Slouchy Hat in Trinity Stitch

As promised in my last post, my Trinity Stitch Slouchy Hat was knitted in January. This is a semi-slouchy hat knitted in the trinity stitch. The inspiration for this hat came from a thread in the Harry Potter Lovers group on Ravelry. The thread was about the knit hat that Hermione Granger wears in the Deathly Hollows, Part I movie. Here’s a picture from the movie:
Hermione's Hat

There was a great deal of discussion about what stitch was used for the hat, but most of the comments were in favor of either the daisy (star) stitch or the trinity (bramble) stitch. So, I decided to give the trinity stitch a try — and here is the end result:
Slouchy Hat in Trinity Stitch

Pretty close, I think.

I knit the hat using Paton’s Classic Wool yarn on size US 8 (4.5 mm) needles. Colorway is “Bright Red”. I also wrote the pattern for this hat as I knitted it up, so that I could share it with others. Here’s a link if you’d like to download it: Trinity Stitch Slouchy Hat.

I had to convert the Trinity Stitch Pattern so that it could be used in the round. Directions for the trinity stitch knit in the round are included in the pattern. If you download this pattern and enjoy knitting your own hat, please leave me a comment. 🙂

To see my notes on Ravelry — use this link.

Next post — Beret in Bee Stitch.

4 thoughts on “Slouchy Hat in Trinity Stitch”

  1. Thank you so much for this pattern. I have been trying to figure out how to use this stitch for a hat for some time, and have been unable to figure out how the reductions at the crown could be made without ruining the pattern of the stitch–now I can try out your solution.

  2. Does the decrease as written in your pattern preserve the trinity stitch pattern without an unsightly breakup? I am knitting wrong side out. Much easier to p3tog than k3tog.

    Making a slouch hat for my daughter, so 10 to 12 inches before decrease.

    Glad I found your pattern.

  3. Many thanks for the in-the-round instructions for the Trinity stitch. I made a cable/trinity combo hat about 35 years ago for my then 3rd grade daughter. The pattern was lost long ago but the hat is still intact and beautiful. So I managed to make a new pattern from the hat itself. The original was on straight needles and I really wanted to do it on circulars but couldn’t figure it out. Now I will make another hat following your instructions for the Trinity on circulars. Thank you for bringing joy to an 84 year old lady who loves to knit

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Related Post

Back from HiatusBack from Hiatus

It has been nearly 6 months since I last wrote a post. This was due in part to the fact that my office was in the process of being remodeled, as well as the busy holiday seasons (Thanskgiving, Christmas, & New Year’s). I am glad to say that my office is now finished and looks quite lovely — but I am still unpacking things. I have made a promise to myself that when I unpacked the hastily packed boxes, that I would take the time to go through them and eliminate things that I no longer used, need or want. So far I have kept that promise and I am gradually putting the things I have decided to keep in their new homes. I have 4 boxes left to unpack.

One of the most difficult tasks for me as I unpacked was to sort through the many years accumulation of knitting and crochet magazines, patterns and pattern books. I love books. And I have a lot of knitting and crochet books. I am proud to say that I was focused enough to really let go of those that I will never use and those that are really out of date. I gave a few to some of my knitting friends, but in the end — most of the old magazines ended up being recycled. Are you someone who collects books and magazines? If you are — you know how much of a struggle it was for me to finally let them go.

New Bookcase in My Office But now — I have plenty of room for NEW BOOKS! 🙂

One of the changes that I have made over my 50 years (yes, 50!) of knitting is that I no longer buy knitting patterns, books of knitting patterns or those knitting magazines that you can find in your local supermarket. As I have written in this blog before, since I first read Elizabeth Zimmerman’s Knitting Without Tears, I have moved from buying patterns to buying books on techniques and stitch libraries. These days when I see something in a magazine that I think I would like to knit — I study it for the details — i.e. the design elements, the stitchery, etc. — and then I sit down and figure out how to knit it up without the pattern — I draft my own essentially. I find I am much happier with the results.

I am doing that now — what I have on my needles is a raglan cardigan sweater, knitted from the top down — size 18 months. I hope when I finish this little sweater that I will be able to develop another sweater calculator for doing top down raglan sweaters. I’ll post it when I am certain that it works correctly.

