This week’s snowfall in New York City may not have been historic, but in the early hours of Tuesday morning it did have us all behaving like little hibernal elves, sneaking around the empty streets, hoping to disturb neither the silence nor the pristine, powdery snow.

Elfin Hats for Adults | Purl Soho

If only we’d all had Elfin Hats to don! All winter explorations are made more magical with this cute and whimsical, soft and lofty hat, knit up in a Purl Soho’s most cuddly yarn, Super Soft Merino.

If you love the yarn used in this project, you’ll love all of our other yarn, too! Explore our 35+ lovingly created yarn collections, in nearly every natural fiber and spectacular color you can imagine… Only available here at Purl Soho’s online yarn shop!

Elfin Hats for Adults | Purl Soho

Whether it’s three feet of snow or three little inches, it’s fun to be an elf! -Laura

Elfin Hats for Adults | Purl Soho

PS: As we know, elves come in all sizes, so don’t forget about the original Elfin Hats, sized for babies, toddlers, and kids!

Designed by Purl Soho designer, Laura Ferguson.

Share your progress and connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoElfinHats, and #PurlSohoSuperSoftMerino. We can’t wait to see what you make!

Materials

  • Main Color (MC): 1 skein of Purl Soho’s Super Soft Merino, 100% merino yarn. Each skein of this bulky weight yarn is 87 yards/ 100 grams; approximately 80 yards required. I used the color Heirloom White.
  • Contrast Color (CC): 1 skein of Super Soft Merino; approximately 20 yards required. I used the colors Pink Grapefruit, Black Green and Super Pink.
  • US 11 (8 mm), 16-inch circular needle
  • A set of US 11 double pointed needles
  • 3 stitch markers, including one unique

PINK GRAPEFRUIT HAT

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BLACK GREEN HAT

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SUPER PINK HAT

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Gauge

12 stitches = 4 inches in stockinette stitch

14 stitches = 4 inches in stitch pattern

Size

Adult Small/Medium; to fit head circumference of 19 to 23 inches

  • Finished Circumference: 18 3/4 inches
  • Finished Height: 12 1/2 inches

Notes

Pattern Notes

  • This pattern is adapted from the original Elfin Hats pattern, sized for babies, toddlers and kids.
  • These hats are worked up with the knit side facing out, but the finished hat can be worn with either the knit or the purl side facing out.
  • When the pattern requires you to use two strands of the same color, you can either roll the skein into two equal-size balls and pull from both balls at once, or you can pull one strand from the inside of the ball and one strand from the outside. If you don’t have a swift and ball winder to wind a center-pull ball, never fear, you can do it by hand! Click here for a great video that shows you how!

Twined Knitting How-Tos

This pattern uses a technique called Twined Knitting. Twined Knitting is a method of working two strands of yarn at a time, alternating strands every stitch and, between each stitch, twisting the strands around each other. The result is a dense, warm and very beautiful fabric. Please note that the following photos were borrowed from the original Elfin Hats pattern, which uses a different yarn.

You can twine the strands by either twisting the working yarn over the other or by twisting the working yarn under the other. In this pattern, you are instructed to do both: “twisting over” and “twisting under”.

TO TWIST OVER…

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Step 1 (pictured left): Carry the right-hand (working) strand of yarn over the left-hand (non-working) strand and knit the next stitch.

Step 2 (pictured right): Repeat Step 1 with the new right-hand (working) strand.

Continue to work with alternating strands of yarn, carrying each working yarn over the non-working yarn between each stitch.

TO TWIST UNDER…

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Step 1 (pictured left): Carry the right-hand (working) strand of yarn under the left-hand (non-working) strand and knit the next stitch.

Step 2 (pictured right): Repeat Step 1 with the new right-hand (working) strand.

Continue to work with alternating strands of yarn, carrying each working yarn under the non-working yarn between each stitch.

Twined Knitting Notes

While working a round of twined knitting, the two strands of yarn begin to coil around one another. That’s okay, because in this pattern each round of twisting over is immediately followed by a round of twisting under, which uncoils the strands.

