Coast Hat + Snood Knitting Pattern

Coast Hat + Snood in Mode at Rowan Alpaca Cotton

Coast Hat

What is Being Made: The Coast Hat is a seamless knitted hat designed to fit an average-sized adult woman's head with a finished circumference of 48cm (19 inches). This intermediate-level knitting project features a distinctive fairisle pattern section that creates visual interest on the crown of the hat.

Techniques Used: This hat is constructed using seamless in-the-round knitting, a technique that eliminates the need for seaming by working continuously in circular rounds. The pattern employs the fairisle technique, a traditional colorwork method where multiple yarn colors are carried and joined as needed throughout the rounds. The crown is shaped through strategic decreases worked in established patterns to create a fitted finish.

Stitches Used: The hat begins with a ribbed cuff worked in a K2, P2 (knit 2, purl 2) rib pattern, which provides elasticity and helps the hat stay securely on the head. The main body transitions to stockinette stitch in fairisle colorwork, where the pattern repeat spans 7 stitches and is repeated 10 times across each round. Crown shaping is accomplished through multiple rounds of K2tog (knit 2 together) decreases worked at regular intervals to gradually reduce stitch count from 70 stitches down to 28 stitches.

Materials: The Coast Hat is knitted using Mode at Rowan Alpaca Cotton yarn held double throughout, creating a thicker, more substantial fabric. The colorway includes Noir 010 (2 skeins for the main color), Feather Grey 013 (1 skein), Snowflake 014 (1 skein), and Champagne 015 (1 skein) for the fairisle pattern section. Needles required are 5.5mm (US 9) circular needles measuring 40cm for the ribbed cuff section, and 6.5mm (US 10½) circular needles also measuring 40cm for the main body and fairisle pattern work. Double-pointed needles in 6.5mm (US 10½) are used when shaping the crown becomes too tight for circular needles. A stitch marker is essential for tracking the beginning of each round.

Snood

What is Being Made: The matching snood is a seamless tubular cowl-style accessory with a finished circumference of 130cm (51¼ inches) and a depth of 23cm (9 inches). This piece complements the Coast Hat and provides a coordinated set for the wearer.

Techniques Used: Like the hat, the snood is constructed seamlessly in-the-round using circular needles, allowing for continuous knitting without interruption or seaming. The construction method creates a tube that can be worn as a neck warmer or scarf.

Materials: The snood is worked using 5.5mm (US 9) circular needles with Mode at Rowan Alpaca Cotton yarn held double, the same yarn and needle size used for the hat's ribbed cuff section. This consistency in materials ensures the hat and snood coordinate beautifully as a matching set.

Design Context: Both the Coast Hat and Snood are designed by Quail Studio and are presented as a coordinated pair. The intermediate difficulty level makes this project suitable for knitters with some experience who are comfortable working with circular needles, managing multiple colors in fairisle knitting, and executing decreases for shaping. The seamless construction and use of yarn held double create a refined, professional finish appropriate for a quality accessory set.