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You are here: Home / Free Knitting Patterns / Hats and Headbands and Other Head Coverings / Black & Red Checkerboard Beanie: a Fun, Free Hat Knitting Pattern

Black & Red Checkerboard Beanie: a Fun, Free Hat Knitting Pattern

Free Knitting Patterns, Hats and Headbands and Other Head Coverings

This delightfully textured, simple beanie pattern created by reader Maria Avery makes a wonderful chemo cap

Black & Red Checkerboard Beanie

I’m very excited to share the following free chemo cap beanie knitting pattern! Maria Avery, a Knitting Nuggets subscriber, let me know about this wonderful pattern she created back in February and invited it to share it with my readers. I promptly forgot about it for the next 3 months. *facepalm*

Fortunately for all of us, Maria graciously reminded me of it a couple of weeks ago. And now I’m honored to share it with you!

All rights for this pattern are reserved to Maria Avery; this pattern is reproduced with her permission and may not be published elsewhere.

Also, Maria asks that you use this pattern only for gifts and charity, not for monetary gain.

The Black & Red Checkerboard Beanie Pattern by Maria Avery

Note from Maria:

[I designed these] caps originally for cancer patients who have lost their hair; however, adjustments can always be made.  My head size, from l/2 ” above the brow, straight back and around, is about 20 1/2 inches.  

This cap also covers the ears. The measurement of the cap from cast on to the crown decrease is about 6″.

I like this yarn especially for the winter. And yes, men can wear them.  I have found that adjustments are often necessary depending on the yarn, the needles used and of course the head size. 

Some yarn does tend to stretch more than others.

Materials Required:

Black & red Checkerboard Beanie in progress

Yarn: Plymouth Encore in Black & Red, or another washable worsted weight yarn.

(Of course, you can use any color combination you desire!) You should need no more than 1/2 skein of each color.

Needles: sizes 7 and 8 in DPNs or circular needles

Abbreviations:
k – Knit
p – Purl
k2tog – knit 2 stitches together
p2tog – purl 2 stitches together

With size 7 needles and black yarn, cast on 90 stitches via the crochet chain provisional method. (You can use a different cast-on if you wish, but Maria has found that it gives the cap a smoother edge.) For a tutorial, check out Very Pink Knits’ video here.

Checkerboard chemo cap beanie
Photo: Maria Avery

Knit the 1st round.

For the next 14 rows (or about 2 inches), *k3, p3; repeat from * to the end of the round.

Change to size 8 needles and knit 1 round. This round creates a smooth transition from black to red.

Switch to red yarn and begin beanie stitch pattern.

Rounds 1 to 6: *k9, p9; repeat from * to the end of round.
Rounds 7 to 13: *p9, k9; repeat from * to the end of round.

Repeat these 13 rounds until you’ve knitted 6 inches from the cast-on edge, or until the desired length has been reached .

Decreases:

Round 1: *k3, p2, k2tog, k1, p2; repeat from * to end of round.
Round 2: *k3, p2, k2tog, p2; repeat from * to end.
Round 3: *k3, p2, p2tog, p1; repeat from * to end.
Round 4: *k3, p2, p2tog; repeat from * to end.
Round 5: *k3, p1, p2tog; repeat from * to end.
Round 6: *k2tog, k1, p2; repeat from * to end.
Round 7: *k2tog, p2; repeat from * to end.
Round 8: *k2tog, p1; repeat from * to end.
Round 9: *k2tog, repeat from * to end.
Round 10: Repeat round 9.

Break yarn, leaving about an 8-inch tail. Thread yarn with a tapestry needle through the remaining stitches two or three times to give it a smooth closing.
Weave in remaining ends.

Photo: Maria Avery

A million thank-yous to Maria for allowing me to publish this pattern. If you try it, be sure to let me know what you think!

For more free hat knitting patterns, look here!

Get “How to Get Your Handknits to Local People in Need: What You Need to Know” FREE with your subscription to the Knitting Nuggets Newsletter. When you join this community, you’ll receive resources + inspiration to knit patterns you love for people you care about!

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Nicole

I believe there's someone who needs what you love to knit. If you'd like to knit patterns you love for people you care about, I can help!
Get your free guide, "How to Get Your Handknits to Local People in Need: What You Need to Know" with your subscription to the Knitting Nuggets Newsletter! When you join this community, you'll receive resources & inspiration to knit patterns you love for people you care about.

Last Updated: May 10, 2019 · 4 Comments

About Nicole

I believe there's someone who needs what you love to knit. If you'd like to knit patterns you love for people you care about, I can help!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Margaret says

    October 31, 2020 at 9:33 pm

    I saw directions for converting circular or do needles to two straight on line. I can’t find the directions again. Any help you can give me would be appreciated. Thank you. Margaret

    Reply
    • Nicole says

      November 2, 2020 at 10:31 am

      Hi Margaret, I’m not sure of the directions you’re speaking of, but you might find this article helpful: https://saskatoonstitcher.wordpress.com/2011/01/15/pattern-conversion-de-mystified/

      Reply
  2. JoyceSmith says

    March 17, 2020 at 10:21 am

    I’ve tried knitting several times , so I didn’t do as good as I wanted then I stopped. I will try some of your patterns because I want to succeed in the small items. Thanks Joyce

    Reply
    • Nicole says

      March 17, 2020 at 11:06 am

      Good luck, Joyce!

      Reply

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Are you missing your in-person knitting nights? If Are you missing your in-person knitting nights? If so, let me tell you about a virtual knitting event you won't want to miss! 

The great folks at Knit + Escape are holding a Galentine's Day virtual celebration from Feb. 4 to 6. A $10 ticket will give you access to vendor virtual booths and a whole lot of free content that includes fiber demos and lectures, farm tours, charity knitting, and much, MUCH more. 

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I would LOVE to see you there, so I hope you'll join us! You'll find a registration link to this event in my profile.
(Please note: the following has nothing to do with (Please note: the following has nothing to do with charity knitting. But I can't be silent any longer. If I - and Knitting for Charity - am going to be for making the lives of others better, I have to speak up.) I've been wanting to say something for well over a week. But I felt like it wasn't my place to talk. This isn't my experience. I should be listening. 
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Systemic racism is not a theory. It's not a kooky idea. It's a fact of life. And whether white people feel like they've benefited from it or not (I'm sure most of us feel like we haven't)... we have. 
Sure, slavery is no more. Sure, Jim Crow laws are no more. But racism? It's still very much here. And it pushes down our brothers and sisters of color every. single. day. It makes them fear for their lives, no matter what they're doing. It makes their very existence a risk. 
And I've finally realized that it's not enough for me to believe these things in my heart and go on with my life as if there's nothing more I can do. It's not enough to be proudly "not a racist." By my silence, by my inaction, I'm perpetuating a system that feeds off black and brown human beings. 
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We're not going to change the world in a day. Or even a week. But each of us can start taking steps to unlearn racism. (Yes, even a proud "non-racist" like me has racism to unlearn.) This doesn't have to be your book or your path. But do *something* to start listening. In the barest glimpses of social media, you're bound to find lists of books, movies, documentaries, podcasts, and so on. I've already seen more of those than I can count. (Cont'd in comments)
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Just finished a very special project: creating the Just finished a very special project: creating these pocket prayer cloths for our community's Blue Christmas service. This is a service for folks who, for myriad reasons, don't feel merry or joyful as they think they ought to. Praying that these cloths will remind them of God's love and constant presence. #charityknittersofinstagram #prayerclothknittersofinstagram

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