Pattern

NOTE: The instructions below correspond to the following hats: Grapefruit Pink (Black Green, Super Pink)

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Body of Hat

With the MC, cast 66 stitches onto the circular needles. We used a basic Long Tail Cast On.

Place marker and join for working in the round, being careful to not twist the stitches.

Elfin Hats for Adults | Purl Soho

NOTE: When you join for working in the round, work the first stitch of the first round with the yarn from the cast on, then join the second strand to work the second stitch. The second strand for each of the hats is CC (MC, MC). In other words the Grapefruit Pink hat begins with alternating strands of the MC and CC, and the Black Green and Super Pink hats begin with alternating strands of just the MC. (Please note, the above photo is taken from the original Elfin Hat pattern, which uses a different yarn.)

Round 1: Knit round twisting over.

Round 2: Knit round twisting under.

Repeat Rounds 1 and 2 until piece measures 5 1/2 (1 1/4, 2) inches from cast on edge, ending with Round 2.

Cut CC (1 MC strand, 1 MC strand).

Join strand of MC (CC, CC).

FOR BLACK GREEN HAT ONLY

Repeat Rounds 1 and 2 one time.

Cut – (CC, -).

Join strand of – (MC, -).

Repeat Rounds 1 and 2 until piece measures – (5 1/2, -) inches from cast on edge, ending with Round 2.

FOR SUPER PINK HAT ONLY

Repeat Rounds 1 and 2 until piece measures – (-, 5 1/2) inches from cast on edge, ending with Round 2.

Cut – (-, CC).

Join strand of – (-, MC).

Shape Crown

NOTE: Change to double pointed needles when necessary.

Round 1: While twisting over, [k22, place marker] two times, knit to end of round.

Round 2 (decrease round): While twisting under, [ssk, knit to marker, slip marker] three times. [3 stitches decreased]

Round 3: Knit round twisting over.

Round 4: Knit round twisting under.

Round 5 (decrease round): While twisting over, [k2tog, knit to marker, slip marker] three times. [3 stitches decreased]

Round 6: Knit round twisting under.

Repeat Rounds 5 and 6 one more time. [57 (57, 57) stitches]

Repeat Rounds 5 and 2 four (-, 9) more time(s). [33 (-, 3) stitches]

FOR Pink GRAPEFRUIT HAT ONLY

Cut both strands of MC (-, -).

Join two strands of CC (-, -).

Repeat Rounds 5 and 2 five (-, -) more times. [3 (-, -) stitches]

FOR BLACK GREEN HAT ONLY

Cut a strand of – (MC, -).

Join a strand of – (CC, -).

Repeat Rounds 5 and 2 – (9, -) more times. [- (3, -) stitches]

Finish

Cut both strands and thread them onto a tapestry needle. Draw the needle through the remaining stitches and pull taut.

Weave in the ends and block as desired.

Wear knit-side-out or knit-side-in, elf’s choice!

Elfin Hats for Adults | Purl Soho

LEARN ABOUT SUPER SOFT MERINO + ALL OUR BEAUTIFUL YARNS

The best reason to use Super Soft Merino for this project is because it is the dreamiest, cuddliest, toastiest yarn you can imagine! A single ply of 100% merino wool, Super Soft Merino has a nice, loose spin that shows off the softness of its fiber and keeps it nice and lightweight. Its gauge ranges from a chunky/bulky weight to super bulky weight (2.75-3.25 stitches per inch), making it a great choice for quick (and beautiful!) hand-knit gifts. And more… Super Soft Merino comes in over 30 amazing colors, too!

More Free Knitting Patterns

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Looking for more inspiration? Explore all of our free knitting patterns and knitting tutorials, buy one of our many knitting kits and yarn bundles, and shop for beautiful yarn. We have over 35 gorgeous natural fiber yarns in 100’s of magnificent colors, designed to bring integrity, beauty, and joy to your next knitting project and only available at Purl Soho!