Giri no Chi Chi no Jiaki no Bōshi (義理の父 の 耳介の帽子)

I've traveled many times with my in-laws, particularly in the winter time.  And, my father-in-law (as sweet as he is) owns the ugliest hat! :P  It's so ugly that once in Portland, OR, someone once thought he was the cleanest homeless person they saw!  (Yes, I actually heard someone say that!)

After much deliberation with Hubby and his bros (who didn't believe me about how ugly Dad's hat was until they traveled with him (and his ugly hat)), we finally talked my mother-in-law to talk my father-in-law into tossing his ugly hat.  In return, I promised to knit him a new (nicer), warm(er) hat with really warm wool.  That's when all chaos broke out.

I sent an email to one of my brother-in-laws, V, his partner, A, and my mother-in-law asking them to help me pick out a hat pattern for both my father-in-law and one of my other brother-in-laws, B (aka my yarn buddy).  A followed directions and picked a hat pattern for Dad and B.  My mother-in-law went nuts and asked for something that was not part of any pattern given (like a visor and a way to "pin" his hat to his bag) and to top it off, asked for yarn that wasn't what I told her I would be using for Dad (she wanted a variegated yarn, like the one I was using for my yarn buddy; the only problem with that was that it's a thin sock weight yarn and not nearly as warm as the Lopi (warm and bulky) yarn I had planned to use for Dad)! *yikes*  

After a series of chaotic emails (and intervention from Hubby), I realized that my mother-in-law was reading the email chain (literally word for word) to my father-in-law.  So, I decided to communicate directly with him.  I don't know what possessed my mother-in-law to go off the rails as she did but, I discovered that it wasn't what my father-in-law really wanted. *whew*  He wanted the warm (Lopi) wool that I initially offered and he didn't want any of the "alternatives" my mother-in-law was asking for (like a visor but if it would be possible, a loop so he wouldn't loose his hat) and most importantly, he picked a pattern: The Alaska Hat. *yay*

So I preceded to make the hat (I had to hustle because they were going on a trip soon and I wanted it available for him to use if it got cold enough for him (which doesn't take much, btw :P)).  I read the instructions (twice! I'm learning! :P) and decided that a medium size would fit him.  I made the earflaps and connected it to start the hat.  Hubby said that it would be a good time to show Dad what I had and to ensure that it would fit him (and that he would like it).  

So, we stopped by the house (thankfully, Mom was out of the house lunching with her friend - no funky outside influence there! ;P) and ... Dad hated the flaps (they curled out due to the stockinette stitch - he's so funny and cute; he said: I'm not sure how these will keep my ears warm if they flip out! :P) but, he liked the fit.  I showed him a hat I had made for my co-worker and he said that he wanted it flat like that, longer than it currently was and a bit wider (modifications like this was totally do-able).  So, I'm now using the Alaska hat pattern as a guide.  And here's how I made his hat, using my Reynolds Icelandic Lopi yarn, my (new) Denise 8mm (US 11) needles & a 61 cm (24 in) and 48 cm (19 in) cables:
Star off with the Earflaps:

1. Cast on 3 sts
2. K3
3. Kfb, k, kfb ( total of 5 sts)
4. K5
5. Kfb, k3, kfb ( total of 7 sts)
6. K7
7. K7
8. Kfb, k5, kfb ( total of 9 sts)
9. K9
10. K9
11. K9
12. Kfb, k7, kfb ( total of 11 sts)
13. K11
14. K11
15. Kfb, k to the end ( total of 12 sts)
16. K12
17. K12
18. Kfb, k10, kfb ( total of 14 sts)
19. K14
20. K14
21. Kfb, k12, kfb ( total of 16 sts)
22. K16
23. K16 and cap the ends if your cable
24. Using another cable, follow Steps 1- 23 for the other earflap.
25. Cast on 18 sts for the back side of the hat and connect to the other earflap, knitting through that flap.
26. Cast 24 sts for the front side of the hat and connect in the round.  Be careful not to twist the stitches and earflaps.
27. Knit through the earflaps and start a 2x2 ribbing on the headband portion (front and back) for 6 rounds.
28. Knit in the round for 10 rows.
29. Start decreasing: *K2tog, K6*. Repeat * to the end of the round. Knit the last 3 sts.
30. Knit
31. *K2tog, K5*. Repeat * to the end of the round. Knit the last 3 sts.
32. Knit
33. *K2tog, K4*. Repeat * to the end of the round.  Knit the last 3 sts. 
34. Knit
35. *K2tog, K3*. Repeat * to the end of the round.  Knit the last 3 sts. 
36. Knit (4 rows)
37. *K2tog, K2*. Repeat * to the end of the round.  Knit the last 3 sts.
38. Knit (4 rows)
39. *K2tog, K1*. Repeat * to the end of the round.
40. Knit (3 rows)
41. K2tog (2 rows)
42. Bind off remaining 10 stitches (5 on each side) with the Kitchener stitch method.. Weave in all tails.

Then it took a long dunking with some Unicorn Clean Fiber Wash wool wash I had purchased and it felted up a bit (that's a good thing for the ends I wove in) as well as softened up (which was a concern for Dad as he didn't want an itchy hat - totally understandable). 

And, here's how the hat looks:

Front

Side

Back

A special thanks to B & Hubby for being my hat testers and modelers while I was making of this hat. :) ♡

I hope he loves it and that it keeps him warm on his next trip! :)