Wrappin' it up!

Here we are at the end of June, and I thought we'd go out with a freebie.  I've worked up an easy to follow set of instructions for a somewhat quick project, and thought I'd share.  This is a perfect Beginner pattern to learn, and even better for the yet-to-begin-ner, so if you've been too timid to give knitting a try grab some needles, and let's go!

We're going to be making, what I call, the Pouch Hat since it looks a little like a sack to stow some treasures in.  It's a bit of a throw back to 90's fashion - Grunge, but cleaned up!  While I know not everyone shares my obsessive love of floral dresses over long sleeved t-shirts, clunky boots, and vulgar amounts of flannel, this hat easily coexists with trendier pieces in even the most updated wardrobe ... and is soon to be my newest favorite!

Yarn: Cherrycola by Red Heart

Materials:
Knitting needles size 9 (5.5 mm)
Yarn used in photo: (1 skein per hat)
Color: Marrakesh by Red Heart
Color: Oatmeal by Vanna's Choice for Lion Brand
Large-Eye Blunt End Needles 6-Pack

Cast on 84 stitches.

Work entire piece in Garter stitch (knit every row) until it measures 12.5" from needle to cast-on edge. 

Bind off. 

Next cut your yarn leaving a long enough tail to sew up your seam once you've folded your work in half with the wrong sides facing each other.  (How can you tell if it's the right or wrong side?  Look at your cast-on row, the right side should lay nicely with your other rows in a tight little twist.  The wrong side is "loopy" looking.)

Sew your seam, but reverse it for approximately the last 3" of your piece by turning your newly formed tube right side out, and finishing the seam from this side.  This will give you a finished looking cuff when you fold it up.

For the cord to cinch your hat, crochet a single chain, or create a single row of successive slip knots using your fingers.  The length depends on how large you want your bow to be, but a good starting point is approximately 24.5". 

Thread the tail of your cord through your large-eye blunt needle.  *Measuring down 2" from the bind-off end of your hat begin feeding your cord through the hat, skipping over 3 or 4 stitches.  I rock my bow to the side, so I didn't begin feeding my cord through the dead center front of my hat.  Using your seam as the center back guide to your hat, measure in about 5" and begin feeding your cord. 

*The cord for the oatmeal colored hat was started 1.5" down from the bind-off edge of the hat.

Weave in your yarn ends, and voila!  You've got a new hat!