Saturday, January 4, 2014

New England Patriots Hat Knitting Pattern

My dad is a HUGE patriots fan.  Living in Florida, he goes to every game that he can.  In 2012 he went to the New Years game in Boston, which required some cold weather gear.  What if he gets the chance to go to a winter game again?  He NEEDS a Patriots Knit Hat, and I think I am just the daughter to make one for him.


For this project, I decided to modify two of my designs, the Generic Skullcap knitting pattern and the New England Patriots Logo Knitting Chart.  Since the colors are isolated to certain sections of the hat, I am going to use Intarsia versus stranded colorwork techniques.  This means that portions of the hat will be knit in the round, and the portion with the chart will be knit back and forth flat and then have the edge grafted together.  If you prefer to avoid colorwork knitting, you can make the Generic Skullcap and then add the Large Patriots Logo via duplicate stitch.



Materials
  • Worsted weight wool in 4 colors - MC (Granite - 45 g/100 yards), CC1 (red - 2 g/4 yards), CC2 (white - 5 g/11 yards) and CC3 (blue - 5 g/11 yards).  The red white and blue used in this sample are KnitPicks Wool of the Andes.  The Grey MC is Shepherd's Wool from the Stonehenge Fiber Mill in Michigan.  
  • Needles - US Size 6 (4.0 mm) knitting needles (double pointed or circular, whatever your preference is.
  • Gauge - 5 st/inch; 7 rows/inch over stockinette.  Take your time to check your gauge to get a good fitting hat!
  • Misc - Yarn needle for weaving in loose ends. Stitch markers. Bobbins (Optional) for intarsia.
  • Finished Size - 20" circumference, 8" crown to brim.


The Chart


Large Patriots Logo Knitting Chart: 58 sts x 29 rows
Open the chart in a new window to see the details better or download the printable PDF version from Google Drive.


The New England Patriots Hat Knitting Pattern
  • Cast on 100 sts on size 6 knitting needles in MC.  Place marker to indicate the start of the round.
  • Join to knit in the round and knit 8 rows of 2x2 ribbing (~1 inch) as follows: P1, *K2, P2* across to last 3 stitches, K2, P1.
  • Knit 1 round across (still in the round)
  • Prepare for Intarsia.  I used 2 balls of grey yarn (MC), 2 balls of white yarn (CC2), 1 ball of blue (CC3) and 1 ball of red (CC1) to knit the patriots chart in a combination of intarsia with some small amount of stranded knitting.  Feel free to make more little balls of yarn to completely avoid any stranded knitting.
  • Chart Row 1 (RS): K 21 stitches, work the 58 stitches of the chart (Download the PDF from Google Drive for better resolution) starting from the bottom reading the row right to left, K 21 sts.
  • Chart Row 2 (WS):  Turn work, this is the beginning of the flat section.  P 21 sts, work 58 charted stitches in purl, reading the chart from left to right, p 21.  
  • Continue working the remaining rows of the chart FLAT ending with row 29, a RS row. 
  • Now we are going to work in the round again.  DO NOT TURN, but replace the marker to mark the beginning of the round.  
  • Knit 4 rounds across or until the hat measures 6" from the cast on edge.  
  • Begin Crown Decreases:
    • *K8, K2tog* across (90 sts)
    • K 1 round
    • *K7, K2tog* across (80 sts)
    • K 1 round
    • *K6, K2tog* across (70 sts)
    • K 1 round
    • *K5, K2tog* across (60 sts)
    • K 1 round
    • *K4, K2tog* across (50 sts)
    • K 1 round
    • *K3, K2tog* across (40 sts)
    • K 1 round
    • *K2, k2tog* across (30 sts)
    • K1 round
    • *K1, k2tog* across (20 sts)
    • K2tog across (10 sts)
    • K2tog across (5 sts)
  • Cut yarn and pull through remaining stitches. 
  • Graft the seam in the back of the hat from the flat section closed.  Weave in loose ends and enjoy your skullcap!


Pictures through Construction of the Patriots Knit Hat

After completion of the chart, there is a split on the back of the hat that will be sewn closed.  This is what this gap looks like before joining in the round again.


My hat measured 5.5" from the cast on edge when I was done with the chart.


I took pictures of the WS of the chart so you could see where I used intarsia and an intarsia/stranded combination. 


 After the knitting of the hat was completed, there is still the seam from the intarsia section that needs to be sewn closed.  This is what it looks like from the WS before and after sewing.  I used the cast on tail to sew this gap closed.  Mattress Stitch will help this be invisible from the RS. 

WS of hat before Mattress Stitch
WS of the hat after Mattress Stitch
RS of the hat after Mattress stitch - you cannot see it at all!

This hat is special for many reasons.  The Shepherd's Wool I purchased on Mackinac Island while visiting my family last summer.  My parents spend every summer on this small island in the Great Lakes, and it had been years since I'd been able to make a trip up there.  My mom kept it a total surprise that they had a local yarn store inside the drug store! I knew that I wanted to pick up some yarn for this hat for my dad while I was there.   This yarn is a DREAM to knit with, so soft and luxurious. 

Keith is so good for modeling all of my designs!
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Abbreviations Used in this pattern:
Intarsia - A type of colorwork where you use multiple balls of yarn and back and forth knitting to avoid carrying all of the colors through the entire project.  
RS - Right Side
WS - Wrong Side
Kfb - increase by knitting into the front and back of a single stitch.
M1 (Make 1)- increase stitch by picking up yarn between two stitches, twisting and knitting.
K - knit
P - purl
I-cord - knit stitches on dpn's without ever turning the needle (effectively knitting in the round with a small number of stitches.)
SSK - decrease by slipping two stitches then knitting them together. Alternatively, you could slip one stitch, knit one stitch and pass slipped stitch over.
K2tog - decrease by knitting two stitches together.

These knitting pattern was created by ChemKnits for your personal or charity use. You are not to sell, distribute or reprint this pattern without the permission of ChemKnits. © 2014 ChemKnits