number of rows to calculate hat, but I’m not worried about the depth of the hat. That’s something I can determine and adjust as/if necessary while I’m crocheting the hat. Adding rows is almost always easier to do than adding stitches!
After all of the above (which probably took less time than it took you to read to this point), it’s time to start crocheting! But before I do that, I’m going to write out the pattern, breaking out the “repeat till XX” instructions into separate rows so I can not only keep better track of where I am at in the pattern, I can find potential mistakes (if any) in the pattern. As I plan on writing up this pattern in modern terms and putting the PDF up here for free download, I’m also writing the pattern out so I can calculate stitch counts for each row. After all, Crocheters today expect patterns to show exact row-by-row directions with total number of stitches on each row.
Using my personal crochet shorthand, I write out the pattern and come up with stitch counts – which may or may not be correct at this point but I think are overall correct.
Time to start crocheting!
After a day or two of stewing on my yarn swatches again, and knowing I prefer my hats to be a bit looser/bigger, I decide I’m going to crochet this pattern with my Bernat Maker Home Dec yarn using my favorite Boye 4.38mm “G” hook from 1968 (which happens to be my very first crochet hook given to me by my great aunt Viola). Even though this hook doesn’t exactly measure 4.5mm, I crochet a tad on the loose side and based on my swatches, this is going to be close enough to the pattern’s gauge/tension and estimated hat size that I should be able to crochet the pattern without making any changes to the pattern.
So far, all my estimated stitch counts in my notes above are matching up exactly! That like, you know, never happens!
Top of hat in progress, the “inside” of the hat.
This is right after the decrease in Row 28. The opening measures roughly 25-ish inches but I’m not worried that it might be too big an opening. I know the following two single crochet rows will tighten it up a bit more and if after those rows it is too big, it’s easy enough to either redo those rows with a smaller hook or run a bit of elastic through the headband after I’ve completed it.
I do a quick test fit and … I think the hat is too “short” for me. I can barely squeeze my 3:00 a.m. messy hair in it 😀 I removed the decrease row and started adding a few extra rows (after the “8 rows even”), test fitting till I think I got it right for me. I ended up adding three more rows of single crochets, making the “8 rows even” a total of 11 rows.
I freakin’ LOVE this! When you look at the “outside” of the top of the hat, it’s got this fabulous shell-like shape to it!
After the four rows of single crochets (US) across (Rows 33-36 in my notes). Heh, this would make a pretty nifty handbag 😀
Time to do the ear tabs and then its done!
I’m not particularly good at selfies, I’ll try and get some better pictures later but … I’m thrilled with how it came out! I didn’t put a ribbon on it like in the original pattern because I’m just not a fan of ribbons and this yarn is stiff enough the ear flaps stay down flat. It’s super comfy and fits perfectly – it’s also very warm.
The Dexter Cap Pattern in Modern Terms
Yarn: 6 to 7 ounces (170 to 198 grams) of 5-Bulky yarn. Red Heart Soft Essentials, Patons Alpaca Blend, Bernat Maker Home Dec or Lion Brand Yarn Homespun should all work.
Hook: 4.5mm crochet hook recommended. 4.25mm (US Boye “G”) to 5mm crochet hook will work but may affect final size somewhat.
Optional: 3 yards (0.91 meters) ribbon, 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters wide) (whatever you prefer)
Stitches Used:
SC – Single Crochet in both loops (UK Double Crochet)
SC BLO – Single Crochet in back loop only (UK Double Crochet)
INC – Increase by making 2 SC in both top loops of one SC.
DEC – Decrease by joining two SC together with 1 SC. Also known as sc2tog. [Insert hook in both top loops of current stitch, yarn over, pull yarn through the stitch (2 loops on hook). Insert hook in top loops of next stitch, yarn over, pull through (3 loops on hook). Yarn over, pull through all 3 loops on hook (1 loop on hook).] Note: Decreases count as one stitch.
SK – Skip a stitch (UK miss)
Gauge (UK Tension): 10 stitches = 3 inches (7.62 cm). 4 rows = 1 inch (2.54 cm)
Total stitch count of each row is shown (in parentheses). Chain stitches are not counted in stitch counts. The hat is crocheted in the round. Using stitch markers or a piece of scrap yarn to mark the beginning of each round is recommended.
