Pikachu Hat

This fall I got a job as a teacher's aide in the Special Education department at the local high school. After getting to know the kids for a couple of weeks, I realized that I really wanted to make each of my students a hat that reflected who they are. I plan on showcasing each hat over the next few weeks. Some hats I made based on a pattern, others I just winged it. Due to medical issues I wasn't able to start the hats until the first weekend in December. For one of my students, I made a Pikachu hat. She has loved pikachu since she was 3 years old. The moment that I found out that she loved pikachu I knew that this was the hat for her.  I used my basic half double crochet pattern for the hat part, then embellished with the eyes, cheeks, nose, mouth and ears. If anyone is interested in the pattern instructions, please leave a comment and I will share. 

Sock Monkey Maddness

Sock monkeys have taken over!! Just kidding... almost. I have had several customers love my sock monkey hats and have requested them in various styles. I first started making the hats using this redheart pattern as a guide, but the more I've made, the better they have become. I have made the hats in brown/red, gray/pink, gray/blue, and gray/black. I haven't decided which one I like most though.

I started the hat with the basic hat pattern found here.

I used 3 colors, light (white), accent (pink), and dark (gray). Also needed 2 white buttons for eyes, tapestry needle and "H" hook.

On the toddler hats, I started with the light color for 6 rnds, then finished off and rejoined the accent color for 2 rounds. Finished off pink and rejoined gray to finish the hat. When I do hats with ear flaps i actually shorten the hat by 2 rnds off the basic pattern because I like to finish the hats off with 2 finishing rounds of sc. I think it gives the hat a much neater look.

Rnds 1-6, white, Rnds 7-8 Pink, Rnds 9-17 Gray.

I attach the ear flaps with Gray, but I have seen variations where the earflaps are the accent color or even the lighter color. Once both earflaps have been finished, I do 1 rnd of gray sc and 1 rnd of pink sc.

Mouth:

Now for the fun part. For the mouth, use the accent color (pink) and ch 9. 

Rnd 1: sc in 2nd ch from hook and the next 6. 3 sc in the end ch and turn work to continue sc on other side of ch and sc in next 6 chs, 2 sc in last ch, join light color and finish off accent color.

Rnd 2: ch 1. 2sc in joining st. sc in next 6 sc, 2 sc in each of next 3 sc, sc in next 6 sc, 2 sc in each of last 2 sts, join, ch 1.

Rnd 3: sc in joining st 2 sc in next stitch, sc in next 6 stitches, *sc, 2 sc* 3 times, sc in next 6 sc, repeat from * to * 2 more times, join and finish off leaving a long tail for sewing mouth to hat. 

Ears: (make 2)

With accent color, start with a magic circle loop and ch 2

Rnd 1: 15 dc in loop, join ch 2

Rnd 2: 2 dc in each dc around, join, finish off.

Rnd 3: join with dark color in any dc, ch 1. Hdc in each dc around (30 hdc), join and finish off leaving a long tail for sewing ear to hat.

All individual parts for hat are finished. Time to decorate!

Finishing:

Center mouth to hat on front of hat just above 1st sc finishing rnd. Sew mouth with left over tail. (helps to use a little craft glue to hold piece in place.)

Sew ears to hat vertically between hat rnds 13 and 16 above where the earflaps belong. I like to sew through the edge then back to the accent color to give a little more stability.

For the braids, cut 5 strands of each color (total of 15 strands) about 18 inches long and attach through loops of last rnd of sc on each side of earflaps and braid. I like to separate the colors.

Sew button eyes to face just above the mouth below the accent color rnds. 

That's pretty much it. If you like you can also create a "poof" ball to go on top. Good luck and enjoy!

Basic Hat Crochet Pattern

I have been making some changes on my blog and while in the process I accidentally deleted all of my hat posts. This was definitely one of those "bang head on wall" moments. So, I guess you all get the privilege of me blogging about them again, plus I am hoping to actually get all of my hats on here this time. Since I am starting at the beginning I thought I would share with you the basic hat pattern that i use on most of my hats. I have noticed that some hat makers will only create a pattern for 1 particular size with no way to clear way to make the hat bigger or smaller. This just doesn't cut it for me. I have also noticed on some patterns the hats tend to be a bit small. I like my hats to run a little big, so they actually fit and in the case of kids, the hats can be worn more than just a few  months. I have also noticed that some hat patterns the hats tended to "poof" (for a better word) at the crown. I didn't like that. I like my hats to be able to lie almost flat when not on a head. So with a few modifications, and my OCD kicking in, I created a basic pattern that I use for almost all of my hats. The change from one size to the next is relatively easy. I have the hat figured out for infant sizes, but I haven't written them down yet. That is on my to-do list.

