Year of the Stitches Week 48 – Honeycomb

Honeycomb Stitch

Well heeeeellllllooooo December!! How exciting!! Can’t quite believe we are here and the world seems to be going Christmas crazy already!!! There’s Christmas decorations popping up everyday near us!!! The shops seem to have had some kind of Christmas explosion of joy!!! Everywhere we look, there are twinkly lights and bright shining baubles!! Just wonderful!! My son seems to be walking around with his eyes on stalks!! Quite sweet really! Think he’s going to really get all the festivities this year and enjoy them. My only worry is our decorations!! He has a very enquiring mind like his Daddy!! So our decorations will have to be checked, prodded, probably Bob the Builder fixed and dropped before he has happy that they can stay! I don’t think the breakables had better come out! Let me give you an example of my little man. So this year, we have invested in some lovely wooden advent calendars, so we won’t have to buy the paper ones each year. My thoughts behind them are that they are much better for the environment and a lot more special. Something to keep. So my daughter’s is a beautiful fairy magical little chest of drawers and my son’s is a train, of course. Now he did carry it all the way home in his pram from town, so I’m guessing this would make him think it was a toy!! Well it went on the tall cabinet in the hall, already for Advent.

In about 2 hours of it being in the house, he had managed to reach it, pull it off, resulting in it coming crashing to the floor, shattering into pieces! Heyho. It is his, I suppose. Luckily my husband is a dab hand with the wood glue!! Well you would have to be good at fixing things with a little Scrumble Bod like mine running around!!

So you may have noticed a little carrot sitting on my blanket!! Well if you read my blog yesterday, you will know he is the wonderful Kevin the Carrot from the Aldi Christmas advert. He’s become a bit of legend and very sort after in the world of Aldi shoppers, so thought he needed a spot in the crocheting world too. Hope you like him. Pattern to be found in the pattern list under Kevin the Carrot, if you fancy making him.

So this week, we may have sneaked in a few Melbourne in Lichfield cuppas and of course there is always time for a yummy cruffin for the little man!!

We did create some excellent window art with the wonderful owner – Debs. Bless her, I think I should take some window cleaner next time!!!

So onto Christmassy jobs and this weeks job was the Christmas pudding!! I’m a couple of weeks late really, but it was still November so I’m happy with that. Christmas puddings are like Christmas cakes – they get better with age!! They like maturing. The puddings need about 6 weeks, so we’re a little shy of time, but sure it’ll be fine! The house smelt incredible when she was cooking away!! Love my pressure cooker – 2 3/4 hours versus a steamed one that takes 8 hours!!!

Can’t wait to try her! Now the only decision now, is what to serve with her….

Right then, we had better get onto the blanket and this weeks stitch. So the honeycomb stitch is quite a dense stitch with lots of texture. Because the clusters are worked into the stitch rather than a chain space, the stitches are more prominent. Hope you like this one. It’s an easy stitch to create and works up quite quickly.

Supplies

This week I have used a magnificent purple from the incredible Sublime range. Thought I would start the Christmas count down with a rich and deep colour and think it works really well with the turquoisey blue from last week. So as always you will need about 30g of double knit yarn, 4mm crochet hook, some scissors and a blunt ended tapestry needle.

Stitches

Chain (ch) – To make a chain, place the yarn over the hook then pull it through the loop on your hook.

Double Crochet (dc) – Insert the hook through the stitch, front to back, then yarn over hook and pull back through stitch. You will have two loops on your hook. Then yarn over your hook and pull through both loops.

5trtog – This is the same as a large cluster stitch. *So yarn over your hook and insert into the stitch, yarn over your hook and pull loop through, yarn over your hook and pull through 2 loops.* Repeat this ** 5 times. You will now have 6 loops. Then yarn over your hook and pull through the first 5 loops. Then yarn over your hook and pull through the last 2 loops on your hook.

Ok so here we go

1 – Ok so start off by attaching your yarn into the wrong side of your blanket. Chain 1 and work 1dc in the same stitch. Now work 1dc in each stitch across the row. (200)

2 – Now turn your work and chain 1. Then work 1dc in the same stitch and then next stitch. Now it’s time to work 5trtog in the next stitch. So to do this *yarn over your hook and insert into the stitch, yarn over your hook and pull loop through, yarn over your hook and pull through 2 loops.* Repeat this ** 5 times. You will now have 6 loops.

Then yarn over your hook and pull through the first 5 loops.

Then yarn over your hook and pull through the last 2 loops on your hook.