Chain 3, join with slip stitch *or* make a magic loop.
- SC 7 in open space of CH 3 or middle of magic loop. (7)
- INC in each SC. (14)
- *INC, SC in next SC* around (a total of seven repeats) (21)
- *INC, SC 2* around (28)
- *INC, SC 3* around (35)
- *INC, SC 4* around (42)
- *INC, SC 5* around (49)
- *INC, SC 6* around (56)
- *INC, SC 7* around (63)
- *INC, SC 8* around (70)
- *INC, SC 9* around (77)
- *INC, SC 10* around (84)
- *INC, SC 11* around (91)
- *INC, SC 12* around (98)
- *INC, SC 13* around (105)
- *INC, SC 14* around (112)
- *INC, SC 15* around (119)
- *INC, SC 16* around (126)
- *INC, SC 17* around (133)
- SC around (133)
- SC around (133)
- SC around (133)
- SC around (133)
- SC around (133)
- SC around (133)
- SC around (133)
- SC around (133)
- *SC SK* around (66).
Do a quick test fit of the hat. It should be loose around your head (probably about an inch-ish loose) but not too loose.
Check the “height” of the hat on your head. If the edge of the hat loosely lies around the middle to bottom of your ear, the height is good.
If it lies around the top of your ear to the middle of your ear, crochet another one to four rows of SC around until you feel the height is what you want.
If it lies below the bottom of your ear, it’s probably too big (but hey, you might prefer that). If it’s too big, remove Row 28, remove one to four of the prior rows, then re-stitch Row 28 and test fit again.(See picture above.) - SC around (66)
- SC around; turn, chain 1. (66 – don’t count the chain)
- SC BLO around; join, turn, chain 1. (66 – don’t count the chain or join)
- *SC 4, INC* around (should be 11 repeats) (80)
- SC around (80)
- SC around (80)
- SC around (80)
- SC around (80)
- With this row, we begin working on the ear tabs.
SC 20, turn, chain 1 (20) - DEC, SC 16, DEC; turn, chain 1 (18)
- DEC, SC 14, DEC; turn, chain 1 (16)
- DEC, SC 12, DEC; turn, chain 1 (14)
- DEC, SC 10, DEC; turn, chain 1 (12)
- DEC, SC 8, DEC; turn, chain 1 (10)
- DEC, SC 6, DEC; turn, chain 1 (8)
- DEC, SC 4, DEC; turn, chain 1 (6)
- DEC, SC 2, DEC; turn, chain 1 (4)
- DEC, DEC (2)
- DEC, fasten off. (1)
- On the headband, skip 22 stitches from the starting row of the ear tab just completed. Join yarn in the next stitch (23rd stitch from beginning of first ear tab) with a slip stitch to begin the second ear tab.
Repeat Rows 37 through 46 to make the second ear tab.
The 22 skipped stitches are the front of the hat. The remaining 18 skipped stitches are the back of the hat. Of course, you can wear it however you want 😉 - Finish with one row of SC all around.
Let me know if you have any questions! I hope you enjoy this hat as much as I!
I especially loved handling the hexes made out the assorted cows and chickens fabrics which were scrap fabric given to me by a since-deceased friend and the plaid fabric from a shirt I wore every time my dad showed me how to work on my car when I was a teenager. Dad believed that you can’t learn to drive until you know things like how to change out a flat tire, how to check your fluids, change your oil, and do simple repairs. To this day, the time getting greasy with my dad while helping him on simple car maintenance tasks are my favorite teenage years memories!
I started working on the quilt topper again, cutting and adding hexes from more fabric and old clothing collected since then. I cut up an old curtain and made the bright green border (it’s a bit more vibrant than it looks in the photo) and got to the point where it was finally time to put it together with the batting (from a partially used roll of batting I found at a Goodwill thrift store). I brought the now finished top and my wad of fuzzy pink most likely polyester fabric with me to a local craft circle meeting to show it off and tell its story; plus, I wanted to get some advice on how best to machine sew the top, batting and backing together on my first ever sewing machine, a cheap and simple Brother sewing machine that I’d bought at Walmart. By this time, I had hand-quilted three incomplete quilts I’d found at thrift stores in the intervening years, but I really didn’t have any idea how to approach machine quilting it.
