Knitting is for Babies

Little beanie hats are probably my favorite thing to knit, but I have made so many for myself that making any more seems a little silly. Now with the impending arrival of baby copperheart, I have a new opportunity to make even littler beanie hats.

I've never really been good at following knitting patterns, so it took a little trial and error to scale my usual pattern down to baby size. This little hat is 7" wide, which I'm guessing should be good for about a 3-month old baby. I used a size 6 16" circular needle to start, and then switched to size 6 double points as the hat got smaller towards the top. I used Bernat cotton tots, which is a little thicker than some baby yarns but nice and soft and light because it's 100% cotton.

I started by casting on 54 stitches and joining them to knit in the round. I knit the ribbing for about an inch and a half, and then switched to stockinette stitch. When I had about 3" knit I started decreasing. I divided the stitches into seven groups of eight with stitch markers, and then knit together the last two stitches of each group on every other round. When there were just seven stitches left I ran the tail through the stitches and wove it in. You'll have to excuse my inability to write up a proper pattern. I guess my brain doesn't work that way.

The finished hat is about 6" tall, but you could easily make it taller by knitting more before starting the decreases if you wanted more of a stocking cap than a beanie. You could also easily size it up or down by changing the number of starting stitches. I think I might make some more with different textured knit and purl patterns, or maybe stripes. Anyways, these are super simple and fun to make, and they're great for taking along in the car or to family functions.