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Dear Artsy Craftsy Friends ,

I admit that I only began writing instructions for my crochet projects recently , after resuming my hand made hobby last year , in March . Putting these instructions together is a great adventure for me , since I still am unable to see , which means that I have to write down the steps using a lot of my imagination and visual memory . This is a marvelous thing happening to me since visualizing things is a recommended exercise for people who have lost their sight . So let’s see how this is going to go . Please address notes to me about any mistakes you may find throughout the instructions for a Christmas crocheted beret using the crocodile stitch as the main technique .

Crocodile Stitch Beret

Materials and other information :

I used three skeins of yarn , one white and two reds and a 5.5 mm and a 4.5 mm European size crochet hooks , as seen in the image bellow . The yarn is 100% acrylic yarn , 75 grams per skein , 210 meters long , from a Romanian brand called ‘Adina’ . I recommend that you use similar materials , including the hook sizes for the instructions to work the best . If you prefer crocheting the crocodile beret in one color , I still suggest that you get three skeins of your preferred color . Better be safe than sorry . Besides that , you are going to need the remaining yarn to make the pompon . This is a pattern for beginner-intermediate crocheters . It took me three days to finish the beret , but then again things take me a little longer to complete . But if you are going to start like NOW , you may be over in time for Christmas with a beautiful beret that you can wear yourself or give away as a gift to someone dear .

The beret will fit a medium adult size. Unstretched, the headband is 51cm in circumference.

Imag.1

Abbreviations and how-to’s :

ch – chain ;

ch-1 sp – chain 1 space ;

sl st – slip stitch ;

YO – yarn over

hdc – half double crochet ;

dc – double crochet ;

hdc V-st– half double crochet V stitch ( insert hook in next space recommended and work a set of 1hdc , ch1 , 1hdc ) ;

dc V-st – double crochet V stitch ( insert hook in next space recommended and work a set of 1dc , ch1 , 1dc ) ;

fpdc – front post double crochet ( insert hook behind the next recommended stitch from right to left, as seen in the image bellow , making sure you YO once before this step ; twirl the hook and YO again , just like you would crochet a normal dc ; now you have three loops on your hook ; YO again and pull through first two loops on your hook ; YO one last time and pull through last two loops on your hook ; the dc should look as if pushed in front – see images bellow )

crocodile scale – working from top to bottom work 5 dc around post of first dc of next V-st, ch 1, turn work so V-st is sideways, working from bottom to top around post of second dc of V-st, work 5 dc (see image bellow).

How to crochet the headband :

Begin with white and the 5.5 mm hook . Chain 13 .

Row 1 : Skip first 2ch ( they count as 1hdc here and throughout ) ; 1dc in each of next 10 chains ; 1hdc in last ch ; ch 2 ; turn .

Row 2 : 1fpdc in second dc from previous row ; 1fpdc in each of the next 9dc ; 1hdc in top of beg ch2 from previous row ; ch2 ; turn .

Rows 3-56 : Begin in the second fpdc , 1fpdc in each fpdc across the row ; 1hdc in top of beg ch2 from previous row ; ch 2 ( skip this last step when you get to row 56 ) ; turn .

Your headband should look like mine , as seen in the image bellow . Each row of the crocheted headband has 12 stitches , 10 of which are fpdc and 2 hdc on the sides.

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If you are going to switch the color into the red one , then please cut the yarn , leaving about a 10 cm long tail for sewing , . If you continue working the beret using the same color , then please use sl st to join the two sides together, as shown in image bellow.

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How to crochet the main part of the beret:

Turn the headband on one side. You will work in rounds from now on.

Round 1 : Attach the red color in any ch2 on side of the beret you chose with a sl st ; ch 4 ( counts as 1dc and a ch-1 sp here and throughout ) ; 1dc in same ch2 as the previous ch4 ; * skip next hdc on the side ; dc V-st in next ch2 * ; repeat from * to * around ; skip last hdc on the side ; join in the 3rd ch of the beg ch4 with sl st . ( 28 dc V-st in total , see image bellow ); do not turn.

Imag.13

Round 2 : Ch3 ( counts as 1dc here and throughout ) ; working from top to bottom around post of first dc of first V-st , work 4dc ; ch 1, turn work so V-st is sideways and post of second dc of V-st is upside down (V point of V-st will be facing right); working from bottom to top around post of second dc of V-st, work 5 dc ; * skip next dc V-st ; 1 scale around the next dc V-st * ; repeat from * to * around ; skip last dc V-st ; join with top of beg ch3 with a sl st ; do not turn . (14 scales in total)

Imag.14

Round 3 : Insert hook in the ch-1 sp between the two scales from previous row and work 1sc , making sure you crochet around both the ch-1 sp and the sp between the scales ; ch4 ; 1dc in same sp as ch4 ; * dc V-st in next ch-1 sp in the middle of the next scale ; dc V-st in the next ch-1 sp , making sure you crochet around the sp between the the two scales from previous row as well * ; repeat from * to * around ; dc V-st in last ch-1 sp in the middle of last scale ; join in the 3rd ch of ch4 with a sl st ; do not turn . (28 dc V-st in total)

Round 4 : repeat round 2 .

Rounds 5-22 : Repeat rounds 3 and 4 , alternating between them .

Rounds 23-24 : Repeat rounds 3 and 4 , but using the 4.5 mm crochet hook .

Round 25 : Repeat row 3 with the following notes : change beg ch4 with a ch3 ; change dc V-st with hdc V-st ; join in the second ch from the beg ch3 with a sl st ; use the same 4.5 mm crochet hook . (28 hdc V-sts in total)

Round 26 : Ch 2 (counts as a hdc); working from top to bottom around post of first hdc of first V-st, work 3 fphdc, ch 1, turn work so V-st is sideways and post of second dc of V-st is upside down, working from bottom to top around post of second hdc of V-st, work 4 fphdc; * skip next hdc V-st; 1 hdc scale around next hdc V-st, making sure you crochet 4hdc around each hdc post instead of 5, like you did so far*; repeat from * to *; skip last hdc V-st; join with top of beg ch-2 with a sl st; do not turn. (14 smaller scales in total)

Round 27 : Repeat round 25 . Leave a long thread to use for sewing top of beret.

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Closing hat top: With yarn needle, thread tail through spaces of hdc V-sts of last round twice, pull gently to gather top tightly, and knot securely. (See following image)

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How to make the pompon :
Wind yarn around a piece of hard cardboard 13cm long approx 150 times ( we used a plastic cover); tie tightly in the middle and leave a long end for attaching to hat; cut loops at both ends and trim to smooth round shape; sew securely to top of hat. See images below:

I hope you like it. Happy crocheting and
Merry Christmas,
The Coolorburbians.