Gingerbread Hat--Love this Pattern

I love this Gingerbread Hat pattern by Angela Whisnant.  It's an easy pattern with very pretty results.

It has a simple 6-stitch cable with a little 6-stitch garter stitch pattern between the cables.  I used worsted weight Plymouth Encore yarn and size 5 needles for the ribbing and size 7 needles for the hat.  I cast on 96 stitches with the German Twisted Cast on.  Encore yarn is 75% acrylic, 24% wool. 

I love the big fluffy pompom.  To attach it, I sewed two strands of size 10 crochet cotton halfway through the pompom, making 4 strands.  I held a button on the inside of the hat, took each strand of crochet cotton through one hole of the button, and tied the strands all together into a knot.  Make sure to tie them tightly to hold the pompom securely onto the hat.  The pompom can be cut off when the hat is washed and then tied back onto the hat.

N loves her hat, and she looks so pretty in it!  We love warm hats!

My notes:  Encore pinkish yarn. Cast on 96 stitches with size 5 needles. K2, P2 rib for 8 rounds. Switch to size 7 needles.
6 repeats = 6 1/2 inches long approx. p1, k4, p1;p1, k1, p2, k1, p1.  Knit rows added between decreases between first 2 rounds and after 2nd round. .*SSK, K2, K2tog, P1, K4, P1 Repeat from * around.  *S2KP, K1, P1, K1, P2tog, K1, P1 Repeat from * around.  5. k2tog, p1, k1, k2tog, p1. 7. k1, P1, k2tog, p1. 8 knit around. 9. k2tog, k1, p1. 10. k2 tog. around.
So, decreases were changed and slower and some knit rounds between decrease rounds were added. So, hat finished at about 8” long, which was perfect for her. I used the sl1, k2tog, psso as my double decrease.