Blythe simple beanie pattern with different stitches

Today’s tutorial is going to be a sort of a second part of the simple beanie tutorial that I posted a few weeks ago but instead of changing yarn and hook diameter I’m going to use the same for a HDC and a DC beanie.

Just in case you have a fish memory like mine and need a refresher or you haven’t read the first post (naughty, naughty, well if you just happened to visit me by chance I forgive you) you can read it here.

Why you need to read the first post? Because we’re going to use the same pattern and see what happens if we work HDC or DC instead of SC.

Leeets go!

Materials:

Yarn for a 4 mm hook.

4 mm hook.

Stitch marker.

Tapestry needle.

Scissors.

Abbreviations:

DC: double crochet.

HDC: half double crochet.

SC: single crochet.

Slp st: slip stitch.

Ch: chain.

St: stitch.

Firstly we’re going to try the simple beanie pattern with HDC stitches:

• Start with a magic loop,  Ch1 and make 6 HDC. Do not join.
• Work 2 HDC in each HDC of the previous round (12 HDC).
• Work 2 HDC in each HDC of the previous round (24 in each HDC of the previous round).
• Work 1 HDC in each HDC of the previous round (24 HDC).
• Work 1 HDC in the first HDC of the previous round and 2 HDC in the next st, repeat the sequence (1 st - 1 increase) all the way around (36 HDC). My crocheted circle measures 3 inches in diameter so there is no need for more increases.
• Stop here for a moment. As you can see in the picture my circle is not flat but a little bit concave. As it’s more or less OK (not a potato chip) I’m going to continue with the pattern.

Work 1 HDC in each HDC for the next 8 rounds (36 HDC) and stop crocheting 2 stitches before the first st of the previous round. Now work 1 SC in each of the 2 remaining sts, cut the yarn and use the tail to make an invisible join, skipping the first st. Weave in the tail in the wrong side of your beanie (you can learn how to make an invisible join below).

As you can see the HDC beanie fits Berta’s head perfectly. Well done! (applause, please).

Now to the DC beanie (please read carefully until the end of the DC pattern before starting your project):

First attempt:

Magic loop, Ch3 (does not count as a st) and 6 DC. Do not join. As you can see we’ve made our first nasty thingy and if we continue working the 12 DC and  24 DC rounds we obtain a beautiful incense cone!

Oh my, why? Becaaause we are trying to use a DC which is double the high of a SC following a SC pattern thus the DC beanie grows up quicker than the SC one and instead of a nice flat circle we have a nasty conic thingy.

Do not panic because there is a super-easy way to fix it: we’re going to add more DC to the initial round. How many? Well, I could tell you right know but I’d love to keep your attention for another 10 minutes (hahaha!) so we’re going to figure it out together.

Second attempt:

Magic loop, Ch3 (does not count as a st) and 8 DC: well It’s not as bad as the first one but  if we work another couple of rounds (that is , 16 DC for the second and 32 DC for the third, making 2 DC in each of the DC of the previous rounds) we still have a nasty conic thingy plus a huge hole due to a mummyIneedyourhelprightnow moment that made me make a mistake and forgot to make the initial Ch3, Yayyy! Sorry. Anyway, it doesn’t work either.

Final attempt: yes!

• Magic loop, ch3 and 10 DC. Do not join.
• Work 2 DC in each DC of the previous round (20 DC).
• Work 2 DC in each DC of the previous round (40 DC). Now we have a nice flat circle and it is 3 inches in diameter so no more increases.

• Work 1 DC in each DC of the previous round for 4 more rounds (40 DC) and stop 4 sts before the marker (you’ve put it in the first st of the previous round, haven’t you?). Now work 2 HDC and 2 SC, cut the yarn leaving a 6” tail and pull it out of the loop with your hook. Using your tapestry needle, insert the tail through the second st of the previous round (we’re skipping the first st), through both loops, and then through the back loop of the st where you’ve cut the yarn. Adjust the size of the newly created stitch to fit the others’ and weave in the tail.

As we’ve been working in a continuous spiral we need to lower the height of the stitches in order to minimize the stair effect when we work with high stitches as DC. That’s why we’ve made 2 HDC and 2 SC at the end of the last round. The other option is to join the rounds by counting the Ch3 as a st and, after completing the next round, join the last DC to the first ch of the Ch3 with a Slp st and end up with a unaesthetic seam. What is it going to be, trick or treat?

Now go and play with your yarns and hooks, don't be afraid of making mistakes and if something goes wrong swear as loud as you can and go back to work.

That's all for today which is no small thing.

Catch you next Friday!