My father has been asking for a “simple hat” - but he turned out to be the pickiest of the family! Rejected several yarns (how??!), ruling out any brown colour. Also wanted a tight-fitting hat, “nothing fancy or slouchy”.

Well… I hope this works for him! I went with a pattern I had knit previously: Regular Guy Beanie. Began with somber blue-greys and greys, but they depressed me so I frogged.

Then I spotted this gorgeous Twisted Fiber Art evolution yarn (colour way Waterfall) in my stash. I first thought I would incorporate stripes, knitting from both ends of the skein - but I didn’t like the look finally, so I frogged back to the brim.

Final knit? Straight from the pattern, no alterations, straight gradient yarn. Note that I didn’t reach the final colour of the evolution.

For next time: try knitting only 5” from the brim before beginning cast off, especially if the wearer prefers a smaller hat. And if you are in very cold climes, then consider knitting down one size of needle to get a more dense knit. I do find this a smidge large in length, but perfect in brim size.