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Hand Knit Newsboy Hat

Knit Dec. 11, 2004

This page has a pattern generator (aka program) to create a pattern to help you knit a newsboy hat by hand. (the machine knit version is available here.)

You don't have to felt this hat, but it's much better if you do! To design a felted hat, first, knit a swatch using wool, measure the gauge, throw it in the wash, measure the gauge again. Then, enter your values to draft your hat. Knit the hat, throw it in the wash, felt it, and press it while damp. (I am modeling it unfolded below. That's how the hat looks if you don't press it! )

(I am, by the way, planning an second Newsboy hat for February. This one is fine, but there seem to be two basic shapes for newsboys. One shapes the crown like a beret-- as I do on this one. The other one is normally seen sewn out of fabric, and has a seam all along the top. It folds flatter, and I want that one too. It's just harder to design. So.... February. Watch for an announcement on the blog.)

You can make your hat in any felt-able yarn; just enter the gauge and head size in the program, and you'll get the pattern you need. Because you design it based on your felted swatch, the felting process is entirely predictable.

unfolded

(Hey, after you make you hat, send me a picture and let me post it at my blog!)

Characteristics of the hat:

Bottom up.
Hung hem with brim attached.
You may vary the band size to fit any head.

Remember: Like all patterns spit out by my generators, this is mostly shaping directions. The purpose of the generators is to let you be creative, while eliminating the need to do pesky calculations. This generator will let you make exactly the hat shown, but I encourage you to add your own touches. I've seen some very plain newsboys hats and some with feminine touches. To see how people are wearing these, click the search box and look in some catalogs.

Lucia

Help keep my generators free. Click and buy your books through my site!

Enter Data for Your Hat

You must modify the following data to match the gauge and shape you want! Just change the numbers; it recalculates automatically.

Replace My Gauge Swatch Information Your Gauge Swatch Information
Note your needle diameter on your directions in pen. You must use the same needle diameter when knitting the swatch and the hat!
If you plan to felt your hat, knit the swatch at a loose floopy gauge. felt the swatch by tossing it in the washing machine with a light load of whites. Wash on hot. Enter the gauge both before and after felting. (If you aren't felting, enter the before boxes.)
Felted:	If you are felting or using a yarn that shrinks a lot after you knit it, select yes. If not, enter no. If you select "yes", you must enter the gauge before and after felting. Otherwise, enter only "before" values.
Stitches per inch before felting:	Stitches per inch after felting:
Rows per inch before felting:	Rows per inch after felting:

Replace My Hat Shape Parameters with Yours
Remember to click on the page or hit your tab key after entering your final value to force calculation!
Data to enter.	Information.
Circumference of hat band: inches.	Newsboy hats are worn slightly loose, so enter your head circumference. My value is for medium woman's head. Men's heads are 1-2" bigger. Kids are 2-3" smaller. It's best to measure heads. They vary a lot. If you need to guess a head size, visit my hat links, and scroll way down to the bottom! Due to the fact that the number of stitches must be a multiple of 6, and the hat should pouf out a bit above the band, your hat circumference will increase to inches above the brim. (The brim will cinch this in to your the size you entered to the left, but the number of stitches will seem incorrect if you calculate. Hung hems need to be knit on 5-10% fewer stitches than you would expect because folding over causes the knitting to spread out. I don't know why, but this is a consistent effect.)
Brim Depth:	My brim depth is 0.33". You can make this deeper to become a "groovy, 70's" hat, but you can't make it shorter than 2 rows.

Results: Your Hat Pattern

Don't try to edit anything below this point. If you want to change them, change values in the table above. This is a program; so, please read through al the directions and make sure no negative numbers appear. (I try to think about where they might appear and create a warning box, but I don't always think of them all.)

Yarn Estimate & Supplies:

Click to see supplies.
The exact supplies depend on your yarn. Hats rarely take more than 4 ounces; mine used about 3 ounces of worsted weight yarn. I used a 16" long circular needle with the diameter for my swatch and hat, and a set of double pointed needles to finish the top of the hat. The instructions call for 6 ring markers; I use little of strings of yarn as stitch markers. You may want a few safety pins, or use yarn as row markers.

Knitting Instructions.

Some abbreviations: K2tog= knit two stitches together. SSK= slip, slip, knit (a decrease.)

Skills:

Knit, purl, working circular increasing, decreasing, working short rows.

Instructions:

Foundation Row:

Using a 16 inch long circular needle, cast on stitches with waste yarn. Knit 1 round. Break yarn; knit 1 round with crochet cotton. Break yarn. (All of this yarn will be taken off and pitched.)

Brim:

Attach hat yarn. Round 1: Knit all stitches.
Repeat round 1 until you have knit rounds. Knit 1 purl round (forms a purl ridge.) Knit rounds. Pick up the cast on hat stitches another circular needle by pushing the needle tip into the loops of the cast on row. (The diameter of the needle doesn't matter much; thinner diameters are easier to deal with.) Cut crochet cotton and remove it, leaving live stitches on needle; turn hem up, folding along the purl ridge. On the next round, knit 1 stitch on lower needle together with 1 stitch on the main needle. (This seams the hem; the purl round results in a nice fold. If you don't know how to do this, google on "three needle bind off" -- but don't do the second bind off step. You want to leave a live stitch where you had two before.)

