Babies grow so quickly that I’m always worried that they’ll outgrow any knitted gifts before they even get to wear them. So I designed this hat in brioche stitch, one of the stretchiest stitches there is, for something that will hopefully fit for that little bit longer.

Using small quantities of fingering-weight yarn, it makes for a super-quick way to turn your sock-yarn leftovers into a cute gift.

And being totally reversible, it doesn’t matter which way a tired parent puts it on.

Everyone wins!

Sizing
10, (11.5, 13, 14.5)“/ 25.5, (29, 33, 37) cm unstretched circumference to fit preemie, (0-3 months, 3-9 months, 6-18 months)/ head size 11-13, (13-15, 15-17, 16-18)”/ 28-33, (33-38, 38-40.5, 43-47.5) cm

Yardage Requirements
Main Colour: 43, (50, 57, 63) yards/ 39, (46, 52, 58) m of soft fingering weight wool yarn.

Contrast Colour: 43, (50, 57, 63) yards/ 39, (46, 52, 58) m of soft fingering weight wool yarn.

Tools
One US 3 (3.25 mm) double pointed needle.

US 2 (3 mm) 9” (23 cm) circular needle, or dpns, or circular needle in your preferred length for magic loop; or size needed to obtain gauge.

If using a 9” (23cm) circular, a set of US 3 (3.25mm) dpns or a longer circular for magic loop to complete the crown.

4 stitch markers

Cable needle (to rearrange stitches during the decreases)

Darning needle to weave in ends

Pattern Format
This pattern contains only written instructions.

Difficulty Level
Intermediate/advanced.

No bones about it, starting two-color brioche in the round is not the easiest thing. Use an elastic cast on that gives you a stable edge, so that it’s easier to see if the stitches twist on the needles (long-tail or cable, perhaps). DPNs can be helpful to hold the stitches in place, if you find you get confused once the stitches are on a circular needle cable.

Tutorials on knitting two-color brioche in the round may be found here:

http://www.purlbee.com/2011/10/16/brioche-stitch-2-color-brioche-in-the-round/ (photos)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgRgfCgQTPA (video)

Hey, What’s A Pika?
Glad you asked! It’s an adorable little mammal with big round ears and no tail, that lives in high mountain regions in North America, Asia and parts of Eastern Europe. Some species are endangered.