Longer ago than I care to remember, a friend gave me a book covering the basics of how to design your own celtic knots. It was while I was weaving some crochet strands together that I wondered about the possibilities of using i-cord to make a celtic knot. If placed on a hat, the strands could float over the top, going wherever they most naturally want to lie. This would allow a much more complicated knot in a smaller space than could be achieved by cabling. A beret seemed the perfect shape to show off the interlacing to maximum effect.

The hat itself is a straightforward knit, but the pattern does use a range of techniques (knitting in the round, color stranding, i-cord and kitchener stitch) which may be new to many knitters. It’s a great pattern for dipping your toes in these techniques though (only three stitches to graft at a time, only four rounds of stranded knitting!). The weaving of the knot is quite fiddly - this may not be for everyone. There are two options (easy and hard) included in the pattern, and you can take a look at my blog to see some similar instructions to check that this pattern is a good fit for you before purchasing.

I’ve used an acrylic blend for the hat. Acrylic is a great choice for low maintenance, everyday no-nonsense wear. There is just a hint of alpaca mixed in with the acrylic which gives a softness to the yarn to encourage the slouchy shape of the hat. Choose a high contrast color for the i-cords. It would also be a good place to use up some oddments from the inevitable stash.

Techniques:
The strands for the knot are made with i-cords.

The stitches which form the anchor points for the knot are worked in a contrasting color to the rest of the hat. This means that there are a few rounds of stranded colorwork where you will need to catch the floats on the wrong side of the fabric. At the time of writing this pattern, Suzanne Bryan has a wonderful youtube video demonstrating this technique very clearly.

The strands of the knot are grafted together at the end to form a seamless join. These could be sewn together if preferred.

For more information about the hat, and some ideas for adapting the pattern, see https://bramblesandbindweed.com/dunelm-hat/.