Thorndale

Thorndale Hat by Martha Wissing Designs

What is Being Made

Thorndale is an intermediate-level knitted hat designed by Martha Wissing and available in four sizes: Child, Adult Small, Adult Medium, and Adult Large. The finished hat features a circumference range of 16 to 22 inches and a length of 7 to 9½ inches, making it a versatile accessory suitable for various head sizes. This design showcases a distinctive multi-color textured pattern while maintaining a classic hat silhouette.

Construction Method

The Thorndale hat is knitted in the round from the bottom up, a popular construction technique that creates a seamless, tubular garment. This method allows knitters to work continuously in circular rows, eliminating the need for seaming and creating a smooth, professional finish. The bottom-up construction makes it easy to try on the hat as you work and adjust the length to your preference.

Stitch Techniques and Pattern Details

The signature feature of this hat is the Thorn Stitch pattern, a multi-color textured design that is surprisingly simple to execute despite its visually striking appearance. The pattern is created using strategic decreases and slip stitches, with each round worked in a single color. The construction employs k2tog (knit two together) and ssk (slip, slip, knit) decreases to shape the pattern and create the distinctive thorn-like texture. This clever use of basic decreases demonstrates how fundamental knitting techniques can be combined to produce complex visual effects.

Yarn and Materials

The Thorndale hat is designed to work with DK weight yarn, a lightweight yarn that creates a fabric with good drape and structure. The sample shown uses two specific yarns: Brew City Yarns Impish DK in the colorway "Can't Stop The Signal" for the main color, and Anzula Cricket in "Black Cherry" for the contrast color. Each yarn is available in 100-gram handballs with yardage of 230 yards and 250 yards respectively. The pattern is economical with yardage, requiring only one hank of the main color and less than 25 grams of the contrast color to complete both the Child and Adult Small sizes shown.

Needles and Tools

This pattern calls for a 16-inch circular knitting needle in size 7 (4.5 mm), or the size needed to obtain the specified gauge. Circular needles of this length are ideal for knitting hats in the round, as they accommodate the decreasing number of stitches as you progress from the brim to the crown while maintaining control and even tension throughout the project.

Skill Level and Suitability

Thorndale is rated as an intermediate-level knitting project, making it suitable for knitters who have mastered basic techniques such as casting on, knit and purl stitches, and working in the round, and are ready to explore more advanced stitch patterns and decreasing techniques. The combination of slip stitches and strategic decreases requires attention to pattern instructions, but the repetitive nature of the Thorn Stitch makes it an excellent project for building confidence with texture-based pattern work.