Last week I bought a fantastic hat pattern and despite having more than one crochet WIP I whipped out some remnant half-balls of yarn and my hooks and made a start.  My yarn wasn’t the one recommended in the pattern, but it was a similar weight, so I gave it a go.  I was making it to fit Clare but it seemed a bit small, so I did a few extra increase rows and a few extra for depth, then did the adult size for the visor.  I think I mucked it up.

Not too bad from this angle, but that is after LOTS of stretching to get it on her head.  And from another angle…

It’s all a bit rasta really, and she even has a bun in there.  So I went back to my hook and yarn stash, and picked up a ball of thicker yarn (Patons Jet, a wool/alpaca blend) and decided that this time I would follow the pattern and do the child size again.

The proportions are better, but this time it fits Stella.  There is NO WAY it would go anywhere near a six-year-old head!

It’s even a bit firm on a 19-month-old head.  So WHAT am I doing wrong?  I know that yarn substitution has its hazards, but I didn’t think that I crocheted so tightly I’d be so way off gauge.  Maybe I’ll try the adult size next and hope that it fits Clare….