Cabled beanie pattern

I seem to forever be making beanies for the same people. Mostly its because the negligent owner has misplaced it, but my brother's new puppy chewed a good sized hole into his, so I thought that was a good enough excuse to warrant a new one. This is it.

It's quite long and skinny, but that's what you want for a boys beanie (unless he's a hipster and wants a slouchy one). By making a beanie this shape, it should be nice and fitted and still reach his ears.

This pattern was just knit 6, purl 3, knit 3, purl 3, repeated 7 times.
Then every fourth row I'd need to do the cabling: pass three onto a cabling needle, knit 3, knit the 3 on the cabling needle, purl 3, knit 3, purl 3, repeated.

If you've got cabling, you should start (or end) with that, so it is along the edge of your knitting. This will make it tidier when it comes to sewing up the beanie at the end.

I used no. 4 knitting needles, and they're my go to size.

And that pattern was repeated seven times giving me 105 stitches. 105 is a good number of stitches for a fitted beanie with large cabling. If you have no cabling, more like 95-100 is good. And when I'm making slouchy losser beanies for girls I head for around 110-115.

When you've made a straight piece for about 25cm, you should start reducing down for the top of the beanie.

There are plenty of different ways to do this and I can't remember the exact numbers I used for this beanie, but I usually do it as follows:

Continue the knitting for 5 stitches, then slip one stitch, knit two together, and pass the slipped stich over (ss, k2tog, pssso) (this turns three stitches into one), then knit again for 9 stitches and repeat, ss, k2tog, psso, knit 9.... and so on, hopefully at the end you will be left with about 5 stitches (not a big deal if that's not the case)
Continue your pattern (adjusted to accomodate the missing stitches), for a row.
The next row knit 4 stitches then (ss, k2tog, psso, knit 7) repeat to the end.
Continue pattern for one row
The next row knit 3, (ss, k2tog, psso, knit 5) repeat to end.
Continue pattern for one row
Next, knit 2, (ss, k2tog, psso, knit 3) repeat to end
Continue pattern for one row
Finally knit 1, (ss, k2tog, psso, knit 1) repeat to end

This will create decreases above one another, so that it looks tidy.
Hopefully you will have left around 11 or less stitches (if more, p1, p2tog, and repeat for one row). Now just cut the yarn and thread it through the remaining loops and pull tight. I usually cut the yarn to leave a longish bit hanging off for sewing up the beanie, but cutting it off and sewing up the beanie with thread is equally sane.

Hope this inspires beanie making in you. I think they're so quick and wearable, they're very satisfying to knit.