Modified Beanie for Extra Slouchiness

A while back, the vision of a beanie got stuck in my head—a beanie to go with my open weave Batty Tunic. And as it seems to happen with most sewists, I became distracted by a thousand other projects before finally circling back around to this one, and only because a very random chain of events brought me to it. An Instagram post by Surge Fabrics showing off their pom-poms also mentioned a blog post they’d written a while ago comparing five beanie patterns, which I looked up and read and subsequently downloaded the Dinkytown Beanie to give it a try. Oh, happy little random trains.

About the Fabric

Dug out my Teal Tracks open weave sweater knit leftovers from Boho Fabrics, and my brushed sweater knit leftovers (Cali Fabrics) from my North Pole Poncho.

About the Pattern

The Dinkytown 4-way Beanie can be downloaded for free from Toby K Patterns using a code found in their Facebook group. No, I will not give it away here; be a pal and join their group.

It’s a super quick and easy sew and I think there’s also a version for kids. The faux band created by the shortened lining is clever and gives you varied looks when wearing. And, being lined, it’s reversible. Score.

My Version 1

No fancy edits to this one; I went with a size small and two different fabrics for the main and lining. No fancy sewing involved either; I didn’t finish any seams since they’re all enclosed, and I didn’t serge because I didn’t want extra bulk. The idea of serging that open weave was not appealing, either. So with just my tried and true lightning stitch, construction was quick and easy.

Verdict: It’s cute and comfy, but it wasn’t quite what I was imagining. So for version two, I hacked the pattern.

My Version 2

For this one, I used a size Medium, but also added 3 inches to the length of each pattern piece. I used the same fabric for the main and lining and behold, it is just what I wanted. That extra length was the key for the look I was going for, but also adds room to play if you want to flip up the faux band without sacrificing slouch.

I love it and I’m excited about the prospect of slapping this on to deal with bad hair days or lazy hair days or even good/curly hair days. I think it’s cute regardless. Case in point: today was a lazy hair day and the beanie still shines.

In case you were wondering about the origin of the term “beanie” like I was, here it is. It’s more involved than I want it to be, which is why I’m linking to it instead of typing out my own interpretation. Cliffnotes version: there may be beans involved.

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