There’s something about the cool fall days that brings out the knitter in me. I love to knit and there’s no better time of year to curl up with a ball of yarn and a bunch of pointy sticks. Whether you want to knit an awesome Mountain Nights Toque like the one pictured or a more complicated (but fun) Bloody Stupid Johnson hat, you’re going to need yarn and sticks. Although I can be a bit of a yarn snob, I have to admit that I really like the feel of Lion Brand Wool-Ease. Adding a little bit of wool and a little bit of rayon to the acrylic seems to make all the difference. I made a Harry Potter (aka, Weasley) sweater with Wool-Ease and it’s got a great feel to it. It is usually my choice when making inexpensive hats. You can pick some up at Joann.com – be sure to use the coupon code: PIA342 to get free shipping on your $35 order (exp. 11/15). It’s only $2.99/skein!

I love, love, love to knit hats. They are a fast project – and, unlike socks, you only have to make one of them to be finished! For crochet hat patterns I usually go for the free ones @ CrochetPatternCentral and for knitting I usually go to – you guessed it – KnittingPatternCentral. I also really love Knitty.com a lot!

My favorite needles for hat knitting are Clover, bamboo double pointed needles. I usually knit with 5 when I make hats and avoid the circular needles completely (I save those for my sweaters!). You can pick some up this week from Joann.com on sale!

If you aren’t comfortable yet with dpn’s, check out this awesome video @ KnittingHelp.com. In fact, if you don’t knit at all and have always wanted to learn, I highly recommend KnittingHelp.com. You can easily learn by following the video tutorials and they’re FREE! Gotta run now – I’ve got a hat to knit! You should join me. Or, there’s still time to make a Harry Potter Scarf before the movie next week!