Every color of Speckled Hen starts with an incredibly soft alpaca roving at its core. Roving is unspun fiber, and it’s that downy, super cozy roving that gets wrapped with a fine, undyed strand of merino, either in creamy, natural white or rich, very dark brown. This unique structure offers the marvelous opportunity to pair the same color roving with different color wraps, and our Contrast Cuff Hat + Hand Warmers does just that, creating a striking play of light and dark… The same but different!

We used this feature of Speckled Hen to capture the graphic design details of this accessory set. Easy enough for a very beginner to knit, the color shift does all the work to make these beauties so special.

All you do to make them is knit both the hat and hand warmers flat in garter stitch (hello, knit stitches!), then sew a simple seam to pull your knitting into shape. The seaming is super easy, and if you’ve never done it, our tutorial will show you how!

That’s the color and the knitting, but you’ll also love the feeling! Eighty percent baby alpaca (so soft!) and 20% fine merino wool (same!), Speckled Hen feels wonderful in your hands as you knit, and once blocked, the roving blooms to create a subtle halo and increase the softness even more!

So, pick your favorite pair from Speckled Hen’s inviting palette and get ready to play! Knit the cuffs light or dark, or switch it up between your hat and hand warmers… Either way the stippled beauty and wonderful feel of Speckled Hen will make each stitch a pleasure!

Designed by Purl Soho designer, Keith Foster. Click here to see even more of Keith’s work!

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

Materials

HAT

• Purl Soho’s Speckled Hen, 80% baby alpaca and 20% fine merino wool. Each ball is 120 yards/ 50 grams.
  • Main Color (MC): 1 (2, 2, 2, 2) skein(s); approximately 95 (135, 170, 200, 240) total yards required
  • Contrast Color (CC): 1 skein; approximately 55 (65, 80, 100, 120) total yards required
• US 4 (3.5 mm), 24-inch circular needles
• Stitch markers
• Stitch holders or scrap yarn

HAND WARMERS

• Purl Soho’s Speckled Hen, 80% baby alpaca and 20% fine merino wool. Each ball is 120 yards/ 50 grams.
  • Main Color (MC): 1 (1, 2, 2) skein(s); approximately 80 (110, 130, 180) total yards required
  • Contrast Color (CC): 1 skein; approximately 20 (35, 50, 75) total yards required
• US 4 (3.5 mm), 24-inch circular needles
• Stitch markers
• Stitch holders or scrap yarn

To make both the Hat and Hand Warmers, you will need…

• MC:  2 (2, 3, 3, 4) balls of Speckled Hen; approximately 175 (215, 280, 330, 420) yards required
• CC: 1 (1, 1, 2, 2) ball(s) of Speckled Hen; approximately 75 (85, 115, 150, 195) yards required

We made our samples in these color combinations…

Baby Hat + Baby/ Toddler Hand Warmers

• MC Rainstorm Blue + CC Dew Blue

Kid Set

• MC Rose Peat + CC Cameo Pink

Adult Small/ Medium Sets

• MC Estuary Blue + CC White Caps Blue
• MC Lilac Daybreak + CC Wisteria Vine

Adult Medium/ Large Set

• MC Heirloom White + CC Quail Feather

GAUGE

25 stitches and 50 rows = 4 inches in garter stitch

SIZES

HAT

Baby (Toddler, Kid, Adult Small/ Medium, Adult Medium/ Large)

• Finished Circumference: 14½ (15¾, 17¼, 20¼, 21½) inches unstretched, comfortably stretching to 16 (18, 20, 22½, 24½) inches 
• Finished Height: 8 (8½, 10½, 11¼, 12½) inches, uncuffed

HAND WARMERS

Baby/ Toddler (Kid, Adult Small/ Medium, Adult Medium/ Large)

• Finished Circumference: 4¾ (5½, 6½, 7¾) inches, comfortably stretching up to 2 inches

Finished Length: 7 (8¼, 9, 10¼) inches

HAT PATTERN

CUFF

With Contrast Color (CC), cast on 90 (99, 108, 126, 135) stitches. We used a basic Long Tail Cast On.

Do not join for working in the round.

Row 1 (right side): Knit to end of row.

Mark last row with a removable stitch marker or piece of scrap yarn to indicate the right side.

Repeat Row 1 until piece measures 2½ (2¾, 3¼, 3½, 4) inches from cast-on edge, ending with a wrong-side row.

