Pattern Help

[Nexis]

I am crocheting a beanie.  The pattern says that I should have a 7" height and a 21" circumference by the time I am finished. My finished product is only 6 1/4" high and about 3" shy of 21" for the circumference.  I am using Encore-worsted weight yarn and the yarn says to use a H hook but I am using a J already and don't know what to do to get the results I need.  I didn't think my tensions was that tight.  The pattern is from a charity that is called "The Magic Yarn Project".

[redrosesdz]

It sounds to me like you need to do a gauge swatch.  Using the same yarn and hook and pattern, crochet a flat swatch that is at least 5" x 5".  Measure the middle 4" to get how many stitches across and how many rows are in that 4 inches.  This will tell you what your gauge is.  From there you can figure out how many rows you need to get 7" and how many stitches you need to get 21".

 

Once you know how many stitches and rows you'll need, increase the pattern slowly.  Add the number of extra rows. You may be able to add 1 or 2 patterns to get the stitch count.  If not, then hide increase stitches in each row.  Make sure that you do an even number of increases and that they're spaced evenly or your beanie will be lopsided.  It's hard to make a suggestion on how to increase, without knowing the pattern.

 

The other thing you can do is to practice loosening your crocheting.  When you insert your hook and draw through the loop, it's called the "golden loop."  Increasing that loop loosens crocheting, and vice-versa.  Personally, I bring up the golden loop to different heights, based on the stitch.  For an SC, I bring up the loop enough so that my hook is parallel with the top of the stitch and the loop is past the hook's throat, making the loop 1 chain high.  For an HDC and a dc, I bring it up slightly higher, about 1.5 chains high. For a TC, I bring it up even higher, about 2 chains high.  Doris Chan has a great article about "lifters" vs "riders" vs "yankers."  Google "crochet golden loop", "crochet tension", etc.  There's a ton of information out there. 

[Granny Square]

The diameter times pi = the circumference (head size), and you are closer than you think.

 

21" divided by 3.14 is 6.69", or 6 2/3" more or less.  A 7" diameter would give you 21.98" dircumference, which is pretty big for a woman's hat, because most patterns (if the stitch pattern stretches) assumes the hat would be an smaller than the head by an inch (or more, I've seen knitting patterns assume 4-5" smaller).  

 

You might achieve that extra fraction by ripping out the last couple of rows and re-making with the next bigger hook size if you are using DC.  Another round would make it too big.  If you are using SC, replacing the last round with DC might work, too.

 

If you were off by more than that little fraction, you could add a round with 1 more plain stitch than the prior round between the increases (unless the rest of the hat is a complex pattern, in which case you don't want to mess with the stitch count).

 

Head sizes for reference

http://www.bevscountrycottage.com/size-chart.html