Posted on 52 Comments

Hey, hey, we’re the Monkees

5167686218_b56c8a94f4-flickr

I was commissioned to make a pair of Mike Nesmith-inspired wool hats recently, after somebody saw the one I made for Aidan last year.  So here they are.  I like these a lot better than Aidan’s, actually, which was done on a loom, and totally improvised.

I improvised these, too, but I’ve got more experience under my belt and had better ideas for how to achieve the look I wanted.  So here are the details, in case you have a Monkees lover in your midst:

Yarn: Berroco Vintage Chunky in Douglas Fir, exactly 1 skein

Needle: 16-inch #9 circular

Pattern: co 80 st in the round, k1 p1 until you have knit for 11 inches, gather bo, make & attach 2-inch pom-pom

P.S. you should still be able to do this with a loom, if you want to.  I’d use the yellow one, and do the k1 p1 rib for 11 inches.  You might need to double the yarn, given the larger gauge of the loom, though.  (The original one I made for Aidan used the knit stitch throughout, worsted weight yarn (doubled), and the green loom, but it really was on the small side, and I think it would have looked better in a rib.)

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Posted on 52 Comments

52 thoughts on “Hey, hey, we’re the Monkees

  1. New blog post: Hey, hey, we’re the Monkees http://bit.ly/cNvQo9

  2. […] here lately, between the Month of Gratitude project, the custom-fit coffee cozy tutorial, and the Monkees hats.  If you’re someone just dropping by for the first time, welcome!  I hope you’ll […]

  3. HI Lisa! Can you clarify the bind off and gather at the top? Do you bind off all the stitches and then gather them together? Thanks! These hats are great and I can’t wait to make some for the Monkee fans in my house!

    1. Sure. On the last row, instead of binding off, I break the yarn leaving about a 12-inch tail, and then thread that tail onto a tapestry needle. I run the tapestry needle through each of the stitches on the circular needle, pulling them off as I go. Once all of the stitches are safely on the tail, I pull it to gather them.

      I hope that made sense!

      1. Thanks!!

  4. Hi Lisa,

    First time visiting through Craftzine…boy am I glad I dropped in! Thanks for sharing…I still have my Monkee’s album with my 5 year old name scawled across the top.

    Cheers, Amy

    1. How neat! Glad I could help 🙂 Thanks for dropping by!

  5. I'm going to have to make one of these pom pom watchcaps this winter. http://lisaclarke.net/2010/11/11/hey-hey-were-the-monkees/

  6. […] Nesmith-style knit green hat, but didn’t have any luck turning something up. Just yesterday, Lisa of Polka Dot Cottage posted a pattern she used to make a few Mike Nesmith-style hats for some friends. Last year, she created the hat for her son. […]

  7. Thanks for the memory! I love this toque and the memories it provoked — when I was 14/15 I created some scrapbooks of the Monkees and today went looking at the magazine pictures I cut and pasted into the pages… Now, after a trip to micheals for a circular needles I have started a version mike’s hat. i have no idea who will wear it, but just the making is fun…

    1. Aw, that’s great! I’m glad I could help trigger some happy memories 🙂

  8. […] tedious.  I’m not a real fan of the 1×1 rib, and I’d really had enough of it with the Monkees hats I’d just finished, but for some reason, this really didn’t bother me at all.  It was […]

  9. Hi, Wondering how much you would charge to make one of these for me. I would pay for shipping, yarn and your time of course. Please email me: emit234@yahoo.com

    1. Emily, if you are interested in one of these hats, I will be happy to make one for you. You can see the listing on my Etsy site:

      http://www.etsy.com/listing/79079844/mike-nesmith-inspired-knit-wool-hat

  10. Hey I was wondering the same thing as Emily ^
    Please email me back: ambjello@aol.com

    1. Erin: I will be happy to make one for you. You can see the listing on my Etsy site:

      http://www.etsy.com/listing/79079844/mike-nesmith-inspired-knit-wool-hat

  11. Hi
    How much would you charge for a Mike Nesmith hat, to include postage, yarn, your time and when could it be completed. Loved the website, but alas I don’t knit or sew.

    1. Oh, I’m sorry, but I’m not knitting anything on commission at the moment. You’re welcome to give the pattern to anyone you can find that can knit, though 🙂

  12. Hey Lisa,

    I know you already said you wouldn’t be making commissions,
    but that was a few months ago, and I’d like to ask if you
    would make one now?
    I’d do whatever I can to make it easier, such as pay for
    everything, and ect, ect, ect.
    Please e-mail me back at uo59601@yahoo.com

    Ta!
    Nancy.

    1. Hi, Nancy. I am still not making commissions, but I have recently asked some local knitters if they’d be up for making some. If I get anyone to accept, I will let you know! Thanks 🙂

      1. Alright, thank you Lisa! I will be waiting for reply. 🙂

    2. I’d be happy to make you a Monkees hat! I’ve been knitting for over 40 years and take commissions all the time. If you’re interested you can contact me through my Etsy store at http://www.stellasknits.etsy.com or email me at missvix61@aol.com.

