Reindeer Tracks Hat
A Fun and Colorful Hat for Kids
The other day, while I was cleaning up and getting things organized just in case we do get to move this month or next, a friend reached out via email. She works with Animal Friends and fosters pit bulls to help them adjust and find a forever home. Animal Friends is participating in Holidays with Heart and looking for handmade items to showcase from their volunteers at their table. This friend of mine asked if I was interested in creating and/or donating some items. At first, I had to admit, I was in Christmas Present making mode and planning a wedding, while trying to buy a house – I didn’t think that I had the time.
I could feel it in the bottom of my heart and growing until it overtook any doubt that I had about time in my schedule and I ran to my office to find the perfect yarn. About a year ago Berroco Yarns had donated about 8 skeins of yarn to my charitable project Fibers for Fido. After finding out that sweaters go way beyond just keeping a shelter pet warm, I had started a project to collect and donate both handmade and store bought items for local shelters. Man was that rewarding. It took a lot of time, effort and energy and eventually I slowed down. It takes a good bit of time to knit a dog sweater – especially when you’re coming up with the patterns yourself. There were still about 5 skeins of yarn left from their donation – and they were gorgeous colors. It was perfect and I knew that I had to make something.
But what could I make that wouldn’t take up a ton of time, and that I had enough yarn to make at least a couple of? Kids hats. It’s a perfect fit, in more ways than just one. So I started playing around with some color changes and came up with a simple yet beautiful hat – the Reindeer Tracks Hat for toddlers and kids.
The nice thing about this pattern, aside from it being easy to knit, it uses a twisted rib border to make the orange cuff of the hat stand out while holding it in place, and the pattern is carried up to the crown of the hat. Often you’ll find the pattern stops once the decreases start because it can be hard to carry the pattern while knitting stitches together. The simple math on this hat makes it easy to continue to add pops of orange while shaping the top of the hat. It’s named after reindeer because the hat is being donated to a Christmas charity event, and I’ve always thought that single knit stitches remind me of deer tracks.
Yarn: Two colors of worsted weight yarn. For this pattern, I’ve use two of Berroco’s Comfort worsted weight yarn as they donated it to me to make items for charity. This yarn is great for kids because it’s machine washable and dry-able. I recommend using gentle settings for the best results.
Gauge: 26 Stitches by 36 rows = a 4in by 4 in swatch
Needles: US Size 2, in an 8 inch circular needle, and depending on how you like to shape the crown of your hats, US Size 2 double pointed needles. A darning needle to work in the yarn tails.
Abbreviations or Skills:
K: Knit
K through the back: Inserting the right hand needle through the back loop of the next stitch on the left hand needle.
P: Purl
K2Tog: Knit two stitches together as if you were knitting one.
Begin Pattern:
Note: I like to use a long tail cast on for hats as it creates a neat edge, but you can use any method of your choice.
Toddlers Hat: In Color A, Cast on 80 STS and prepare to work in a 1X1 Twisted rib pattern.
Rounds 1-12: *Knit through the back, Purl* Repeat until end of round.
Round 15: Switch to Color B: Knit entire round
Round 16: *K1 color B, K3 color A* Repeat until end of round
Round 17: Color B, Knit all Stitches
Round 18: Color B, Knit all Stitches
Round 19: Color B, Knit all Stitches
Repeat rounds 16-19 until hat measures 6 inches from the cast on edge, ending on a row 19.
Decrease or Shaping the Crown of the Hat:
Round1: *K1 Color A, (K1, K3Tog, K1) in color B* Repeat until end of round.
Rounds 2-4: Knit all stitches in color B
Break Color A Yarn and continue working in Color B
Round 5: Knit all Stitches
Round 6: *K1, K2Tog* Repeat Until end of round (Note: you’ll probably have two extra stitches, I just knit these together as well)
Round 7: Knit all Stitches
Round 8: K2Tog
Break yarn and using darning needle, work the tail through all of the remaining live stitches. Knot and weave in yarn tails.
Kids Hat:
In Color A, Cast on 110 STS and prepare to work in a 1X1 Twisted rib pattern.
Rounds 1-14: *Knit through the back, Purl* Repeat until end of round.
Round 15: Switch to Color B: Knit entire round
Round 16: *K1 color B, K4 color A* Repeat until end of round
Round 17: Color B, Knit all Stitches
Round 18: Color B, Knit all Stitches
Round 19: Color B, Knit all Stitches
Repeat rounds 16-19 until hat measures 7 inches from the cast on edge, ending on a row 19.
Decrease or Shaping the Crown of the Hat:
Round1: *K1 Color A, (K1, K2Tog, K1) in color B* Repeat until end of round.
Rounds 2-4: Knit all stitches in color B
Round 5: *Color A K1, Color B K3Tog* Repeat until end of round.
Note: This is where I typically switch to DPNs but you are welcome to do so whenever you please.
Break Color A Yarn and continue working in Color B
Round 6: Knit all Stitches
Round 7: *K1, K2Tog* Repeat Until end of round (Note: you’ll probably have two extra stitches, I just knit these together as well)
Round 8: Knit all Stitches
Round 9: K2Tog
Round 10: Knit all Stitches
Round 11: K2Tog
Break yarn and using darning needle, work the tail through all of the remaining live stitches. Knot and weave in yarn tails.