Now work 1dc in the next 2 stitches.

Ok so *now work 5trtog in the next stitch and then 1dc in the next 2 stitches.* Repeat this ** across the row. Finish with 1dc in the last stitch. (200)

3 – Right then so now turn your work and chain 1. Then work 1dc in the same stitch and then 1dc in each stitch across the row. (200)

And there we have the Honeycomb stitch. Hope you like it!! Thinking it would be a great stitch for a hat!!! Ooooo the possibilities!!

Now chaps, please don’t forget to share your blankets with us. This is one of my dear friend’s blankets. Isn’t it beautiful!! Love the range of colours!!! Can’t wait to see the finished blanket now!!

Happy hooking everyone!!

🌈Xx

Continue Reading

My Weekend Hat

My Weekend Hat  

As promised, here is the second of my two ubberly simple hat patterns. This one uses the Back Loop Treble Crochet Stitch, where as the one before, was the Back Loop Double Crochet Stitch. You can find the double crochet pattern in the pattern list. They are both extremely easy and quick to whip up and also very easy to accessorise – as you will see in my third hat pattern. The third one was made for my daughter, so you can imagine what accessorising took place!!

As I said in the last pattern, these are so versatile and great for Christmas or Birthday pressies! And if you are running out of time for Christmas presents, then this is the pattern for you!! Definitely a lot quicker to make than the double crocheted one. This one is called the Weekend Hat, because you can easily make it in a weekend!

Now the hat in the pic above is the one I have made for my Mum. She adores cerise, so I think we are on a win win situation with this one. The pom pom is added at the end. You can buy them from most wool shops and also online too. Sometimes they have a popper attachment already sewn on, but mine hadn’t so I literally sewed either end on with thread. Just thinking as well you could also make a Pom Pom using the same wool as your hat!! Oooo the possibilities!!

Right then, let’s get down to business. So all the tutorial photos are taken from my daughter’s white hat. I have made her a child’s size which is 5 – 10 years so is smaller than my Mum’s one.

Level – Easy

Sizes

I have tried to give you a wide range of hat sizes, so hope it all makes sense and it’s all easy to follow.

3 month old – Oh so small!! So this measures about 11 inches, but will fit a 16 inch head.

6 month old – A cute little size. So this measures about 12 inches, but will fit a 17 inch head.

12 month old – So this size I would make for a 1 – 2 year old. This measures about 13 inches, but will fit an 18inch head.

Toddler – This size would be a 2 year old to a 4 year old. This measures about 14inches and will fit a 19 inch head.

Child – So I would make this for a 5 year old to about 10 years old. (This is the size I made for my daughter.) This measures 16 inches, which would fit a 21 inch head.

Small – This size will fit a teenager up to a young adult. This measures about 18 inches, which will fit a 22 inch head.

Medium – Small to medium adult. I would usually use this size for a ladies hat. (This is my Mum’s hat size.) This measures about 19inches and will fit a 23 inch head.

Large – This is for a large sized adult. I would usually use this size for a gentleman’s hat. This is the size I have made for my Father-in-law. This measures 20 inches which will fit a 24 inch head.

Supplies  –

Now the amount of wool depends on which size hat you are working on. I have used some wonderful merino wool from the wonderful @EasyKnitter range for my Mum’s hat. It’s beautifully hand dyed. Love the slight colour change.  

But for my daughter’s I have used the super soft Sublime Merino/Cashmere/Silk mix.

So you need Double Knit yarn, a 4mm crochet hook, a blunt ended tapestry needle and some scissors.

3 month, 6 month, 12 month and toddler will all need 1 ball of 50g wool.

Child, Small, Medium will need 2 balls of 50g yarn.

Large will need 3 balls of 50g yarn.

Stitches

Chain (ch) – To make a chain stitch, make a slip knot on your hook and then place the yarn over your hook and pull through the loop. Repeat this action to make a row of stitches.

Double Crochet (dc) – Insert your hook into the stitch, yarn over your hook and pull back through the stitch. You will now have 2 loops on your hook. Then yarn over your hook and pull through both loops on your hook.

Treble Crochet (tr) – Yarn over your hook and insert the hook through the stitch, front to back, then yarn over hook and pull back through stitch. You will have three loops on your hook. Then yarn over your hook and pull through the first 2 loops. Then yarn over your hook again and pull through the last 2 loops.

