New Knitter - How to adjust a pattern?

[Susannah]

I am a very new knitter, and I have loved making baby hats for my local hospital's NICU.

I have an easy pattern that I found here, on the charity knitting thread.

CO 30 stitches

Row 1 knit
Row 2 purl
Row 3 knit

Repeat rows 1 to 3 until work meaures 10 inches

Draw up one side for crown, sew up side seam

I love this pattern; it makes an adorable newborn hat, and my nicu nurse friend said the size is perfect. I have made almost 8 hats now. I find this very relaxing, and I'm really enjoying learning to knit. I am in love with Wendy Peter Pan yarn!

So.... now my two five-year-olds are wondering when Mama will make a hat for them.

I would love to make a hat for them, but with 3 small children and very little sleep, I really don't have it in me to follow a new pattern. I don't even know what most knitting symbols mean, and I'm not prepared right now to learn.

Does anyone know how I can adjust this knit, purl, knit pattern to fit a 5-year-old? I'd be so grateful -

[globaltraveler]

When you cast on those 50 stitches, what's the measurement of that strip when you take it off the needles? And are you planning on using the same yarn for these hats, or something else?

Two other measurements would be helpful: what's the circumference measurement of your kids' heads, and what's the measurement from the crown of their head to where you want the hat to go to in length?

[suzeeq]

You could double the sts, or use a heavier weight yarn and larger needles. But you need to know how many sts/inch you get and the measurement of the boys' heads. Then cast on 1" less than the measurement.

[Susannah]

Thanks, Zina & Sue -

When I cast on 30 stitches, this measure about 7 1/2 inches. This hat is knit sideways, so the 7.5 inches is the height of the hat, if that makes sense.

This hat is intended to fold up a brim (which is helpful to fit different size babies)

The yarn is worsted weight, size 8 needles - I would plan to use the same yarn

The circumference of my son's head is 21 inches. From the crown of his head to where I would want the hat is around 8 inches (this includes having some hat to fold up for a brim)

Sue - I will count how many stitches I get per inch - thanks. I may try just doubling it, and seeing how it turns out.

[suzeeq]

If it's knit side to side and you need a turned up brim, you probably want to get about 9-10". Then you knit until it's about 19-20" long.

[globaltraveler]

If 30 cast-on stitches gives you 7.5", then you're getting roughly one stitch to every 1/4" -- so you should cast on roughly 4 stitches to every inch. (If you want to get this measurement exact -- which you don't really need to with knitting a hat like this -- measure your gauge very carefully and adjust the cast-on stitch number to the measurement you want.) So if you want 9" height in your hat, cast-on approximately 36-37 stitches. Does that make sense?

Then knit in stockinette stitch (knit a row, purl a row, repeat) until, as Sue says, the piece measures 19-20" long in order to go around the circumference of your son's head minus about 1-2" for negative ease so the hat doesn't fly off him at every opportunity. Finish as before.

See? You just custom fit your pattern!

[Susannah]

Thanks, ladies! I can't wait to try it -

[Jan in CA]

Oh! I found this again just now. I had lost the link when I got a new computer.

http://www.earthguild.com/products/knitcroc/marypat/hatcalc.htm