a wee pineapple hat

This pineapple hat pattern was included in the information guide for the big knit 2010, so I decided to knit it to see whether I liked it. My result earns a thumbs down! There are some obvious problems:

i) Instead of DK, I'm using baby yarn so I definitely need to increase the number of stitches and decrease the needle size to make the fabric tighter and more sturdy. I'm figuring on 30% more stitches on 3 mm needles instead of 4 mm needles based on this chart.

ii) With more stitches I think I may be able to change the stitch pattern for the body of the pineapple to achieve a more architectural effect - something like this maybe?

iii) Now what to do about the leaves? I'm not at all happy with the leaves in the pattern as written. I think I'd better look through amigurumi patterns on Ravelry to see if I can find something more suitable.