Andalusian Risa Knit Hat Pattern

Today I want to share my Andalusian Risa Knit Hat Pattern with you. It is a design that came about from a special time in my life. 

You see, years ago in my grad school days, I was invited to teach English abroad in Spain. For the year that I was there, I traveled around every chance I got. But of all the cities I visited, one city stuck out more than all the others: Andalucía (Andalusia). 

Discovering the beautiful beaches of Andalusia, I fell in love with the city. From the tapas bars to the flamenco dance to the beautiful shoreline, it was a wonderful experience.

Living in Spain brought me a lot of joy and laughter. So it is only appropriate to name my design after this time and place. You see, risa, in Spanish, is defined as laughter. So from this memory, those powerful things, I created this Andalusian Risa Knit Hat Pattern for you.

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Knitting Tools and Materials

These are the tools and materials you'll need for your Andalusian Risa Knit Hat Pattern:

• One hank of Cascade 220 Heathers in Aspen Heather (8011), 100g/ 3.5oz (approx. 220 yards, 200 m). *
• ChiaoGoo Circular Knitting Needes in sizes U.S. 6 and U.S. 7 - 16 inch cable. **
• Knitter's Pride Karbonz Double Pointed Needles (DPNs) in Size US 7.
• Stitch marker(s) to mark the beginning of the round and/or count stitches.
• A pair of sharp scissors for snipping ends.
• One tapestry needle for weaving in ends.

* I love this simple knit hat pattern so much, I knit it in three colors. The colors shown here are: Glamour (2427), Straw (4010), and Aspen Heather (8011).

Cascade has so many color options, you may have a hard time choosing. I know I did. I mean, I knit three of these and, as I write this, I’m thinking of making another.

This Cascade yarn is 100% Peruvian Highland Wool, a mix between Corriedale and Merino. This means it's an affordable quality yarn without the itch factor. It's a worsted weight yarn but isn't a superwash yarn, in case you were wondering.

** These ChiaoGoo circular knitting needles are my personal favorites. They are the ChiaoGoo Red Lace in the 4” length, which are designed for knitting a hat in the round.

Knitting a Gauge Swatch

We all tend to knit differently. So it shouldn’t surprise you when I say how you knit will have an effect on your knitting tension.

Here’s some real talk. Knitting a gauge swatch to check your gauge will prevent you from knitting an unwearable object.

It’s so easy to do. Learn how to swatch in the round here.

Blocking Knitting

After you’ve completed your knitted gauge swatch, you’ll need to wash and block it. This will give you a truer gauge measurement than if you didn’t wash and block.

Here is the yarn band from the Cascade 220 Heathers yarn.

The yarn label shows two washing instruction symbols:

• The first indicates you must hand wash your wool in water that is
  30 ℃ / 86 ℉.
• The second washing instruction icon indicates you must flat dry your knitting.

Measuring Gauge

Personally, I like to measure gauge before and after blocking just to see if there’s any major difference. Some yarns can be rather fickle-minded. Just saying.

According to my knitting gauge tool, which I always keep in my knitting kit, the measurements were:

• 20 stitches X 29 rounds = 4 inches in pattern (Pre-Blocking)
• 19 stitches X 28 rounds = 4 inches in pattern (Post-Blocking)

As you can see, not a big difference. From experience, I know Cascade yarns to swell up a little after washing so, I always like to double check.

With some hats it’s not super critical to get exact gauge. The Andalusian Risa Knit Hat pattern is just such an example. Specifically, the stitch texture doesn’t eat up a lot of yarn, unlike cable stitches.

Still, checking your gauge will always help you, even if you don’t like to do it.

Finished Size of Andalausian Risa Knit Hat

• Adult/Circumference of 19”
• Height: 7.5 "

From each hank of yarn I found that I used a little over half of the yarn. You will have enough yarn left over to increase the hat height, but not enough to knit two hats.

