I have so much dyed yarn and not enough projects, so I cast on for a quick and easy hat to reduce the stash by one ball of yarn. The yarn was Donegal DK yarn, dyed with dark greens in December of 2023. I chose the Knitted Newsboy Cap by Nicola Robinsonova as the pattern.
I first cast on for a hat on 4.5 mm needles, and was on gauge following the instructions. The pattern is very easy and I managed to finish it fairly quickly, however, when I put it on my head it was more a beret than a newsboy cap. A bit too tight for my liking. I did continue to knit the brim to see how it would work together. I own some plastic brim inserts so I modified the brim pattern a little bit by knitting short rows to mimic the insert’s shape better. I pinned it together and it was just too tight.
Luckily, the pattern also listed a more slouchy version using 5.5 mm needles and after weighing my leftover yarn, I hoped I would have enough. So I crossed my fingers and cast on. Who knew that 1 extra mm of diameter would make such a difference! This new version is a perfect amount of slouch and makes a lovely hat. To add a safety/fun touch, I also knit a band with reflective yarn that’s attached with two very cute blue buttons. When I cycle in the dark, I should light up!
There is less than a meter of this yarn left, and my bucket of dyed yarn has reduced in size a little bit. My stash of hats has increased by two: one green beret and one green slouchy brimmed hat. Best way to ‘mess up’ a project is to end up with two great end products!