Back Loop Treble Crochet (bltr) – Yarn over your hook and insert the hook through the second part of the stitch, front to back, then yarn over hook and pull back through stitch. You will have three loops on your hook. Then yarn over your hook and pull through the first 2 loops. Then yarn over your hook and pull through the last 2 loops on your hook.

Ok so here we go…

So we are going to start by making a foundation chain. Now the amount is different according to the size you are making. The length of the chain stitches determines the height of the hat.

3 month old – Work 25 chain stitches.

6 month old – Work 30 chain stitches.

12 month old – Work 35 chain stitches.

Toddler – Work 40 chain stitches.

Child – Work 50 chain stitches.

Small – Work 50 chain stitches.

Medium – Work 55 chain stitches.

Large – Work 60 chain stitches.

Once you have worked your chain stitches for the size you are making, turn your work and chain three more stitches.

Ok so now it’s time to work 1tr in the fourth chain from the hook and then 1tr in each chain across the row.

Now turn your work and chain 3. Now work 1 Back Loop Treble Crochet (bltr) in the first stitch. To do this insert your hook in the back loop of the treble crochet stitch. This is where the arrow is pointing.

See how the hook is in the back loop of the treble crochet stitch. So insert your hook here, yarn over your hook and pull through. You will now have 3 loops on your hook.

Now finish off the stitch by placing your yarn over your hook and then pull through the first 2 loops. Then yarn over your hook and pull through the last 2 loops.

Now work 1bltr in each stitch across the row.

*At the end of the row, turn your work, chain 3 and work 1bltr in the same stitch and then each stitch across the row.* Repeat this ** across each row in the hat.

Carry on working your back loop double crochet stitches in each row. Don’t forget to chain 3 at the start of each row to give you the height for a treble crochet.

Now for each size you need to work a slightly different amount of rows.

So this is the child’s sized hat, so I have worked 45 rows. The final product in length measures 16inches, but will stretch out to 21inches.

For a small hat you will need 51 rows. This needs to measure about 18 inches across and will stretch out to 22inches.

For a medium hat you will need 53 rows. So it needs to measure about 19 inches across and stretches out to 23inches.

For a large hat you will need 56 rows. This little hat needs to measure about 20 inches across and will stretch out to 24inches.

For a toddler’s hat you will need 39 rows. And for this hat, it needs to measure about 14inches across and will stretch out to 19inches.

For a 12 months olds hat you will need about 37 rows. So when it’s measured, it needs to measure about 13 inches. This will stretch out to 18 inches.

For a 6 month olds hat you will need about 35 rows. So it will measure about 12 inches. This will stretch out to 17 inches.

For a 3 month olds hat you will need about 33 rows. So it will measure about 11 inches. This will stretch out to 16 inches.

You can see in the photo below how I am measuring the child’s hat at 16 inches finished, but it will easily stretch out to 21 inches. The beauty of this stitch is that it has so much movement and stretch, so it’s perfect for hats.

Right then, so now it’s time to fasten up the hat. So to do this, place one half of the hat on top of the other.

Now chain 1 and then insert your hook into your first stitch, then also into the first chain in the foundation stitch. You can see this is where the arrow is pointing.

Now yarn over your hook and pull through the chain and then also back through the dc stitch. You should now have 2 loops on your hook.

Now finish the dc stitch by placing the yarn over your hook and pulling through both loops. Now continue working 1dc into each stitch in this same way – so working through both the dc stitches and the foundation chain stitches.

At the end of the row, once you have worked the last dc stitch, work a slip stitch in the same stitch. You can see how hidden this seem is. This is the inside of the hat and the seam is in the middle.

Now you should have a nice little ridge for the seam. This little ridge can be either on the inside or the outside of your hat. It’s up to you. Here’s an example of Mum’s hat with the little ridge either on the inside.

Or the outside. It’s up to you.

So now we need to sew up the top. So fasten off at the top of the little ridge, leaving a nice long tail. Now thread your needle with this tail and start threading it along the top stitches of each row.

Keep weaving the needle through these stitches so that the hat starts to form. You can see this happening in the photo below.

Now pull the needle through so that it forms the top of the hat.

Keep making stitches to secure it, making sure there isn’t a hole. Then fasten off and sew in your ends.

And here’s the finished article. All you need to do now is turn it inside out. I hope you have enjoyed this hat pattern. Please give me a shout if you get stuck. Can’t wait to see your finished articles. Don’t forget to link it to @pipsrainbow if you share it on social media.

Happy hooking everyone.

🌈Xx

Continue Reading