Esme Hat

Soft, luxurious, and warm, the Esme Hat is sure to be a favorite!

When I knit a hat, one of the first things that I instinctually do when I finish is to try it on. When I tried on the Esme hat, I never wanted to take it off. There’s so many things about this hat to love. I almost don’t want to give it away for Christmas.

Behind the Esme Hat

Inspiration

Right before I knit this hat, I had finished its sister, The Grace Hat. I loved working with this yarn and this pattern so much that instantly I reached for a second color. My brain snowballs when I’m knitting. What I mean by this, is that when I’m working on one pattern, the idea for another often pops into my head and I have to jot it down or sketch it before it floats away.

The Esme Hat was one of these patterns. Though there was little risk of it floating away as it was very similar to the Grace Hat. Not everyone will be a fan of knitting, or wearing, bobbles. So I wanted to offer a second version of this pattern with a more simple or subtle line to break up the chunky knitted cables.

Thus the Esme was conceived.

The Yarn

I’m seriously fighting the urge to go shopping for more of this yarn right now. I have a bunch of others in my stash but the Buttercream Luxe (it truly is Luxe), in Angel Hair is so soft and silky it’s all I want to work with right now.

I can’t come up with a better adjective than silky. It’s so soft in your hands and when you wear it. The Angel Hair would be wonderful in almost anything (sweater, scarf, you name it), which is kind of funny because I held out for a specific pattern for this yarn.

It’s a thicker or chunkier yarn. The weight for Angel Hair is 5. Which makes it a quick knit.

Needles and More

While the yarn label called for a US Size 10 needle, I prefer to size down and used a size 8. This offers a warmer hat that makes it as functional as it is beautiful. There is an increase round after the brim to allot for the shrinkage caused by the cables rather than sizing up to a larger needle for the main section of the hat.

I’m not a huge fan of cable needles. Yes I know that their shape helps safeguard the stitches you have “on hold” while you work the others. To me though it’s an extra step to get them back to where they can be knit. Instead, I opt for a spare Double Pointed Needle or DPN. I often have them on hand which also means that I don’t have to purchase additional needles in various sizes.

A little secret: If you don’t have the exact size Cable Needle and still want to use one, you can use a different size. It’s not going to blow up your project.

Pompom:

I’ve kept the decrease section of the hat pattern short and sweet for a number of reasons: to preserve the pattern in the hat, to make it easier to finish this pattern, and for appearances. That last bit means that this hat looks great with or without a pompom.

If you like me are enjoying the rise of the faux fur pompom, I’ve included instructions for how to make one (or more) in this pattern.

Purchase the Esme Hat from Ravelry.