Review: Margeau Chapeau: A New Perspective on Classic Knit Hats

I really love knitting hats. I don’t wear hats enough to justify how much I love knitting hats, but at least every year I have to knit myself a new one.

hat knitting patterns called Margeau Chapeau

They’re a lot of fun because you can use all sorts of different techniques on them, they feel a little more sophisticated skill-wise than scarves because there’s usually a little shaping, but they are relatively small projects that you can finish faster than a shawl or sweater. And because they’re an accessory, you can get a little wild with color and style in a way you might not with something you wear more often.

Margeau Soboti loves hats, too, especially in classic shapes with a twist. Her book has 14 patterns, 7 each rated easy and intermediate. There are cables, brioche, ribbing, simple colorwork and easy shapes using bulky yarn for projects that are fun to knit and finished in a flash. All are sized for women, with one also having an option for men.

I love Optical, a two-color beanie sized for women that uses a simple stitch pattern and is highlighted by a giant pompom; Twist Turban, a super simple project that is just what it sounds like; Charlie Chevron, a slouchy hat worked in one color with a textured zig-zag pattern; and the Ombre Hat, worked in two colors that shift through the knitting for a look that’s more fun than basic stripes. You can check out all the projects on Ravelry.

This book offers a lot of great basic hats you’ll want to knit and wear every day. That makes it sound boring, but it’s really not. These patterns are a great combination of luxury and simplicity, ease and style you’re sure to love for yourself and for any gift knitting you might want to do. Those turbans could be my go-to gift knit this year.

About the Book: 78 pages, paperback, 14 patterns. Published by Dover Publications, March 2016. Suggested retail $16.95.

Knitting and travel are two hobbies that are highly compatible. Travel often involves waiting or time spent on planes, trains, boats, etc., time that can easily be filled by knitting, a portable and productive craft you can do most anywhere (and yes, you can take your knitting on a plane most of the time).

Krista Ann combines knitting and traveling regularly and ended up visiting every continent in 2022 with her knitting needles along for the ride. The Wandering Knitter explores travel, knitting and learning new knitting skills no matter where you are.

This isn’t a book for beginners, but if you’ve wanted to learn techniques like brioche, cables, lace, colorwork, mitered squares and short rows, there’s a set of more beginner level patterns followed by ones that are bigger, more detailed or required a little more skill. For example a brioche washcloth is the beginner pattern, while a brioche sweater (with unexplained exceptionally long sleeves) is the stepped up project. A basic mesh lace scarf becomes a more complex lace kerchief. A giant mitered square cowl graduates to a mitered square tote bag.

Interspersed among the patterns are essays about traveling to different continents and what she saw there. There are also tips for traveling with your knitting and tips for reading charts, but no tutorials for knitting skills (other than a written explanation of how mosaic knitting works).

Some of the projects would be useful to have when traveling, such as fingerless gloves, a warm headband or a colorwork hat. The travel angle is an interesting hook for a book, but I would have enjoyed essays more about specific incidents or shopping for yarn in a different country or something more than the general essays about things she’s liked and places she’d like to go back to.

Still, if you’re looking for a skill building book that doesn’t focus on the basics but gives you some wearable, attractive accessories, this book is a good one to check out. Just maybe make the sleeves shorter if you knit the sweater.

About the book: 128 pages, paperback, 20 patterns. Published 2026 by Quarry Books. Suggested retail price $24.99.

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