From the picture shown above, you can see that I knit two of the Andalusian Risa Knit Hats in a 2x2 rib knit. The other hat, the red knit beanie shown below, has a 1x1 rib knit brim.

Both edgings work great with this pattern. Still, I found the rib knit fabric of the 2x2 rib knit to be more appealing to me.

But that’s just me. You do you.

Knitting Techniques for your Andalusian Risa Knit Hat Pattern

You'll need to know the following knitting techniques:

• How to Cast on in the Round
• Two-strand Long Tail Cast On
• Knit a Swatch in the Round
• Join knitting in the Round
• The Knit Stitch
• How to Purl
• Right Leaning Decrease - Knit 2 together (K2TOG)*
• Left Leaning Decrease - Slip slip knit (SSK)
• The Basic Bind Off

* If you need a tutorial on the above knitting decrease styles, you can find one here from the Craft Yarn Council. It includes both the K2TOG and SSK knitting decreases.

Ready to make your own Andalusian Risa Knit Hat on circular needles ? Let's do this.

Long Tail Cast On

Begin your Andalusian Risa Knit Hat Pattern with your size 6 knitting needles.
Cast on (CO) 96 stitches using the long tail cast on.

Join in the Round

Next, join in the round with your preferred method. Don’t forget to use a stitch marker at the beginning of the round.

Rib Knit Fabric Brim

Begin your rib stitch knitting on your Andalusian Risa Knit Hat.
Choose either a 1x1 rib knit or 2x2 rib knit fabric brim.
Knit in this manner for 1.5" - 2".

When you’ve reached your desired brim length, you're ready to start knitting the body of the Andalusian Risa Knit Hat Pattern.

Knitting Instructions

Before you begin the textured knitting stitches pattern, switch to your Size 7 knitting needles.

Next, knit 3 rounds.

Now you're ready for the Andalusian Risa Knit Hat Pattern.

Knitting Pattern

Round 1: Knit 1, Purl 1 to end of round.

Round 2: Knit around.

Round 3: Knit around.

Round 4: Knit around.

Repeat these four rounds until your Andalusian Risa Knit Hat is 7" - 8" from the cast on edge. You could also add additional pattern sets for a taller, slouchier hat.

Knitting Decreases

First, check to see that you have 96 stitches on your circular knitting needles. Once you've verified, you will begin to decrease knit stitches for your Andalusian Risa Knit Hat.

This step requires both a right leaning decrease (SSK stitch) and a left leaning decrease (K2TOG stitch).

Begin the decrease stitches in your knitting as follows:

Round 1: * K2TOG, SSK to end.

Round 2: Knit to end.

*Repeat Rounds 1 and 2 two more times (3 sets total).

TIP: Switch to DPNs when too few stitches remain to work on circular needles.

You will continue decreasing stitches for two more sets (rounds 1 and 2). The first set will bring your stitch count to 48. The next set to 24 stitches. The last set will reduce your knitting stitches to 12.

When only 12 stitches remain on your knitting needles, you are done knitting your Andalusian Risa Knit Hat Pattern . Yay!

Next, with your sharp scissors, cut the yarn. Be sure to leave at least a 6" tail to weave in ends later.

Now get your tapestry needle. Thread the end of your yarn through the eye of the needle. Run the needle through the remaining stitches on your needle. Once this is done you can slide them off your needle.

Finally, cinch top closed and weave in the ends.

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I hope you love the Andalusian Risa Knit Hat Pattern as much as I loved designing it for you. If you knit one up, please share a pic on social! I’d love to see how yours turned out! #Knitfarious #AndalusianRisa

Looking for more knitting pattern fun and inspiration? Check out these fun Knit Christmas Stockings and these Scarf Patterns. There's something for everyone.

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• Knitted Hat Patterns on Circular Needles
• Knitting 101: How to Knit a Swatch in the Round
• A Guide to Knitting Gauge
• Slip Stitch Knitting Patterns
• How to Cast On for Knitting in the Round