Eight Literary Hats You Can Totally Crochet Yourself
Posted by
Kristina Pino
Crocheters of the world, take heed! You don’t need Funny Hat Day as an excuse to look for new ideas. Browse no further than this handy list of literary hats and their corresponding online crochet patterns. The best part? You don’t need to be kid-sized to wear the finished products in the case of nearly every listing here. (Since one of my goals for 2013 is to improve my beginner-level crochet skills, I don’t have any patterns of my own to share, but I’ve got no problem highlighting the work of other brilliant yarnworkers).
Sherlock Holmes’ Deerstalker Hat
For those of you feeling a bit more mysterious, or even ingenious, you can download a free pattern designed by Colleen Sullivan (pictured above) and impress your friends with your elementarily excellent needle-ship. If you’re really really into the idea of solving mysteries, you could try out this advanced-rated pattern with no photo of what the finished product should look like. Are you game enough to find out?
The Cat in the Hat’s Hat
This is, perhaps, one of the most iconic literary hats in history–it’s right in the title! Dr Seuss’ famous Cat in the Hat character wears one of the goofiest hats around, and you’re just a few quick stitches away from joining him. Rebecca Goldsmith has an excellent pattern for sale at the Desert Diamond Etsy shop that comes with instructions on making the hat in four differnet sizes.
The Mighty Thor and/or Loki
If you’re feeling a little more brawny and enjoy the stories of Thor in comics and folk legend, here’s a pattern for a simple Thor’s helm that will be a real lady-catcher. For fans of more elaborate patterns and evil villains, there’s a fantastic pattern designed by Chelsea Spangler up for sale at the Etsy shop MirthTones.
The Sorting Hat
Does this one even need an intro? This hat could practically introduce itself. The funny and ultra-wise Sorting Hat from the Harry Potter series is perfectly captured by Allison Hoffman in this pattern featuring the Hat’s characteristic face. Though this pattern is only kiddo-sized, the expression on it is too magical not to share.
The Mad Hatter’s Hat
Alice in Wonderland is one of the most famous pieces of literature of all time, but it’s still firmly entrenched into pop culture. And it’s got one awesome, unmistakable hat-based character: the Mad Hatter himself. Here’s a free pattern created by Renske of Fun and Fang, and another for sale on Etsy designed by Sandy Powers.
Willy Wonka’s Hat
Though it isn’t exactly a silly hat, Willy Wonka’s top hat is definitely an important part of his official outfit. I found one neato pattern by Sharon Mann that can be adjusted for various head sizes and extra, silly things like crazy hair. Overall, it’s cute, and I could totally see Mr Wonka rocking a handmade hat to work.
Mother Goose
You might not think about Mother Goose much unless you’re a toddler (or the parent of one!), but it’s hard to forget her awesome, pointy hat. This one’s slightly tricky since you don’t want to be mistaken for a witch, but there are also several variations to the overall look and style that you could probably work to your advantage. For the pointy hat-type look, there’s this pattern from Crochet Dynamite. For the bonnet look, you’re pretty much stuck with patterns for little ones, but hey: they’re MG’s biggest fans anyway.
Batman’s Cowl
Since we included Thor earlier, I’m rounding this off with the Dark Knight himself. Besides, Bats has shown up in plenty of trade paperbacks–and he’s nothing without his hat. Though many excellent hat-making tutorials exist, I narrowed it down to just one, and mainly because the pattern (created by Carm) isn’t for a simple mask – it also straps under the chin. Also, for those of you sultry ladies who want to dress as Catwoman, there’s an equally lovely pattern for her trademark ears, created by Lisa Payne.
That about tops it off! Did I leave anyone out? What other famous, literary characters wear iconic hats that you could make a project out of?
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