Strawberry Sundae hat - a pattern for sale

Today I get to tell you about a favourite thing I made last fall when Louise at Biscotte & Cie asked me to design a hat for her fall 2010 sock club. I love all of her yarns (I've tried most of them now) and her colour sense, and the fact that she includes an exclusive pattern with each month's package really sets her club apart.

The yarn she chose for me to work with was an incredible cashmere blend in an Aran weight - so squashy, and in the colour of squashed berries no less. Or perhaps the colour they'd leave behind on a cotton apron after a day of canning. It was perfect for an adaptation of a dual cable I'd seen on a men's sweater in a vintage pattern book and nowhere else.

It was so much fun to build cables into the decreases.

In spite of having been conceived as a unisex toque, in pink it looked like nothing so much as dessert. Louise and I quickly decided it had to be a Sundae hat. In the club version, it was strawberry, of course, and in my test for size large, blueberry:

I used Araucania's plain merino Toconao for that one, and I do like the way it looks - but there is no comparison in the way it feels. Did I mention 'cashmere'?

There is probably a lot more La Grande Douce in Biscotte's brick and mortar shop than at her website, so if you don't find any online you can always e-mail her to ask about it. I know I'll be doing that because: Yum.


Strawberry Sundae Hat

Difficulty Level:
Intermediate

Materials:
Biscotte & Cie, La Grande Douce, (80% superwash merino, 10% cashmere, 10% nylon, 185 yds/115g), strawberry, 1 skein
1 set 3.75mm double pointed needles or size to obtain gauge
1 stitch marker
1 cable needle

Gauge:
20 sts, 28 rows = 4" in stocking stitch

Sizing:
The ribbed structure means the finished hat will stretch 4-5" wider than the measurements given. Small (Medium; Large): 16" around, 7.25" long (17" around, 7.25" long, 18" around, 7.5" long).

Notes:
This hat is designed to fit snugly and cover just half the ear, so as not to be pushed out of place by a thick scarf or high coat collar. There will be enough room in a single skein of La Grande Douce to make even the largest size longer by adding 2 repeats of Round 1 ribbing for every quarter-inch in length you wish to add.

Pattern Cost:
$4.00 US