how to knit the perfect bonnet 🩵 a beginner friendly step by step tutorial (& free written pattern)

00:00 Intro (please watch!)
05:52 What you'll need
08:49 gauge swatch
13:18 measuring head circumference
15:10 explaining workflow & back piece construction
16:48 casting on & knitting back piece rows 1-28
18:47 row 29 onwards - decreases for back piece
21:55 casting off back piece & picking up stitches along edges
24:55 first row of main body of bonnet
26:00 continuing the body of the bonnet & measurements
28:35 beginning the front ribbing
33:55 binding off front ribbing
39:47 maths for picking up bottom ribbing
43:18 picking up stitches for bottom ribbing
47:32 continuing bottom ribbing
53:36 casting off the bottom ribbing
56:14 try-on
56:57 deciding on length for ribbons & measurement details
59:37 casting on first ribbon
1:00:20 row one of ribbon ribbing
1:01:15 row two of ribbon ribbing & rest of ribbon
1:01:57 casting off first ribbon
1:04:24 instructions for second ribbon
1:04:45 continuing second ribbon
1:05:45 joining ribbons to bonnet
1:11:41 pre-blocking try-on, weaving in ends and blocking instructions
1:13:42 blocking
1:13:47 finished & blocked bonnet :) & outro





My ko-fi https://ko-fi.com/cinemaknits

Jeny’s Super Stretchy Bind off
https://cocoknits.com/blogs/knit-tuto...

Picking up stitches

   • How to Pick Up Stitches Along an Edge  

Mattress stitch

https://nimble-needles.com/stitches/h...

PATTERN - Little Edie Bonnet

Gauge - 20st by 30 rows 10cm

Recommended yarn: 100g Drops Air OR 100g of Drops Nord held together with 50g Drops Brushed Alpaca silk

Materials: 4mm circular needles 60cm (or whichever size you need to meet gauge)
Tapestry needle

Workflow: you will work the back panel of the bonnet first, working in stockinette then decreasing to shape the crown. Then you’ll pick up stitches all around the back piece to knit the main body of the bonnet, working in stockinette then finishing with 5cm of ribbing. Lastly, you’ll work the bottom ribbing and ribbons of the bonnet.

Back panel:

Cast on 28st
Row 1 (rs): knit 28 stitches
Row 2 (ws): purl 28 stitches
Work in stockinette for a total of 28 rows, ending with a purl row
Row 29 (rs): knit one st, create a left leaning decrease (KKS), knit until three stitches left, create a right leaning decrease (k2tog), knit the last stitch
Row 30: purl to end of row
Repeat rows 29 and 30 until you have 40 rows and 16 stitches left on your needle

Place the stitches on hold and break the yarn.

Main section:

With the right side of the work facing you, begin at the bottom right corner of the work. Pick up forty stitches - one stitch for each row of knitting - along the right hand side of the work. When you reach the stitches you placed on hold, move them onto your left needle, from left side to right side. Using the working yarn you just picked up stitches with, knit each stitch to move it from the left needle to the right, joining the picked up stitches. You now have 56 stitches on your needle.

Beginning at the top left corner directly after your last knit stitch, pick up forty stitches down the left hand side of the work, one for each row. You now have 96 stitches on your needle.



From here, work back and forth in stockinette, beginning with a purl row, for 36 rows or until your work measures 12cm from the pickup edge. End with a purl (ws) row.

Row 37 (rs): p1, *k2, p2*. Repeat * until you have one stitch remaining. P1, turn.

Row 38 (ws): k1, p2, k2 repeat * until you have one stitch remaining. k1, turn.

Repeat rows 37 and 38 until your ribbing reaches the desired length, ending on a ws row.

Cast off using Jeny’s super stretchy bind off.

Bottom Ribbing: beginning at the end of your cast off, pick up 40 stitches along one side of the bonnet, between the front and the beginning of the back panel. Pick up 28 stitches along the back panel. Pick up 40 stitches along the other side of the bonnet. You should now have 108 stitches on your needle.

Row 1 (ws): k1 p2, k2 until you have one stitch remaining, k1.
Row 2 (rs): p1 k2, p2 until you have one stitch remaining, p1

Repeat for as many rows as you want (I suggest 14 for a thinner neck ribbing, 20 for a thicker). Cast off in pattern.

Ribbons:

Cast on 77 stitches for a standard length ribbon or 99 stitches for a longer ribbon. Begin with a single purl stitch, then work in 2 by 2 rib until the end of the row. Continue until you have an amount of rows that matches your bottom ribbing. Cast off in pattern. Repeat for second ribbon, except begin with a single knit stitch followed by two by two rib.

Join your ribbons to your bonnet by lining up the single purl rows. Attach to the bonnet using mattress stitch.


Weave in ends and block in the method suitable for the yarn you used.