The Fudgy Bear hat belongs to Michael and is not for sale or trade. It’s knit from 100% alpaca, and that lovely chocolate colour is the color of our alpaca, Fudgy. The pink of the ears was done with some pink roving I had and needle-felted into the knitted ears, which were sewn to the hat.
Nothing scarier than a dad in a Fudgy Bear Hat. He also plays banjo.
Toddlers get all the great hats, so I’ve been working on a line that are really cute hats, made in adult sizes. Michael wears the Fudgy Bear Hat and the Pumpkin Hat to work — he says it helps keep his mystique.
The original Fudgy yarn was a bulky yarn that I hand spun, two ply, from 100% alpaca. I over-spun it just a tad to give it more “spring” when I knit it (alpaca, like cotton, has a tendency to sag) . . . this maybe wasn’t the best idea, as the hat came out a bit scratchier than I anticipated.
Fudgy Bear Hat Pattern
CO 52 sts., join to work in the round. Don’t twist (this isn’t a mobius hat).
K2, P2 for 7 rounds.
Row 8: K
Row 9: *K13, M1* (repeat 4x)
Knit in the round until hat measures 6-6.5″.
Decrease rounds to shape crown:
Round 1: *K 11, K2tog, K1*
Round 2: *K 10, , K2tog, K1*
Round 3: *K 9, K2tog, K1*
Round 4: *K 8, K2tog, K1*
Round 5: *K 7, K2tog, K1*
Round 6: *K6, K2tog, K1*
Round 7: *K5, K2tog, K1*
Round 8: *K4, , K2tog, K1*
Round 9: *K3 , K2tog, K1*
Round 10: *K2, K2tog, K1*
Round 11: *K1, K2tog, K1*
Round 12: *K1, K2tog*
Round 13: *K2tog*
Draw yarn through remaining sts and weave in ends.
Fudgy Bear Ears, make two
(I leave a tail on each end to make sewing the ears to the hat easier).
CO 3 sts.
K3
K1, Kfnb, k1 (4 sts)
K1, Kfnb of 2 sts, K1 (6 sts)
K1, Kfnb of 4 sts, K1 (10 sts)
K 10
K1, K2tog four times, K1 (6 sts)
K1, K2tog twice, K1 (4 sts)
K1, K2tog, K1 (3 sts)
K3
BO
Mark where you want the ears to sit on the hat.
This is the hat before the ears were placed–I was trying to figure out where they should go.
You might want to take a pic that doesn't give your honey a patrician nose.
And, if you're still figuring out the camera, use some other lighting for a time.
The wall to the left is painted white.
I’m not sure how to upload a picture!!! Ack! I’ve made two of these hats now. made one for my love and one for me but my youngest daughter has swipped mine! so gonna start a 3rd now. I’ve made them both with lion brand chunky yarn. one in gray and one brown. both with black brims. next one I think I’ll do white, tan and pink. maybe I can claim my gray one back lol.
I’d love a pic when you’re done — what yarn are you using?
Awesome! Thanks, I showed your hat to my man and is wanting one. So off I roll to zip him one out. I don’t much like knitting on circular needles so its going to be dp for me. For some odd reason I tend to have the work flip on my on the rounds. Dp I have no problems…go figure lol 🙂
Thanks again and I’ll keep you posted how it comes out
I most likely used 10s . . . I say that because I have a proclivity toward using 9s or 10s (or sometimes one of each, in the round, in a pinch — I play a little fast-and-loose with a lot of things). 🙂
I will tell you that I am a rather tight knitter (not as tight as I used to be — when I first started, I could hardly use circulars, because I couldn’t get the middle stitches back on the needle part, especially if I was working with cotton or another non-elastic yarn), and I do it mostly by knitting a swatch, taking stock of what I’m getting for a size, and going from there.
I hope this helps — if not, hollar and ask some more. –Jen
hi with your fudgy bear hat can you tell me what size of needles you knitted it on with?
thanks bunches!