Okay, first off, if you can crochet, your fingers are clever enough to knit. However, if you crochet, you probably like going really fast and hate how learning to knit is really obnoxious and slow at first. I feel your pain. While I recommend just learning to knit (this hat is a great first project), here's a mock-up pattern for making a Jayne hat by crochet:
Materials: orange yarn, yellow yarn, and red yarn,
about 150 grams total (about one skein each for most yarns). Thick, virgin wool is the best. 4” of cardboard or sheet of plastic or a 2” pom-pom mold. 8 ringed things to mark your place (optional; you Can also just keep track in your head).
Gauge: 3 stitches per inch.
Recommended Needle size: This depends on your yarn and your own style of crocheting. I used a size 10, but yours may be different. If you can’t get the gauge above no matter what you try (the stitches are very big), try knitting two strands of yarn together as if they were one—this will increase the bulk. You can also do an entirely different gauge if it looks okay, but you will need to change the number of stitches listed in the instructions below—please email me if you need help.
The basic hat.
1. Chain 56 stitches (if your gauge is different, make sure the number of stitches you end up using is divisible by 7). Please note the hat will look unbelievably big at this stage, but be assured that it will tighten up as you go on.
2. Join the chain to make a circle, being careful not to end up with a Moebius strip.
3. Crochet in rounds until the hat is about 3 or 3.5 inches from the brim.
4. Cut off the orange yarn, leaving a tail of about 5 inches.
5. Pick up your yellow yarn, leaving a tail of about 5 inches.
6. Tie the two ends together loosely on the inside of the hat and weave in the ends. (You can also leave this step to do once you’ve finished the hat. Until you do it you’ll have a hole here, but don’t let it worry you.)
7. Crochet another 3 or 3.5 inches with the yellow in rounds.
8. Decreasing: crochet one round, counting as you go. Place a marker every eighth stitch (If you have a different number of stitches than given here, just divide by seven and place the markers at those points). Crochet another round. This time, crochet two stitches together before each marker. Continue to crochet two together before each marker until you have seven stitches left. Remove the markers.
9. Bind off: pull one stitch over the other, taking it off the needle. Do this to every stitch until one remains. Cut your yarn, leaving a tail of about seven inches or so, and pull it through this stitch.
Earflaps
1. Lay the hat flat. Measure it, and divide that measurement by two. (You can also just eyeball it.) This will give you the width of each earflap. For mine, it was five inches—fifteen stitches per earflap. (Best to mark them both out now so that they line up right.)
2. With the red yarn, do a single crochet onto your marked stitches on one side.
3. Continue in single crochet going downward for four inches—or to the bottom of the wearer’s nose.
4. Decrease: crochet two stitches together on each side of the earflap, each row. Leave some strings dangling, about two or three inches each.
Pom-Pom
If you know how to do a pom-pom, just skip this—I have nothing new to report. You can also buy a pom-pom maker in most craft stores.
1. Use a glass or compass or whatever to make two cardboard (or plastic) circles of 2 inches in diameter. Then make a one inch hole in the center of each.
2. Measure out about three yards of each color. Thread all three through a tapestry needle. (This is optional—it is possible to use only your fingers in the steps below, but it is easier with a tapestry needle.)
Put the two pieces of the pom-pom together, then wind the three colors around them (through the hole and around the outside of the cardboard pieces) until the hole is full. Cut the yarn between the two cardboard pieces. Wrap a piece of yarn between the pieces, making a firm knot—leave a long tail. Pull out the cardboard pieces, fluff the pom-pom, and attach it securely to the hat. (You may want to wobble the hat a bit to make sure the pom-pom is on tight.)
Finishing Up
Using a tapestry needle or a crochet needle (or your fingers if you’re really good), weave in all the ends and try on the hat. Cunnin’, ain’t it?
