The Santa hat pattern is knit with Homespun and Wool-Ease Thick & Quick (both by Lion Brand Yarn) and the Elf hat pattern is knit with Bernat Softee Chunky and Wool-Ease Thick & Quick, because that’s what I had in my yarn stash. I’m sure that any holiday colored yarn would look great, though it does look nicer (in my opinion) when the yarn used for the rim is thicker than the yarn used for the hat’s upper portion. Wool-Ease Thick & Quick also makes excellent puff balls :).

This pattern begins by knitting flat for 10 rows and then joins in the round. There is a “tab” that is folded inside the hat to form a slot which the crown strap of a halter will fit through. This holds the hat in place, so that there isn’t any weight resting on the horse’s ear. I set this pattern up so that the tab is knitted first on 2 double pointed needles and the rest of the hat carries on from there using 5, US size 8 double pointed needles (a set of 4 DPNs would probably work too). You could easily knit the tab as a separate piece and sew the two long sides to the inside of the hat’s white/cream rim when it’s finished (I just like to limit the amount of sewing I have to do afterwards). When the ear hole is being shaped, the piece is knit “flat”, back and forth, until the hole is big enough and then you join in the round again.

I hope you enjoy this pattern! Happy Knitting :).

Correction
Row 11, under “Making the Triangles for the Elf Hat,” should read: S1, K2tog, K1

Pattern copyright 2011, Kelsey Wetterer. All right reserved. For questions about this pattern, you can contact me at kelseywetterer@gmail.com or as ScruffyHerbert on Ravelry. Thanks!

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