I love the texture that slipped stitches give. They highlight yarn's texture and loftiness with larger pronounced lines that stand out from the purl bumps surrounding them. I had some single spun Malabrigo Mecha in my stash that was just begging to be a hat. Named Marlow after my Grandpa, it is a great cozy unisex hat for all ages.

While Mecha is classified officially as a bulky weight yarn, it actually is a bit thinner than other bulky weight yarns and to me is more akin to an aran weight yarn. Because it is a single-ply strand, it has more loft than other tightly twisted aran yarns. I have made this hat using Malabrigo Worsted and Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light held double to create a subtle marl with beautiful results. In this case it is important to work a gauge swatch to double check that your sizing will be accurate.

Using larger needles, this hat knits up lightening quick, I can usually finish one in 1-2 days, and it's just a one skein project. Because the pattern contains sizes infant to adult, everyone is covered in your family or for holiday gifts. It can be be made longer to wear slouchy, or choose to put on pom pom on it (or not), it can be made to your preference.

I've made this hat dozens and dozens of times so far, and I have yet to tire of it! Different enough to be interesting, yet mindless enough for movie watching. My favorite kind of project.

Thanks to my talent cousin Lesley Colvin for the photographs, her children are so beautiful and served as wonderful models. Dear friend Amanda Jane Jones did the graphic design for the pattern, her work is always gorgeous.

Get the pattern here and happy knitting!