Grethes kyse

Grethes Kyse: Knitted Children's Hat by Margaret Torbjørnsen

What Is Being Made

Grethes Kyse is a knitted children's hat designed by Margaret Torbjørnsen. This downloadable knitting pattern creates a fitted hat available in three sizes to accommodate head circumferences of approximately 47 cm, 49 cm, and 51+ cm, making it suitable for children aged 1, 2, and 3-4 years. The hat features a distinctive construction with multiple structural components including a face edge, main body section, back piece, neck edge, ruffle edge, and decorative drawstrings.

Techniques Used

The pattern employs several fundamental knitting techniques appropriate for creating a structured children's garment. Circular knitting is used for the main body and back piece, worked in the round to create seamless fabric. Flat knitting (knitting back and forth) is used for the remaining components including the face edge, neck edge, ruffle edge, and drawstrings. The pattern incorporates stitch pickup around the neck edge, which may be accomplished using either thin needles or a thin crochet hook. Garter stitch (knit flat stitch) forms the face edge using a pearl stitch variation. The hat demonstrates decreasing techniques through stitches worked together, including both knit decreases and purl decreases to shape the garment.

Stitches Used

• Stockinette stitch (Glattstrikk): The primary fabric stitch, created by knitting on the right side and purling on the wrong side for smooth, even fabric on the main body and back piece
• Pearl stitch (Perlestrikk): An alternating pattern of knit and purl stitches in each round, creating textured detail on the face edge
• Knit two together (2 r sam): A right-leaning decrease used to shape the hat
• Purl two together (2 vr sam): A decrease worked on the wrong side for shaping
• Garter stitch: Created by knitting every row when working flat, providing a ridged, elastic edge

Materials and Tools

This pattern is worked with 4-ply yarn weight, a lightweight yarn suitable for children's garments. The pattern requires multiple needle sizes to accommodate different stitch gauges throughout the hat construction. Circular needles in 2.0 mm are used for the initial cast-on and early rounds. Circular needles and three double-pointed needles in 2.5 mm are used for the main body and back piece worked in the round. Circular needles in 3.5 mm or 4.0 mm are used specifically for knitting the first round of the main body section. Thin needles or a thin crochet hook are needed for picking up stitches around the neck edge. Additional tools include a blunt-tipped tapestry needle for securing yarn ends and finishing the garment.

Pattern Structure and Abbreviations

The pattern uses standard knitting abbreviations: r (knit), vr (purl), m (stitch), omg (round), p (needle), 2 r sam (knit two together), and 2 vr sam (purl two together). The notation ca. indicates approximate stitch counts, with a note that exact stitch numbers on the ruffle edge and neck edge are not critical to the fit of the finished hat. The pattern provides flexibility in stitch counts for these decorative elements while maintaining precise shaping on the main structural components.