Two Berets

I refuse to use Picassa So Google Can Suck It  You will have to click for a picture.  I tried to open up rights entirely on the picture but flickr and blogger just don't play nice.

I made these berets, one for a 12 yr old girl, one for her American Girl Doll, from Berocco Comfort DK Print. I tend to wing it on hats a lot and use the kind of yarn that does the talking instead of a pattern.  I consider my hat method more of a recipe than a pattern since you are adjusting as you go.

This is how I do a beret/tam.  I guess the number of stitches to cast on from my Ann Budd book or free patterns on ravelry.  Then I knit a short 2x2 ribbed brim, An inch for the doll, 1.5 inches for the girl.  To increase I do a round of kfb, with a couple of  spread out kfbf  (if I need to) to get the total number of stitches to a multiple of 10.  I knit an inch and a half before decreases on the doll hat, I think 3 on the girl's hat.  At that point, I do 5 paired decreases, evenly spaced, every other row. Use stitch markers and you can't go wrong.  I use a K2tog on one side of the marker and a Knit_Return_Pass (that is my left leaning decrease since I am a mirror knitting lefty).  At 10 stitches remaining, I do a  round of k2tog all around then I turn the hat inside out and thread the tail through the stitches from the inside and pull to close.  If you pull too tight, you get a hat nipple, at that point, you either need to loosen it up or make a pompom.  I hate making pompoms, so I am pretty careful not to make a hat nipple.