Hat Help!

[TrixyDarling]

Hello there! I'm pretty new to this site, and a pretty beginner knitter. I'm working on my first hat, and even though I'm not really following a pattern too strictly, the hat is turning out quite lovely.

My only problem is that I'm not too sure when to start decreasing. I know how to do it, I'm just sure when I should start. I want the hat to cover my ears and right now the body of the hat is about five inches long.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[suzeeq]

Try it on as you go. Most hats have you decrease around 8" give or take. Depends how long you want it.

[MerigoldinWA]

It depends on the style of hat and if you have a turned up edge or not. I usually don't make a turn up and start decreasing around 4 1/2 - 5 inches. But it depends on how many stitches you are working on and the effect you want. As Sue said you can kind of play it by ear. Usually hats are decreased in an orderly fashion so that the decreases line up, but they don't have to be. You can also vary the number of rows between decreases. A common thing is to dec every other row, but you can hurry it along by decreasing every round or slow it down by decreasing ___ number of rows between. When I make a hat without a pattern I do it by what the hat seems to need. If you are going for a particular shape sometimes a little math involving the number of stitches you need to get rid of and your row gauge can help some with how often to decrease.