Alaska Hat by Camille Descoteaux

The Alaska Hat by Camille Descoteaux is a captivating knit that artfully depicts a serene forest silhouette against a gradient backdrop, reminiscent of the Northern Lights. This design has garnered widespread acclaim for its aesthetic appeal and engaging knitting experience.

Alaska Hat

I love the simplicity of this hat. The designer takes a fairly simple fair isle pattern and combines it with a gradient yarn that makes an effect so beautiful that it looks like it would take hours of colour manipulation to achieve.

Pattern Name: Alaska
Designer: Camille Descoteaux
Craft: Knitting
Project Type: Hat – Beanie, Toque
Yarn Weight: Fingering
Suggested Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll Fingering, Knit Picks Chroma Fingering

Design and Construction

The hat is knit in the round, beginning with a 2×2 ribbed brim that ensures a snug fit. The body features stranded colorwork, creating a forest motif that transitions seamlessly into a gradient sky. The pattern is written for circular needles but can be adapted for double-pointed needles if preferred. Notably, the pattern does not include instructions for creating a pompom, allowing knitters to personalize this aspect.

Sizing

The Alaska Hat is one sized and designed to fit head circumferences between 21″ and 23″ (53 cm to 60 cm), offering a comfortable fit for most adults. The ribbed brim provides elasticity, accommodating various head sizes.

Materials and Yarn

The pattern recommends using fingering weight yarns:

• Main Color (MC): Approximately 231 yards (211 meters), exemplified by Knit Picks Stroll Sock Yarn in the Cobblestone Heather colorway.
• Contrast Color (CC): Approximately 109 yards (100 meters), with Knit Picks Chroma Fingering in the Drawing Room colorway suggested to achieve the gradient effect.

The combination of these yarns enhances the hat’s visual depth and texture.

Skill Level and Techniques

Suitable for intermediate knitters, the pattern involves:

• Knitting in the round
• Stranded colorwork following a chart
• Managing color transitions to create the gradient effect

Knitters have found the colorwork intuitive, with minimal long floats, making it accessible even to those newer to stranded knitting.

Availability

This pattern is available on Ravelry in both English and in French.