Mystery Knit-Along 2024: Week 1

This week we're starting off the mystery knit-along with a quick accessory for the toy. It's easy to knit, creating a satisfying little project to get us going! Below you'll find photos of the accessory I knit, so you can see how it comes together. I've also included a few tips, and a video to help with blocking the finished hat.

I hope you'll share your progress, either here or on social media. I'll be checking the hashtag #FMMKAL2024 regularly throughout the week, because I love to see what you knit!

Supplies: Fingering weight yarn in beige, and 3.25 mm needle. I like to use a circular needle for garments because it's easier to check the shape.

Here I've completed all the increase rows. Looking good so far!

In this photo, I've completed the crown of the hat and the ribbed edge. When binding off the ribbing, make sure it's not too tight, so the hat will fit on the toy's head.

This is how the hat looks when the knitting is all done, from the right side. The brim of the hat is ribbed, just like the edging.

This is how I gather together the cast-on stitches at the top of the hat's crown. If you used a long-tail cast-on, this method is quite easy and tidy.

Now I'm sewing down the back seam, from the top of the crown to the ribbed edging. Mattress stitch makes a neat and almost invisible seam.

Here is how the hat looks once the seam is closed, and all the ends are woven in on the inside. It's cute, but not the right shape! It will need to be blocked before it's finished.

If you sew the back seam neatly, it barely shows! If you want, you could knit the hat in the round and skip the seam. It would look the same.

Here is how the hat looks after it's been blocked, so the crown is flattened over the brim. Watch the video below to see how I did this. Any kind of yarn can be wet or steam blocked to help your knitting hold its shape. You could also use a few small stitches to hold the brim in place, if your yarn doesn't keep the shape as well as you like.

In this photo you can better see how the crown is folded over the brim. You want the front edge of the brim to match up with the folded crown.

See how I steam blocked the flat cap in this short video.