  13. Me and my kids really enjoy the Old Monkees show , ans there is at least 3 of us that would love those hats,,I would pay whatever you require for supplies and time.. Monkee Manne

  14. […] seem to have created a small monster.  Remember the Monkees hats I made?  I posted about them and included the pattern and information about the yarn & needles I used, in the hopes that […]

  15. I saw an item on Knitting Paradise that indicated you were looking for knitters to knit the Monkee Hats for customers you were not interested in providing knitted hats for yourself. I would be happy to help them. Have been knitting for 55 years and the pattern is very simple.

  16. Hi! I saw that you were interested in locating knitters for your blog followers who would be willing to knit this hat. I’ve been knitting for over 40 years and would be happy to recreate this hat for your followers 🙂 The Monkees were one of my favorite acts when I was growing up and think it’s so fun that someone is “bringing them back” with fun items like this!

    Vicki

  17. […] received the push that I needed. A fellow blogger, Lisa at Polka Dot Cottage, had knit some hats inspired by Mike Nesmith of The Monkees. She had several requests for hats but wasn’t interested in making many of them, so she asked […]

  18. I would be willing to knit hats for those requesting them. They can contact me through my email at neganfamily@embarqmail.com. Please put “knit hat” as the subject line. Thank you!

  19. I wanted to know if you would do the same thing when knitting with straight needles, and then just stitch it up in the back? thanks

    1. Yes, I think so. I tend to avoid knitting with straight needles, when it can be done in the round, but I do think that would work.

  20. Hi! I was looking here at your pattern and wanted to know if this would work on a loom with 48 pegs? Oh, and if I should knit 2 pegs then purl another 2, etc. I’m completely new to knitting and using a loom, but I know those two stitches. One more question, if I start on the first peg with a knit stitch, when I have finished the round and begin on the first peg again, do I use the knit stitch on the first for the whole hat? I hope I’m clear on my question, for I don’t know how to word it otherwise. 😛
    Oh, and I don’t know if this site will notify me if you reply, so here is my e-mail address: xxxxxxx
    I’ll be sure to check back, though. Thank you!

    1. Hi! Sorry it took me so long to reply. A 48-peg loom should work. I would knit one peg and then purl one peg, and repeat that pattern. If you knit two and purl two, you’ll end up with a really wide ribbing pattern, and it wouldn’t look quite right for this.

      Yes, each time you get back to the beginning of the round, start the K1 P1 pattern again. Since you have an even number of pegs, you really don’t even have to pay attention to the beginning and ends of rounds. Just continue to K1 P1 until you have knit eleven inches.

      I hope that clears things up a little!

      1. Thank you for your comment! It helped me a lot and I’ve been able to make two hats so far 🙂

        I was wondering if you could delete my comment above? I didn’t realize I had typed my email into the comment and don’t want that available publicly. Thanks!

        1. I edited it and removed your email address. Glad you’re enjoying the pattern 😊

  21. Or am I supposed to alternate stitches after each round? Like if I start with knit stitch on the first peg, do I purl stitch the first peg after that round? And I think the hat might look funny if I start and end with knit or purl stitches, since there’s an even number. That is why I asked if I need to do k2p2 on this loom I’m using…

  22. what ply would that wool be???? cheers bishy and ella

  23. Hi, I know this is an old post so I am not sure if you will still reply to comments, but I was just wondering if you could let me know the gauge for the pattern? I can’t get that wool where I am so need to find a suitable alternative. Thank you!

    1. I wish I could help, but I don’t have any of the hats here anymore, and I can’t measure! So sorry.
      I did check the Berroco website, and they list the gauge as “3.5 sts = 1 inch / 14 sts & 21 rows = 4 inches” on a #10 needle, so if you found another yarn with this same gauge listed on the label, that should work.
      Hope this helps a little!

      1. Thanks. I tried to look up the wool but different sites were listing different size needles, guess I should trust the Berroco website though! It’s chunky weight though I guess. Ok, thanks again, I’ll try and find something!!

  24. Can you do this on DPNs? if so, what size do you think they would need to be? Thanks! -A

    1. I don’t see why not. I would still use size 9’s 🙂

  25. Thanks, this is just what I need for my little Monkees fan – I’m making this for a dress up day at school

    1. Glad I could help!

  26. Is this pattern for a child’s hat or an adult hat? If it’s a children’s, how could I change the pattern to fit an adult? Thanks a bunch!

    1. It’s an adult pattern 🙂

      1. Thank you so much! I love the Monkees (apparently that’s weird for a teenager…?), and I have wanted a hat like Mike’s FOREVER. 🙂 Again, thanks SO much! This hat shall never leave my head!

  27. Hi! Not sure if you are still checking comments, but is worth a try 🙂 I wanna make this hat for my husband (he is gonna be so excited! ) and it is my first hat. Question: is the cast on a k1p1? Do you start with an ewrap to come back and do k1p1 on the top row? I hope that makes some sense, I’m still pretty new to loom knitting. Thank you so much! 🙂

    1. Hi! I do a regular e-wrap cast-on, and don’t begin the ribbing until after the cast-on row. And to answer your second question, I do a gather bind-off, since decreasing is very tricky with a simple round loom. I hope this helps!

  28. Another question… for the top, do you decrease the crown or do a gather bind of? Thanks so much!

  29. […] hey, it’s Mike Nesmith’s hat from The […]

  30. I know this is SO old but I’m trying to figure out how to attach the button flap…I found the pattern on Ravelry, but I’m a little confused about it

    1. I wish I could help, but I never actually made a version with a button flap. I only made the plain ones. Sorry!

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