Cut CC, leaving a 12-inch tail.

BODY

Join Main Color (MC) and repeat Row 1 until piece measures 6¾ (7¾, 9, 9½, 10½) inches from cast-on edge, ending with a right-side row.

Crown

Set-Up Row (wrong side): [K10 (11, 12, 14, 15), place marker] 8 times, knit to end of row.

Row 1 (right side): [Knit to 2 stitches before next marker, knit 2 together (k2tog), slip marker] 8 times, knit to last 2 stitches, k2tog. [9 stitches decreased]

Row 2 (wrong side): Knit to end of row, slipping markers as you come to them.

Repeat Rows 1 and 2 five (6, 7, 9, 10) more times, then repeat Row 1 one more time, removing markers as you go. [27 stitches remain]

Next Row (wrong side): [K1, slip slip knit] 9 times. [18 stitches remain]

Next Row (right side): [K2tog] 9 times. [9 stitches remain]

Cut MC, leaving a 36-inch tail.

FINISHING

NOTE: For help with seaming, please visit our Seaming Garter Stitch tutorial at purlsoho.com/create/seaming-garter-stitch

With right side still facing you, slide 9 remaining stitches to the right end of needles. Thread tail onto a tapestry needle, and bringing it behind the work, insert the needle through each of the remaining stitches, starting with the stitch at the tip of the right needle. Thread tail through these stitches again in the same way and pull tail tight to securely close top of Crown.

With same MC tail, seam Hat from Crown to beginning of Body; then, use CC tail to seam Cuff down to cast-on edge.

Weave in all ends and block as desired.

HAND WARMERS PATTERN

WRIST

With Main Color (MC), cast on 30 (34, 40, 48) stitches. We used a basic Long Tail Cast On. Do not join for working in the round.

Row 1 (right side): Knit to end of row.

Mark last row with a removable stitch marker or piece of scrap yarn to indicate the right side.

Repeat Row 1 until piece measures 4½ (5, 5¼, 5½) inches from cast-on edge, ending with a wrong side row.

THUMB HOLE

DIVIDE FOR THUMB HOLE

Division Row (right side): K14 (16, 19, 23), knit front and back (kfb), place remaining 15 (17, 20, 24) stitches onto stitch holder or scrap yarn for Second Half. [16 (18, 21, 25) stitches remain on needles for First Half]

WORK FIRST HALF

Continuing with 16 (18, 21, 25) live stitches…

Row 1 (wrong side): Slip 1 purlwise with yarn in front (wyif), knit to end of row.

Row 2 (right side): Knit to end of row.

Repeat Rows 1 and 2 five (7, 7, 9) more times. [6 (8, 8, 10) total garter ridges for First Half]

Place First Half stitches onto stitch holder or scrap yarn and cut MC, leaving a 12-inch tail.

WORK SECOND HALF

Slip 15 (17, 20, 24) on-hold Second Half stitches onto needles and rejoin MC, ready to work a rightside row.

Row 1 (right side): Kfb, knit to end of row. [16 (18, 21, 25) stitches]

Row 2 (wrong side): Knit to last stitch, slip 1 purlwise wyif.

Row 3 (right side): Knit to end of row.

Repeat Rows 2 and 3 five (7, 7, 9) more times. [6 (8, 8, 10) total garter ridges for Second Half]

JOIN FOR PALM

Joining Row (wrong side): K14 (16, 19, 23), slip slip knit; beginning with the outermost stitch, slip on-hold First Half stitches onto left needle, knit 2 together, knit to end of row. [30 (34, 40, 48) stitches remain]

Cut MC, leaving a 24-inch tail.

PALM

Join Contrast Color (CC) and continue in garter stitch, knitting every row, for 1½ (2, 2½, 3) inches, ending with a wrong-side row.

With right side facing you, loosely bind off all stitches knitwise.

Cut CC, leaving a 12-inch tail.

FINISHING

NOTE: For help with seaming, please visit our Seaming Garter Stitch tutorial at purlsoho.com/create/seaming-garter-stitch

With long CC tail, seam from bind-off edge to beginning of Palm; then, use long MC tail to seam remainder of Hand Warmer down to cast-on edge.

Weave in all the ends and make another Hand Warmer just like the first.

Gently wet block your finished Hand Warmers and you’re done!