Knittle Ho Need Some Help

Question:

Let's just say--hypothetically speaking, of course--that one wanted to crochet sarongs for two little girls to wear on the beach. And one needed it to be easy and quick because time was of the essence. And maybe one even found a pattern for such a thing (http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/ccc-shawl.html?noImages=), but the pattern was for an adult, not a child. How would one go about reducing the size of the project without messing up the pattern? Any ideas? Would just using a smaller hook do the job?

p.s. I also love this one and am tempted to just buy the darn pattern: http://www.dreamweaveryarns.com/catalog/yarn-over-lounge-beach-sarong-pattern-p-1848.html

p.p.s. And this one, but it would take far more time than I have: http://www.straw.com/cpy/patterns/miscell/waikiki-sarong.html

p.p.p.s. And how cute is this one?! http://www.canadianliving.com/crafts/knitting/knitted_sarong_for_summer.php