Valley Yarns Safe Passage Knitting Pattern

Valley Yarns Safe Passage: Knitted Hat and Mitten Set

Project Overview

Safe Passage is a coordinated hat and mitten set designed by Sara Delaney, created using Valley Yarns Valley Superwash yarn. This pattern combines a cozy winter hat with matching mittens, both featuring colorwork bands that add visual interest and warmth. The finished hat measures 8 inches deep with a 20-inch circumference, while the mittens are sized to fit an 8-inch hand circumference and extend 9.5 inches from fingertip to wrist. All proceeds from the sale of this pattern benefit Safe Passage, a charitable organization.

Knitting Techniques

Safe Passage employs several intermediate knitting techniques that create both structure and visual appeal:

• Worked in the Round: Both the hat and mittens are constructed seamlessly using circular and double-pointed needles, eliminating the need for seaming and creating a polished, professional finish.
• Bottom-Up Construction: The hat begins with a cast-on at the brim and is worked upward toward the crown, allowing knitters to try on the piece as it progresses.
• Stranded Colorwork: The pattern incorporates stranded colorwork bands featuring multiple colors worked simultaneously. The instructions specifically address float management, recommending that knitters carry unused colors under active colors and trap floats on the wrong side to prevent them from becoming too long, with a maximum of 7 stitches between color usage.
• Seamless Crown Decreases: The hat crown features strategic decreases worked in the round to create a fitted, tapered top without requiring seaming.

Stitches and Stitch Patterns

The pattern utilizes fundamental knitting stitches combined to create textured and colorful sections:

• Ribbing: The hat brim begins with 2 inches of knit 1, purl 1 (k1, p1) ribbing, which provides stretch and elasticity for a secure fit.
• Stockinette Stitch: The main fabric is worked in stockinette stitch, creating a smooth, classic knit surface that serves as the perfect canvas for colorwork.
• Garter Stitch Bands: Alternating rounds of knit and purl stitches create subtle textured bands between colorwork sections.
• Colorwork Charts: The pattern includes Chart A and Chart B, which are worked in sequence to create the decorative colorwork bands. Chart A is worked once, followed by Chart B once, then Chart A is repeated four additional times.
• Decrease Stitches: The crown shaping uses knit 2 together (k2tog) and slip, slip, knit (ssk) decreases to gradually reduce stitches and shape the hat top.

Materials and Yarn Specifications

Valley Yarns Safe Passage is designed to be worked with Valley Yarns Valley Superwash, a premium yarn composed of 100% extrafine merino superwash fiber. This yarn choice ensures the finished pieces are soft, vibrant, and easy to care for, as superwash treatment allows for machine washing.

Yarn Requirements:

• 3 skeins Main Color (MC) in 522 Teal
• 1 skein Contrast Color 1 (CC1) in 200 Steel Grey
• 1 skein Contrast Color 2 (CC2) in 391 Blue Mist
• 1 skein Contrast Color 3 (CC3) in 021 Silver

Each skein of Valley Superwash contains 50 grams and yields 97 yards, providing ample yardage for the complete hat and mitten set.

Needles and Gauge

Safe Passage is worked on US size 3 (3.25mm) needles, using both a 16-inch circular needle and double-pointed needles as needed for the seamless in-the-round construction. The pattern specifies that knitters should adjust needle size as necessary to achieve the correct gauge.

Gauge: The pattern is designed to be worked at a gauge of 24 stitches and 36 rows over 4 inches in stockinette stitch. Achieving proper gauge is essential for the finished pieces to match the specified measurements.

Hat Construction Details

The hat begins with a cast-on of 126 stitches worked