Winter Whirl Colorwork Hat

Originally published on December 10, 2025

There are some projects that begin as a small experiment and slowly turn into a favorite knit. The Winter Whirl Colorwork Hat started out as a simple test of a cast-on technique and ended up as a cozy, quick hat for myself, with a deep double-folded brim, a bold colorwork band, and neat crown shaping.

Winter Whirl Colorwork Hat

How this hat started

I really love knitting hats and experimenting with different techniques. Last year I stumbled across the open cast on and wanted to see whether it was really as game changing as people said. Working it over a cord did make the cast on easier, but it also meant I had to be very careful not to lose that cord while sliding all the stitches back onto the needle - and that happened more than once. That was the moment I realized this method needed a small tweak to suit the way I knit.

Cable-needle “open cast on” tweak

Instead of using a loose barber cord, I now cast on over the cable of a spare circular needle. You cast on over the cable, work your brim, and later simply slide those held stitches onto a needle tip and knit them together with the live stitches from the working needle. This feels much more secure, because the cable cannot just slip out, and it turns the whole process into one smooth, low‑stress step. On my blog there is a full step‑by‑step tutorial for this version of the open cast on if you want to give it a try.

Open cast-on over a cable needle

Brim, fit, and needles

For this hat, the brim was worked over 10 cm and then folded to create a thick, double layer around the ears. That folded depth gives a really snug, cushy feel without being too bulky. I cast on using 3.5 mm needles for the brim to get a firm, stretchy rib so that everything stays nice and tidy over time, and after finishing the brim I switched to 4.5 mm needles for the body of the hat so the fabric could relax a little and drape more comfortably.
My head circumference is 53 cm, and for a hat like this I like a little bit of negative ease so it stays in place throughout the day. I worked with about 4 cm of negative ease, which keeps the hat comfortably snug without feeling tight.

The colorwork motif and stitch count

Once the brim was done and folded, I increased my stitches so that the total number on the needles was a multiple of 20. This way the colorwork motif could run all the way around the hat and meet cleanly at the back without any awkward half repeats.
The chart itself comes from a beautiful free colorwork motif I discovered on Pinterest, with swirling lines that feel a bit like frost or vines. I adjusted it slightly to work with my stitch count and the height I wanted, but the basic idea remains the same: two colors, one light and one dark, creating a crisp band of pattern across the middle of the hat. Because the motif and the crown shaping both come from other designs, this project is not written up as a full pattern, but it does show how you can take a chart you love and blend it into your own construction.

Winter Whirl Colorwork Hat chart

For anyone who would like to play with this motif as well, there is a free colorwork chart available to download alongside this post. It is the same swirling pattern band you see on the Winter Whirl Colorwork Hat, and you can easily drop it into your own favorite hat recipe or use it as inspiration for other cozy winter projects.

Colorwork Chart for the Winter Whirl hat

Borrowed crown shaping and yarn

For the crown decreases I used the same structure as in the Williams Hat, designed by Melanie, because those decreases create a really beautiful star-shaped crown. The lines flow nicely upwards from the colorwork section and draw together in a tidy point at the top, giving the whole hat a very finished look.
The yarn is Drops Nepal, a soft and squishy wool blend that makes hats knit up very quickly and is not scratchy or itchy at all when worn directly against the skin. The heavier weight means the rounds fly by, and the fabric ends up dense enough for winter while still feeling comfortable on the head. Combined with the double brim and the colorwork band, it turns the Winter Whirl Colorwork Hat into a satisfying weekend project that is warm, pretty, and full of small technical details that are fun to knit.

I chose a classic 1x1 rib for the brim, worked over 10 cm before folding it in half. The combination of 1x1 rib and the double layer makes the brim especially stretchy and snug, so it keeps its shape even with lots of winter wear.

Conclusion 

The Winter Whirl Colorwork Hat is a lovely reminder that small experiments can grow into knits we reach for again and again. If you try this colorwork motif in your own projects or have questions about the open cast on, the double brim, or the crown shaping, I’d love to hear from you in the comments. In the new year I’m working on a step‑by‑step guide to help you design and customize your own knitted hats, so keep an eye out if you’re ready to turn your ideas into truly personal designs.

Until then, happy knitting 

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