For those of you who wish to move beyond following written patterns — Elizabeth Zimmerman’s books are a great way to start.

Yarn SubstitutionYarn Substitution

Substituting yarn

The question comes up every so often at the knitting meet-up and in the Ravelry forums. It takes the form of “Can I use this yarn instead of that yarn?” and any of a number of variations. And the answer is almost always: “It depends.”

Oh, we want this answer to be a simple “Yes”. But it seldom is. Usually the knitter has a valid reason for wanting to use a different yarn than what was used in the printed pattern: Lack of availability, wanting/needing a different colorway, dislike of the particular yarn, etc. If the knitter happens to select a yarn of similar weight and make-up, the substitution will probably go reasonably well – providing, of course, that the knitter can achieve the stated pattern gauge with the chosen yarn. This is the happiest of all occurrences – the yarn you want to use works out well with the pattern and you can just relax and knit happily on your project.

The subject of matching gauge could constitute the contents of an entire article, if not a book. For the sake of brevity, I will simply state that gauge is essential and that any knitter who wishes to produce a well-fitting garment needs to pay attention to gauge – IF she is following a pattern that contains the concept of “fit” as part of the design. (Gauge is less important with scarves & shawls).

Lindy’s Advice #1: When substituting yarns, it is best to select a yarn that is of the same weight and has the same characteristics as the original yarn. But do a gauge swatch to make certain you do not need to make adjustments so that the garment fits correctly.

Perhaps the most frustrating of experiences with yarn substitution is the situation where you have selected a yarn of similar weight and characteristics – but try as you may, you cannot achieve the stated gauge. The advice is usually to go up a needle size or two if your gauge has more stitches and to go down needle sizes if your gauge has fewer stitches. If this works, then wonderful! Proceed with the project. But if, in spite of the change in needle sizes, you still cannot get the stated gauge – well, this can be a significant problem. Being off a half a stitch doesn’t seem like much, but when multiplied over a large number of stitches (say 100 or more), it becomes quite significant and the result is a garment that doesn’t fit properly. You have two options in this situation: 1) try a different yarn (yep, try another one) ; or 2) get out your calculator and start calculating the adjustments needed to ensure a proper fit.

Note: If math makes you anxious and you would never consider recalculating the number of stitches you need to make the garment using your yarn and your gauge – then skip this next part.

Here are the basic calculations you’ll need to make the appropriate adjustments:

Pattern Gauge states “20 stitches and 20 rows = 4 inches” (5 stitches/inch and 5 rows/inch)

To adjust pattern width (i.e. your stitch gauge is different):
Your stitch gauge is 22 stitches = 4 inches. Which is 5.5 stitches per inch

Pattern instructions state that the back of the garment measures 25 inches at the bottom and says to cast on 125 stitches. To adjust for your gauge, you would need to cast on 25 X 5.5 = 137.5 stitches – you will need to round down to 137 stitches so that you have an odd number of stitches, since the pattern has an odd number.
You will need to make similar calculations for width measurements throughout your pattern – it is best if you go through and do this before you starting knitting.

Adjusting pattern length may or may not require some math. If the pattern has instructions that use length (inches) rather than rows, it really isn’t necessary to calculate the number of rows required with your gauge, because you can simply knit to the desired number of inches.

However, if the pattern contains instructions such as “knit 40 rows then begin shaping” – you may want to calculate the adjustments needed, as follows:

Your row gauge is 30 rows = 4 inches – which is 7.5 rows per inch

Pattern row gauge is 20 rows = 4 inches (5 rows per inch)
To calculate the number of rows you need to knit to be equal to the 40 rows called for in the pattern :
40 rows ÷ 5 rows/inch = 8 inches
8 inches X 7.5 rows/inch = 60 rows – so instead of knitting 40 rows then begin shaping, you would knit 60 rows.

A shortcut in these calculations would be to go through and calculate the number of inches that need to be knit using the row gauge of the pattern and then just knitting to the calculated length.

This can be a daunting bit of calculation – but it will result in a better fitting garment with your desired choice of yarn and is thus, worth the effort.

