February 5, 2021: I have been meaning to make this hat for a very long time.

I am holding the Patons Classic and the KnitPicks Mohair together, throughout. My gauge is:
23 sts in 1x1 ribbing, slightly stretched, washed and blocked on US #4 circulars, and
20 sts and 28 rows =4” in stockinette, washed and blocked, on US #7 circulars.

I like my ribbing to be tight and worked the ribbing on US #4 needles. I cast on 96 sts; it is 8 more than the 88 sts called for in the pattern. Before washing, the hat was very tight on my 22” head. After washing it eased up and although snug, it fits my 22” head pretty well. An 88 st hat would be too small for me. In that case, I would need to do the ribbing on US 5.

1. Using a straight US #4 needle cast on 96 sts. I did the Long Tail Tubular Cast On. The first st cast on is a knit st, followed by a purl st and so on. This Video by Ysolda Teague shows the method.

2. Set Up Row 1: ktbl all the knit sts and slip the purl sts wyif. Slip the last st wyif.

3. Set Up Row 2: Change to a 16” circular #4 needle. Bring the yarn around the first st of this row (last st of the previous row) and knit the first stitch. From then on, slip the purl sts wyif (in relation to you) and knit the knit sts. Purl the last st.

4. Set Up Row 3: Place a st marker and join in the round. Slip the first knit st wyib (in relation to you), bring the yarn to the front and purl the next purl st. Continue slipping the knits and purling the purls to the end of the row.

5. Continue with k1xp1 ribbing for 4.25” on US #4 needles.

It is usual for a long tail tubular cast on to have 4, slip-1, work-1 set up rows. The pattern asked for just 2 set up rows. I preferred to do 3 to make the cast on more stable and with more structure.

Ribbed Cast On Without a Jog shows how to close the gap at the cast on edge.

After ribbing changed to US #7 needles and knit stockinette until the hat measured 9-1/2” from the cast on edge (before starting decreases) because I was worried I would run out of yarn, especially because I wanted to make a pompom with the leftover yarn.

I have 96 sts. So my decreases were:
k1, ssk, k19, k2tog 4 times. I followed the decreases as written in the pattern. The decreases are worked every other row until the last 2 rows. The decreases added 2.5” to the length of my hat.

As always I was stressing over nothing! I had 19g pf the Patons classic and 8.9g of the Aloft left over from just the hat despite the larger stitch count. Used every last bit of the Patons and some of Aloft to make the pompom (used medium, Clover green pompom maker).

Measurements washed and blocked:
Length: 12”
Width (at cuff): 7-3/4”
Width (at the widest part): 9”

My Conclusions:
If I wanted to fit the hat on a 22” head, I would cast on 88 sts and work the ribbing with US #5 needles, as suggested in the pattern (except that I am holding the Patons Classic with a laceweight Mohair). The 12” hat length is perfect for a 21” head. If I wanted a slightly looser (slouchier) hat to fit a 22” head, I would knit to 10” before decreasing. But that would require using a few yards from a new skein for the pompom.

It’s taken! My 21” headed daughter loved this oversized hat and grabbed it. It’s a tad big but she likes the slightly loose slouchy style.