Hats Off (Or Should that Be On?) for Warmth

I have been feeling the desire to knit a lot of hats lately, which is kind of funny because I don’t wear hats all that often. I usually only wear mine when my daughter makes me go out and play in the snow, or the cold, but I have to know I’m going to be outside for more than a couple of minutes to make it worth my while.

Maybe I need some prettier hats (though I do really love the funky flat hat I wear most of the time) to encourage me to keep my head warm. Maybe you do, too. Here are some projects to help all of us out.

The Dibdin hat by Amanda Keep Williams for Berroco uses a fuzzy and warm mohair/merino blend yarn and a relatively easy openwork pattern with a sort of cloche shape. Classic and pretty. Gyr from Berroco (this one is by Brenda York) is an earflap hat with a subtle textured stitch pattern.

Tahki Yarns has a great hat and scarf combo (PDF) by Teresa Chorzepa that uses a casual cable pattern and two strands of yarn held together for extra warmth. For the hat the cable is worked sideways in a band, from which stitches are picked up to form the top of the hat. Their Loretta Hat, worked in a fur-like yarn, is easy but also really dramatic.

Plymouth Yarns has a great little mistake rib hat (PDF) worked in super cozy Baby Alpaca Grande that is sure to keep even the coolest head warm. I actually have a bit of this yarn left over from a sweater I knit so I may be adding this one to my list soon.

The Ombre Pom Pom Beanie from Things We Do is super cute and easy, and a great way to use up bits of bulky yarn you might have lying around.

Mirasol’s Llama Una hat is a pretty two-color hat with a really simple colorwork pattern that makes the hat that much warmer. I love this color combination, too.

Have you knit any hats lately? I’d love to hear about it!

Looking for more knitted beanie patterns for Babies? Check these out on Etsy.

Getting ready for back to school makes me think about pencil crafts, so let’s take a look at some pencil themed knitting patterns!

I recently made a pencil on a circular knitting machine, and it was a fun, quick, easy project that uses little bits of leftover yarn (and if you don’t have yellow you can make it a colored pencil using whatever color’s your favorite). And if you want to make a bigger version check out this pattern from Orange Olive Road on Etsy.

If you want to knit a pencil pillow by hand, check out Sketchy, available on Ravelry from Shana S. Cohen. This one uses worsted weight yarn and has two size options and the choice to make a pencil with an eraser or a colored pencil.

Pencil scarves seem to be the most popular kind of pencil knitting pattern, and there are lot of cute ones. This one from Cosy Craft UK mostly uses garter stitch, with some welts to add texture and what looks like an I-cord edging. It calls for DK weight yarn.

If you want to go all garter stitch try this version from Emsley Co Creations, which uses five colors of DK weight yarn and just a little shaping to make the point of the pencil.

There’s also this fun, mostly stockinette so it looks like it curls a bit, pencil pattern that looks like it’s worked in chunky yarn from Little Knits Studio. This one uses just a little garter stitch and easy shaping for the point.

If you don’t want a pencil scarf, how about some pencil socks? The No. 2 Pencil Socks from The Yarn Enabler are available from Ravelry and use five colors of sock yarn. They feature wide ribs to mimic the texture of a pencil and have options to be worked from the top down or the toe up.

Needs Sharpening by Alexander Walker is a free pattern on Ravelry that uses five colors of sock yarn to make a sort of shortie sock. The little bit of black at the tips of the toes inspired the name. These, too, can be worked in either direction and are available in three sizes.

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