Increase row:

Next round: Place a safety pin to mark the beginning of the round. (You will want to leave this here to mark one of the "sides". )
Increase stitches distributing evenly around hat. Use any increase method that does not leave little holes. ( stitches on needle. )
Count over half the stitches and place another safety pin to mark the other hat side.

Non-increase region:

If you don't plan to felt the hat, try on the hat on after a few rounds. The brim should be comfortable. If it is not, you will need to recalculate the hat. If it doesn't fit right, you either a) mis-measured your head or b) aren't getting the stitch gauge you thought you'd get. (Did you knit a swatch? No?! ) If you entered your gauges correctly, the brim should measure inches around. (Don't stress about this too much. It gets stretched out by the increases.) The portion after the brim should measure roughly inches around.
Hang a row marker. Knit all stitches in every round until the length from the row marker is inches.

Shaped region:

Notes: When knitting this section, change to the double pointed needles when you find it's difficult to stretch the stitches around the longer needle.
Make sure you begin the next round at a stitch inline with one of the safety pins that marks the "side" of the cap. On the next instruction, I tell you to use 1 green and 5 red stitch markers. The color of the stitch markers doesnâ€™t actually matter, but I need to distinguish them. You need 5 of one color and 1 of the other color so you identify the beginning of a round.
Round 1: Place a green stitch marker. Knit ; then (place a red stitch marker, k ) 4 times; place a red stitch marker, knit until there are two stitches left before the green stitch marker.
Round 2: (k2 tog, slip marker, knit 1 , ssk , knit ) 6 times. (You should reach the green marker. There should now be stitches between stitch markers. Also, notice as you decrease you are forming 6 "wedges", with sort of "rays" between them. )
Knit rounds, without increasing or decreasing.
Round : ( k2 tog, Slip marker, knit 1, ssk, k ) 6 times. (There should be stitches between each each marker.)
Knit rounds, without increasing or decreasing.
Repeat the rows described in steps d through g, but reduce the number of stitches between decreases each time. (That is, the number of stitches in the second little box decreases by two each time.)
Continue until there are only stitches between stitch markers when you are about to begin a decrease round.
Next round: (K2 tog) repeat across the round.

Finish Top:

Break off yarn leaving a long strand. With a tapestry needle or crochet hook, pull a strand through all the stitches and yarn overs on the needle. Be very careful not to miss any stitches. Then slide the stitches off the needle. The hat will have a big hole in the center as in this figure. (Which shows a beret.) Pull the strand tightly to close the hole. Draw the tail to the inside of the hat, anchor and weave in.

Make little bill and attach

The brim will be formed across the front half of the hat plus a few extra stitches on the back. Decide which three "wedges" you formed while decreasing are in the front, and which are in the back. You should be able to see the "rays" of stitches between the k2tog and ssk, you worked in step 5d. Mark ray as a "side" then mark the ray on the opposite side as the other "side". With the knit side of the hat facing you, attach yarn on the purl ridge at a location stitches "behind" the mark for the first side. Now, working toward the front, pick up 1 stitch per purl bump until you have stitches around the front of the hat. You should end up stitches past the second side marker.
You will now knit short rows to form the brim. This means you will stop knitting before the end of each row, leaving some stitches on the working needle when you turn. (Tip: I find it convenient to cut a piece of crochet cotton, and lay it between stitches to mark the last stitch I knit in each row. This makes it easy to recognize when to turn as I progress.)
Row 1: Begin purl side is facing. Knit until stitches remain on the left needle. [ Slip next stitch, turn work, bring yarn forward as to purl, slip stitch, bring yarn back as to knit.] (The operation between []'s is a wrap and turn. )
Row 2: Knit side is now facing. Purl until stitches remain on the left needle. [ Bring yarn forward as to purl, turn work, bring yarn back as to knit, turn work, slip stitch.]
Row 3: Begin purl side is facing. Knit until stitches remain on the left needle. Wrap and turn.
Row 4: Knit side is now facing. Purl until stitches remain on the left needle. Wrap and turn.
Continue in the pattern established, wrapping and turning stitches earlier each row until you find yourself knitting fewer than stitches in a row.
Purl to the end of the row, but before purling the final stitch, pick up the next purl bump from the hem, and purl with the final stitch. (This smoothes the transition from the brim to the hat.)
Turn work. (You are now working reverse stockinette. This will curl to the underside of the hat and look like a corded edge after you felt the hat.) Purl to end of the row, once again picking up a purl bump and knitting it with the final stitch. Knit a row, pick up a purl bump and knit it with the stitch. Bind off in purl.

Assemble

If finish off all loose strands.
If you plan to felt this hat, try the hat on and laugh at yourself. (Teddy did that.) Then, toss it in the wash with a partial load of laundry. (You need to treat this the same way you treated the swatch). Remove from wash and smooth over bowl until partially or fully dry.
Pull the front down so the edge is even with the front of the bill. Steam into shape, wear. Optional: Tack the front to the bill inconspicuously, working from inside the hat.

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