This pattern is a stockinette ripple pattern, created by an 18 stitch repeat, and stripes of different color yarns. You can pick how many colors as you like! During the development of this pattern I learned a lot about how different yarns behave in this stitch pattern. It does give the fabric a little less stretch than a straight stockinette fabric. Sport weight yarns or DK weight yarns with low twist make a looser fabric with more stretch. DK weight yarns with a higher twist (like the High Twist self-striping yarn from Woolens and Nosh, used for one of my samples) was a stiffer fabric with less stretch.

This pattern includes instructions for blocking with a table to help you determine how many pattern repeats to use with your yarn and needles to get the hat size you want.