Beret Pattern
This pattern is sized for a medium adult head, or about 20 inches. The ribbed brim is stretchy, though, so it will fit 20 - 22 inch noggins with no problem.
gauge: 7 stitches per inch
Cast on 128 stitches, using circular needles.
BRIM
Join into a round; work K1, P1 Rib stitch for one row.
K1, P1 Rib Stitch: *k1, p1, k1, p1, repeat from * to end of row.
When you reach the end of the row, place stitch marker. Look at the row you've just knit to make sure the stitches are not twisted around the circular needle.
Continue K1, P1 Rib stitch for 7 more rows, or until the brim measures 1 inch.
BODY
Increase Row: *K2, m1, repeat from * to end of row. 192 stitches.
What is m1, or Make One?
Knit until body measures 3 inches from the brim, about 27 rows, or 4 inches from beginning of hat. For a floppier beret knit until body measures 4 1/2 or 5 inches.
CROWN
As you begin to decrease stitches, the beret will no longer fit on the circular needles. Transfer stitches onto four double-pointed needles at this point.
Row 1: K2 tog, k halfway around (about 95 stitches, but you needn't count), k2 tog, k to end. 190 stitches.
Decrease Row 1: *K3, k2tog, repeat from * to end of row. 38 stitches decreased.
Knit 7 rows, or 1 inch.
Decrease Row 2: *K2, k2tog, repeat from * to end of row. 38 stitches decreased.
Knit 7 rows, or 1 inch.
Decrease Row 3: *K1, k2tog, repeat from * to end of row. 38 stitches decreased.
Knit 5 rows.
Decrease Row 4: *K2tog, repeat from * to end of row. 38 stitches remaining.
Knit 5 rows.
Decrease Row 5: *K2tog, repeat from * to end of row. 19 stitches remaining.
Repeat Row 5. 9 stitches remaining.
I-CORD STEM
Stem Row 1: *K2tog, k1, repeat from * to end of row. 6 stitches remaining.
Transfer stitches to one double-pointed needle. Knit I-cord for three rows or desired length.
What is an I-cord?
Bind off; cut a tail long enough to weave in easily, about 8 inches.
Try it on!
December 15, 2006
Reader Comments (41)
http://knitty.com/blog/2007/03/its-not-boob.html
For the floppier version the 4 1/2 or 5 inches are from the brim.
thank you. as always, a great pattern from purl!
If its too big now, it will almost definitely be too big once its finished. I would recommend restarting it, but before you take it out, check your gauge again and then measure your head. You can cast on the correct amount of stitches for your own size by multiplying the circumference of your head (minus 1 or even 1.5 inches to make sure it will stay on) by the amount of stitches per inch. I just looked the pattern over very quickly and haven't tried this but I think that if you make your cast on a multiple of 9 stitches I think the rest of the pattern should work out though your stitch count will be different.
When you check your gauge don't forget that even a fraction of a stitch off will make a huge difference in the completed size of your knitting.
Hope this helps. -- Joelle
Now I was wondering if it'd be all right with you if I wrote a pattern of what I made and published it in my blog http://harrasharrastus.blogspot.com (in Finnish, sorry!) or in http://www.ullaneule.net, if they accept it. I'd give you all the due glory, of course :). And would not charge anything, just as Ulla won't. It's just that there aren't many beret patterns in Finnish and I think it might be helpful for someone to have a ready pattern.
But really, thanks, it'd been a mess without you and your pattern :).
When you get to the body and it says to knit 27 more rows, are you repeating the *K2, m1* for all the 27 rows or just straight knitting?
Thanks!
The 27 rows are just knit, no increasing. Thanks for your question!
Can your clarify what it is you need help with? Are you looking to resize the patter or are you looking for a different pattern?
When you're ready to switch the needles, just knit the stitches onto the new needle from the old needle as you go around.
Sorry but itsays use 4 new needles? Is there a number of stitches that I put on each needle? Am I trying to make the 4 straight needles like a square with the stitches on them? I hope I'm being clear enough in my asking; I'd normally go to the knitting store by my house but I just got knee surgery and am stuck at home. thanks!
