Book Review: Knit Hats with Woolly Wormhead

Woolly Wormhead is known for her fun and colorful hat knitting patterns, and 22 of her designs are collected in Knit Hats with Woolly Wormhead.

The patterns are arranged by size/gender: 5 for kids, 5 for men and 12 for women. But of course women would be happy to wear the “men’s” hats, and some of the women’s hats would be great for guys as well. (Having written books I totally understand needing to have some kind of organizing conventions, but it’s still worth noting a lot of these patterns would be nice for a variety of heads and the patterns all give a wide range of sizes.)

The designs are often not what you’d consider traditional. They’re often worked from side to side rather than top down or bottom up. There’s a lot of colorwork, lace, cables and textured knitting.

But if you’re going to knit hats they might as well be fun, right?

Some of my favorites include Scourie, a side to side colorwork pattern with a sort of leaf-shapes design; Chevron, a beanie with a zig-zag textured stitch; and Wychavon, a Garter Stitch hat with a brim that folds up and is held in place with buttons.

You can check out all the projects on Ravelry.

Hats are fun to knit because they don’t take a lot of yarn or time and are a great way to play with new techniques. You will definitely find some new to you options in this book and have a good time keeping everyone’s head warm.

About the book: 136 pages, 22 patterns, paperback. Published July 2021 by Stackpole Books. Suggested retail $24.95.

Next Pattern:

I know that my posts can be read at different times of year and in different years by different people, but as I write this we’re on teh cusp of summer. And I know a lot of people don’t knit as much, and certainly don’t wear a lot of knits in the summer, but I want to encourage you to make and to wear your makes no matter the temperature.

To introduce you to the joys of summer garment knitting, I offer the Tied Vest from Lion Brand Yarn.

This easy project is great to make and wear throughout the year but it’s especially good for summer. It’s worked flat in one piece from the bottom up, mostly in stockinette stitch with a seed stitch edging. The I-cord ties are worked directly onto the garment so you don’t have to sew them on.

The project uses worsted weight yarn, and calls for a blend of cotton and hemp that’s great for warm weather.

There are eight size options, ranging from a finished chest measurement of 35 to 62.5 inches, or 89 to 159 cm. That makes it sound like it should be worn with at least a few inches of positive ease, but the pattern doesn’t specify.

The ties at the front give it a casual look and make it great to wear over a tank top or T-shirt when the weather is warm.

I also think this one would be good to knit in wool or a warmer fiber, too, to make a version you could wear more comfortably in the winter months, too. Though of course you could layer the summer version over a long-sleeved shirt and wear it throughout the year, too.

The tied vest is a free pattern available from Lion Brand. You can also purchase a kit that includes the yarn and optional needles and stitch markers if you need them.

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]

Knit an Easy Hooded Vest

Knit Vests to Help Transition to Warmer Weather

Next Pattern:

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