2 hats , 1 pattern

I decided to try my hand at knitting a woolly hat as a Christmas present for my daughters boyfriend. I had some beautiful 100% wool in grey and thought it would knit up wonderfully. As it was my 1st time knitting a hat (and I wasn't planning on selling the hat , just giving it away) I scoured the Internet looking for the perfect easy pattern. 

This web site "Tin Can Knits"  came up trumps for ::: irresistible modern knitting patterns ::: 

They have created The Simple Collection - a 100% learn to knit series, including 8 excellent free patterns and in-depth tutorials.

They say that "Whether you are knitting your first scarf, cozy socks for your dad, or a sweater for your little man, the Simple Collection will teach you all you need to know to make modern seamless knits for the whole family!"

The Barley pattern is the one I decided to use. With a lovely mix of simple garter and stocking stitch , I thought I could just concentrate on getting my gauge right and knitting in the round.

 I started knitting the pattern in the lovely grey yarn , only to be told by my daughter that her boyfriend had a passion for woolly hats , the more colourful the better. It was then I decided that perhaps grey wasn't the best choice.

I started again , rifling through my stash to find a colourful chunky yarn. The only yarn I could find suitable was some Sublime tweedy yarn , a stunning black with flecks of colour in it. I did however find some vibrant left overs of Rowan Big Wool which I thought would make a stunning pom pom for the top of the hat. 

Here are the finished hats. The grey one has now become mine , I love it fits tight on my head with the rim of the hat turned over once or twice. It really shows off the different stitching.

And yes, the pom pom on top of the black hat is huge , but it is LOVED !