Kate works at the aquarium, and she asked for an octopus hat. I couldn’t resist the challenge.

Stockinette for the body and outer parts of arms; Old Shale (staggered) for “head”, and blister stitch on arm linings to approximate suckers.

Yarn held double throughout.
Yarn totals:
MC (head, body, outer parts of arms): 1,023 yards (or 512 yards of worsted weight)
CC1 (arm linings): 367 yards (184 yds worsted weight)
CC2 (suction cups): 230 yards (115 yds worsted weight)
I ran out of the main color after knitting the whole body and the first two arms. The new yarn didn’t match. If I knit this again and did not have 2 matching skeins, I would knit a little way down each arm, then “fade” the new skein in so all the arms look the same.

Provisional CO 96 sts. Work stockinette in the round until 6”. Work 2 decrease rounds (alternating with knit rounds), then increase 16 sts concentrated at back. Next time I would work one more decrease row and probably two rows even before increasing again, for a more defined “waist”.

Begin Old Shale pattern. Work Old Shale, offset every fourth row, for another 6 inches. Decrease in pattern, every other round, quicker at end for a flat gathered top. Cut yarn and draw through remaining stitches. Secure the end.

Brim and arms: Now working flat. Divide brim stitches into groups of 12, with 36 sts dedicated to an inch of rib and then bound off to create face opening. Remaining stitches comprise 5 arms of 12 sts each. I would make the stockinette part of the hat shorter and make the rib section longer and tighter (use smaller needles) next time.

Arms need to be wider than 12 sts, so I am increasing in the second row to get to 19 sts. Work until 15 inches, then begin decreases. If making it again, I would pick up sts from neighboring arms and do fewer or no increases in the main part of the arm.

For arms other than the front two, pick up and knit a couple of stitches from the neighboring arm at beginning of the first row, then increase the necessary stitches to get 19 in the next row.

Needed a couple more arms--five didn’t look “octopus” enough--so I picked up stitches between two arms (8 from each and one from the middle) and worked down from there. I like how it looks. If I were to make this hat again, I’d create more of a “webbing” with picked-up stitches between all the arms.

If I made the arms skinnier or at least more tapered, I could work i-cord at the ends and sew it into a curlicue. Maybe next time.

Arm linings--CO 13 sts. Work 4 rows even. K2tog at beg and end of next 2 RS rows. Change to suction cup color on next RS row and also k2tog at beg and end of row. (7 sts.) Work in 2 -color blister stitch until required length. K2tog at beg and end of next 2 WS rows. Pass yarn end through remaining 3 sts and pull tight. Sew lining into arm, wrong sides together, leaving top open. Turn right side out and finish sewing. Pay close attention to line at tops of arms on inside of hat, keeping it as neat and even as possible. In future I would leave all tops of arm linings open until the end, then sew them all at once for a more harmonious line.

The 7-st lining sewn into the 19-st arm gives a nice 3D effect that doesn’t require any stuffing to stay puffy. I blocked them flat, but they could have been blocked 90 degrees around (with a crease up the back) for more puffiness.

Eyes: I’m calling it a “self-stuffed furoshiki eyeball”. With a single strand and US3 needles, CO 28 sts and knit a square in stockinette stitch. Bind off, leaving a long end for sewing. Fold and roll the square until you have a tight, smooth, slightly cylindrical eye (this way you don’t have to mess around with stuffing or worry about it popping out through the knitted fabric). Sew it closed and sew any edges down. Use duplicate st (with yarn held double) to embroider pupils. Then with MC (held double), pick and knit stitches all around the eye, about halfway up. Use DPNs to work around eye, increasing about 7 sts on every 3rd row until desired size is reached (I worked 8 rows). Bind off and sew into position.

Before sewing on the eyes, I soaked the hat and gave the lace section a good hard blocking on a mixing bowl. I tried not to stretch any of the rest of it. Then I sewed on the eyes, and because all but the lace was still damp, I tossed it in the dryer.

The pupils should be oriented perpendicular to where they are now. This is bothering me a lot, but not enough to unpick the stitching and sew them on again!

It came out better than I expected! I like this octopus. I’ll probably never make another, but Kate will be thrilled!