You will be switching onto 3 needles and using the 4th to knit with, so it will form a triangle rather than a square. You do this because as you continue to decrease the diameter of the knitting will be too small to go around your circular needle. Divide the stitches you have remaining as equally as you can between the three needles. Good luck and let us know if you have any other questions.
I'm going to do a second beret and would appreciate your thoughts.
it really depends how you make 1. For this pattern you should be doing a real "m1" increase in which you lift the bar between the stitches to create a totally new stitch. If you are doing a "kfb" increase you would need to k1, kfb, k1, kfb to get to 192. Please let us know if this doesn't answer your question or solve your problem and we'll be happy to help you out!
Kfb is exactly what I've been doing to M1, thank you.
Pat
I'm confused about this part
Row 1: K2 tog, k halfway around (about 95 stitches, but you needn't count), k2 tog, k to end. 190 stitches.
I'm confused about the halfway around part. Doesn't this just mean you Knit two together, knit one, for the whole row?
Thanks,
Omie
for this row you are just taking out 2 stitches so that you will end up with the correct amount of stitches for the decrease rows. So, you take one out at the start of the round and one in the middle of the round.
Hope this helps!
That confused me too, but the light bulb just came on. I think this is how it goes:
k2tog, k to about middle of row, k2tog, knit to end.
I've just begun this beret and have got to the body part. On the second row of the body do I have to p2, m1 instead of k2, m1 like the first row to get the purled stitches on the outside of the beret as in the picture, or do i just carry on as row 1 for all the other rows of the body? If I do this will there still be the purled stitches on the outside?
Best regards!
Sarah Louise x
The main body of the beret is all knit, there are no purled stitches. It sounds like you might be mistaking the knit stitches for purled stitches? My other thought is that you are knitting in the round "inside out" which we see sometimes when people first learn how to knit in the round. When you're working in the round be sure that your knitting is hanging down from the needles and that you are working on the outside of the circle of knitting rather than on the inside. This is a little bit hard to explain in writing, but if it seems like this might be what is happening to you, you might want to check out the "large diameter circular knitting" video tutorial at knittinghelp.com. The link is here:
http://www.knittinghelp.com/videos/advanced-techniques
hope this helps!
I got to the K2 M1, increase row and the sticthes got too tight on the needles to carry on knitting. i had to unravel everything, which was also hard as the stitches wouldnt move along the needles.
Im using the right gauge needles and wool, what have i done wrong?
Is there any other way of increasing instead of using M1?
Thanks!
The needle size is sort of hidden up in the materials section. US size 3, or size needed to get the gauge (7 sts per inch)
I got to the K2 M1, increase row and the sticthes got too tight on the needles to carry on knitting. i had to unravel everything, which was also hard as the stitches wouldnt move along the needles.
Im using the right gauge needles and wool, what have i done wrong?
Is there any other way of increasing instead of using M1?
Thanks!
It sounds like you are knitting really tight. The stitches should move freely along the needles. If you're looking for the knitting itself to be tight you can go down to a smaller needle, but the stitches should still be loose enough on the needle to move freely. When you knit, try not to pull each stitch tight, its not necessary, and you might find that knitting is more enjoyable when you don't have to fight with your stitches :)
In the meantime, you can increase with a kfb increase, but to do this, your increase row should go as follows:
*k1, kfb; repeat from * to end of round.
Here is a link to the kfb increase:
http://www.purlbee.com/increase-tutorial/2007/2/27/increase-method-1-kfb.html
Hope this helps!
Do you recommend a certain number of CO stitches for a child's head? What multiple of stitches do I need before I begin the decreases?
Thanks!
The pattern is great, thanks so much!
I'm working the decrease portions. My row gauge must be off, because 7 rows is not 1" for me. Can I assume I should just work until I have 1", and ignore the row counts? (And if so... where I should be working 5 rows in between the later decrease rounds, about how long should that be in inches?)
Thanks again for a nice simple pattern :)
We recommend a long tail cast on for this project.
thanks for your question!