Justine the official CraftSanity cat is not amused. Photo Credit: Jonathan D. Lopez
Justine the official CraftSanity cat does not want to party with you. She just doesn’t.
While her party hat is super cute, Justine fails to see the humor in this “Cats in Hats” book by Sara Thomas her person has been talking and laughing very loudly about for weeks.
Justine just wants to roll around in catnip, look at birds and stray cats through the window and nap as much as possible without people laughing loudly around her. Justine does not want to wear a party hat, but she did it anyway for a photo shoot because she got a lot of treats and couldn’t figure out how to untie the hat with her paws. Her person is sorry, not sorry about this.
While Justine doesn’t want you to know this, you can find the pattern to knit more party hats for cats below.
The good news for Justine and all her feline friends is that this hat is not intended for everyday wear. It’s actually only intended for to be worn on very isolated occasions like during 30-second photo shoots for birthday and holiday cards.
If you love your cat, you’ll snap a quick photo after you make her a party hat and then you’ll put it up on the shelf as a “remember that time” memento.
ENTER TO WIN! Want to win the book? There’s also a prize pack you can win by clicking the widget below. Here’s their info on that contest:
It includes a copy of the book, an EXCLUSIVE hat pattern from Sara Thomas, and the yarn necessary to complete the pattern. FIVE runners up will receive a copy of the book. Winners will be contacted by email and must notify us within 48 hours of the notification email with address and acceptance. Please note that winners can be from the US only.
If you haven’t heard the story behind this humorous book yet, check out my podcast interview with Sara here and check back later for more cats in hats photos. (Yes, there’s more folks. I’m letting my cat lady flag fly.) Visit the other stops on the blog tour below:
AUTHOR KICKOFF:
3/16 Scooter Knits
3/17 Yarning 4 A Smile
3/18 Wendy Knits
3/19 In Stitches
3/20 Polka Dot Cottage
3/21 FaveCrafts
3/22 Recycled Crafts
3/23 Lorelei’s Blog
3/24 CraftSanity
3/25 Lori Greenberg
3/26 Crafting a Green World
3/27 Gaea Handmade
3/28 Pretty Things Blog
Reprinted with permission from Cats in Hats © 2015 Sara Thomas, Running Press, a member of the Perseus Books Group.
Party Hat
This striped hat is purrfect for cat celebrations!
Method: Knit
Skill Level: Difficult
Size
To fit an average adult cat
Ear opening: 2 in. (5 cm)
Width of hat between ears: 2 in. (5 cm)
Supplies
25 yd (23 m) worsted weight yarn in A (pink)
10 yd (9 m) worsted weight yarn in B (white)
10 yd (9 m) worsted weight yarn in C (mint)
Size 7 (4.5 mm) dpns
Size F5 (3.75 mm) crochet hook
Yarn needle
Ployester Fiberfill
Pom pom maker (optional)
Base: CraftSanity Tip: When knitting or crocheting this hat, stitch the base with yarn that matches the fur on your cat’s head. This will create the illusion that your cat is wearing the party hat like a boss with no strings attached.
Using yarn A and two dpns, cast on 3 sts, leaving a 25 in. (64 cm) tail.
Row 1: Knit.
Row 2: Kfb, k to last st, kfb. (5 sts)
Rep last 2 rows five more times. (15 sts)
First Ear Hole
Row 13: K3 bind off next 10 sts, k last st.
Row 14: K2, cast on 10 sts, k3. (The 3 st side is the front of the hat.)
Middle Section
Knit 16 rows.
Second Ear Hole
Row 31: K3, bind off next 10 sts, k last st.
Row 32: K2, cast on 10 sts, k3.
Row 33: Knit.
Row 34: K2tog, k to last 2 sts, k2tog. (13 sts)
Rep last 2 rows five more times. (3 sts)
Bind off, leaving a 25 in. (64 cm) tail.
To create ties, use crochet hook and 25 in. (64 cm) tail, pull a loop through each stitch on bind off edge (3 loops), yo, pull one loop through, work 25ch, pull end through loop tightly and snip extra yarn. Repeat with other 25 in. (64 cm) tail.
Hat
Using yarn B, cast on 30 sts leaving a 20 in. (50 cm) tail. Divide onto three dpns (10 sts per needle) and join to work in the round.
Rnds 1-2: Knit.
Rnd 3: [K2tog, k6, k2tog] 3 times. (24 sts)
Rnds 4-7: Knit.
Rnd 8: [K2tog, k4, k2tog] 3 times. (18 sts)
Rnds 9-10: Knit.
Change to yarn A.
Rnds 11-14: Knit.
Rnd 15: [K2, k2tog, k2] 3 times. (15 sts)
Rnds 16-19: Knit.
Rnd 20: [K1, k2tog, k2] 3 times. (12 sts)
Change to yarn C.
Rnds 21-24: Knit.
Rnd 25: [K1, k2tog, k1] 3 times. (9 sts)
Rnds 26-28: Knit.
Rnd 29: [K2tog] 4 times, k1. (5 sts)
Rnd 30: [K2tog] twice, k1. (3 sts)
Cut yarn and pull through sts on needle.
Pull closed, and weave end into inside of hat.
Assembly
Make a 1 in. (2.5 cm) pom pom using all three yarn colors. Secure to top of hat. Weave ends into the inside of the hat and secure in place. Lightly stuff hat with polyester fiberfill. Do not overfill. Using the cast on tail from the hat, stitch the hat onto the middle section of the base. Stitch into the cast on edge of the hat, until hat is securely in place. Weave end through the underside of base and tie securely.