So far, I have discussed what considerations are needed when substituting a yarn of similar weight and characteristics with another. Now about substituting an entirely different weight of yarn…

I have attempted this several times and have not been happy with the result each time. Hence, Lindy’s Advice #2: No matter how much you love the yarn you want to substitute and the pattern, if the yarn is not the same weight and/or does not have the same characteristics as the yarn used in the pattern – DO NOT use that yarn with that pattern.

I know, I know – you really want to use this yarn, but it’s like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. I feel your pain, I really do. But don’t do it, you won’t be happy with the result.

I think every knitter has tried using bulky yarn for a worsted weight pattern or visa versa. The results have probably been disappointing and the garment was either too big or too small. It certainly was for me.

I know of many knitters who have attempted to double-strand worsted weight or sport weight yarn to substitute for bulky weight. It can be done with some success, but once again – you have to do a gauge swatch and make the necessary adjustments for differences between your gauge and the pattern gauge. You just can’t get away from the math…

But wait! There is a way to substitute yarn so that it doesn’t drive you crazy: “Free yourself from the pattern”.

Huh? What do I mean by that? Well, as a knitter you will eventually reach a point in your knitting experience when you begin to understand the basics of garment design and construction. Granted there are literally hundreds of thousands of written sweater patterns available. But any sweater has a front, a back, two sleeves and a neck. If you understand how to construct the basic parts and match them to your desired body measurements – you really don’t need a specific written pattern.

Let’s start with that pattern you want to knit with a different weight of yarn. What are the characteristics of the garment? How are the sleeves shaped? How is the front shaped and how is the back shaped? What do you like about this pattern?

Does the pattern use a textured stitch patterning or does it have a particular colorwork patterning? Are there charts for the stitch pattern(s) or the colorwork pattern(s)? You can use these to make your own customized sweater with your chosen yarn.

How? Well, it will require some thinking, some planning, some math (sorry!) and a very good set of body measurements. Armed with the knowledge of sweater design – you can go from carefully following a written pattern to using the pattern as an inspiration for your own custom designed sweater.

I will outline how to do this in my next post. Off to find my sweater design references…

Knitting Needle Sizes & ConfusionKnitting Needle Sizes & Confusion

Knitting Needles sizes are fairly straightforward in the sizes that one uses for DK, worsted weight and bulky yarns. (Size US 4 and up). But it is a much different story when it comes to small diameter needles used to knit fingering, lace and other finer weight yarns. This can be very confusing – I just discovered that there is a significant variation in the sizing labels for some of these needles.

Let’s start with the standard “US” sizing – which uses a numerical designation for knitting needles, from “0000” up to 35 – with the needle diameter increasing as the numerical designation increases. Seems like a fairly straightforward system – until you run across US size 1 & 2 needles that are different diameters. If you never use a knitting needle smaller than US size 4 (which has a diameter of 3.5 mm), this will not be a problem for you. IF, however, you get into knitting socks and lace using much smaller diameter needles – it may cause you to pull out your hair.

Fortunately, most knitting needles sold today also come with their diameter size stated as well as their US size. What I have currently in my assortment of circular knitting needles are as follows: US Size 0 (2.00 mm); US Size 1 (2.25 mm), US Size 1 (2.50 mm), US Size 2 (2.75 mm), US Size 2 (3.00 mm). These needles have all been purchased in the last 10 years. I have seen patterns referencing size 1.5 needles, so I am guessing that the size 2 (2.75 mm) needle may also be a 1.5, but it’s difficult to tell for certain. Just a word of caution to those using patterns calling for these US sizes of needles – make certain your metric diameter matches the pattern (if it’s stated) and BE SURE to check your gauge!

I found two websites that have charts comparing the US sizing to the metric diameter:
http://www.fibergypsy.com/common/needles.shtml
http://www.lionbrand.com/cgi-bin/faq-search.cgi?store=/stores/eyarn&faqKey=97

Point to remember: Gauge is the measurement of the number of stitches per inch you get with a particular needle – this is more important than using the size of needle stated in a pattern. Always do a swatch for gauge!