Hat Size

Toddler Size-

With h hook,

Rnd 1: make magic circle and make 10 sc in circle and pull tight. Join

Rnd 2: 2 hdc in each sc around, join

Rnd 3: hdc, 2 hdc around, join

Rnd 4: hdc in next 2, 2 hdc* Around, join

Rnd 5: hdc in next 7, 2hdc in next* around, join

Rnd 6: hdc in next 8, 2 hdc in next* around, join

Rnd 7: hdc in next 9, 2 hdc* around, join

Rnd 8-16: hdc in each around, join. On rnd 16 finish off.

Child Size

With h hook,

Rnd 1: make magic circle and make 10 sc in circle and pull tight. Join

Rnd 2: 2 hdc in each sc around, join

Rnd 3: hdc, 2 hdc around, join

Rnd 4: hdc in next 2, 2 hdc* Around, join

Rnd 5: hdc in next 3, 2 hdc* around, join

Rnd 6: hdc in next 9, 2 hdc* around, join

Rnd 7: hdc in next 10, 2hdc* around, join

Rnd 8: hdc in next 11, 2 hdc* around, join

Rnd 9-18: hdc in each around, join. On rnd 18 finish off.

Adult Hat -

With h hook,

Rnd 1: make magic circle and make 10 sc in circle and pull tight. Join

Rnd 2: 2 hdc in each sc around, join

Rnd 3: hdc, 2 hdc around, join

Rnd 4: hdc in next 2, 2 hdc* Around, join

Rnd 5: hdc in next 3, 2 hdc* around, join

Rnd 6: hdc in next 4, 2 hdc* around, join

Rnd 7: hdc in next 11, 2 hdc* around, join

Rnd 8: hdc in next 12, 2 hdc* around, join

Rnd 9-22: hdc in each around, join. On rnd 22 finish 

Ear Flaps

For toddler hats:

Row 1: skip 7 stitches from the joined stitch and rejoin in next stitch. 11 sc, ch 1 turn.

Row 2: sc2tog, 7 sc, sc2tog, ch 1 turn

Row 3: sc in each across

Row 4: sc2tog, 5 sc, sc2tog, ch 1 turn

Row 5: sc in each across

Row 6: sc2tog, 3 sc, sc2tog, ch 1 turn

Row 7: sc in each across

Row 8: sc2tog, sc, sc2tog, finish off.

For child hats:

Row 1: skip 9 stitches from the joined stitch and rejoin in next stitch. 11 sc, ch 1 turn.

Row 2: sc2tog, 7 sc, sc2tog, ch 1 turn

Row 3: sc in each across

Row 4: sc2tog, 5 sc, sc2tog, ch 1 turn

Row 5: sc in each across

Row 6: sc2tog, 3 sc, sc2tog, ch 1 turn

Row 7: sc in each across

Row 8: sc2tog, sc, sc2tog, finish off.

For Adult hats:

Row 1: skip 9 stitches from the joined stitch and rejoin in next stitch. 13 sc, ch 1 turn.

Row 2: sc2tog, 9 sc, sc2tog, ch 1 turn

Row 3: sc in each across

Row 4: sc2tog, 7 sc, sc2tog, ch 1 turn

Row 5: sc in each across

Row 6: sc2tog, 5 sc, sc2tog, ch 1 turn

Row 7: sc in each across

Row 8: sc2tog, 3 sc, sc2tog, ch 1 turn

Row 9: sc in each across

Row 10: sc2tog, sc, sc2tog, finish off.

With this pattern, all sorts of hats can be made. I hope this is helpful for anyone wanting to make a basic hat.

Here are a few examples of hats that I have made with this pattern, just changed the look with either various colors or decorations.