The back view of Marina, a white woman, wearing a creamy white hand-knit hat with a subtle herringbone texture around the brim. Blue sky and countryside fields are blurred in the background.

Hedge and Wall herringbone textured hat knitting pattern

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Please note: This listing is for a digital PDF download of the knitting pattern only and does not include the materials to make the item.

The Hedge and Wall hat is designed to be worn in chilly, wet weather. What makes this hand-knit hat wonderfully weatherproof is slightly felting and shrinking it after it’s knitted. 

Hedge and Wall is worked in the round from the bottom up, with a tubular cast-on for a neat, stretchy edge. It begins with a dense herringbone brim, which looks very different on both sides, so you have the option of wearing it long or with the brim folded back for a closer fit. The main part of the hat is knit in stockinette.

I designed this hat to be felted, so the knitting pattern comes with two sets of measurements and two gauges to knit to. 

My Westcountry collection of knitting patterns

This knit design is part of From This Land, a capsule collection of 5 knitting patterns, using undyed yarns from local farms in the South-West of England. Each design is inspired by a visit to the farm the yarn is from. 

For the Hedge and Wall Hat, I worked with Lydia of Lower Hampen Farm in the Cotswolds, who keeps a flock of rare breed Devon Closewool sheep. The hat uses the soft, creamy DK that is far gentler than expected from a breed often labelled as “good for outerwear”, and a joy to knit with.

Design inspiration

The inspiration for this knitting pattern came from a damp, windswept day spent visiting Lower Hampen. I wanted to create a hat that would keep out the rain and block the chill of the wind, which led to the felted version with its dense, protective fabric. The herringbone stitch recalls the sturdy Cotswold drystone walls and thick hedges that divide Lydia’s fields. 

About the collection

Thanks to South-West England Fibreshed for partially funding the development of this collection, which also includes a stranded colourwork tank top, a textured scarf, colourwork mittens and a cabled cardigan.

Sizes: 1 (2, 3, 4, 5) 

For a guideline on sizing, the sizes given should fit 1: toddler/small child (2: child/tween, 3: adult small, 4: adult large, 5: extra room if you have a lot of hair/cerebral capacity!)

The hat is shown in size 3 after wet finishing, worn with 4 cm / 1.5” negative ease.

Measurements:
Before wet finishing

Circumference: 43 (49, 55.5, 61.5, 67.5)cm / 17.25 (19.75, 22.25, 24.5, 27)”

Height: 17.5 (19.5, 22.5, 25, 27) cm / 7(7.75, 9, 9.75, 10.5)”

After wet finishing

Circumference: 40 (45.5, 51.5, 57, 63)cm / 16 (18.25, 20.5, 22.75, 25.25)”

Height: 17 (19, 22, 24, 26) cm / 6.75 (7.5, 8.75, 9.5, 10.25)”

Yarn: Lower Hampen Farm DK(200 m per 100 g skein, 100% Devon Closewool, semi-worsted spun)

45 (60, 80, 95, 115) grams / 90 (115, 155, 190, 230) metres

For felting the hat, a non-superwash animal fibre yarn is essential.

Gauge: 

Before wet finishing: 23 sts x 30 rounds = 10 x 10 cm / 4 x 4”  in stockinette (in the round)

26 sts = 10 x 10 cm / 4 x 4”  in herringbone stitch  (in the round)

After wet finishing: 26 sts x 31 rounds = 10 x 10 cm / 4 x 4”  in stockinette (in the round)

28 sts = 10 x 10 cm / 4 x 4”  in herringbone stitch  (in the round)

If you’re planning on felting your hat, I highly recommend making a swatch and felting that, using your chosen method, measuring it before and after to check shrinkage. You can also use a lighter-weight yarn on smaller needles to match the ‘after wet finishing’ gauge to get the intended finished sizes without having to do any felting.

Needles:
Cast-on needles: 3.25 mm / US 3 circular needle, 40 cm / 16” length (or needles 2–3 sizes smaller than main needle)

Stockinette needles: 3.75 mm / US 5 circular needle, 40 cm / 16” length (or needle size that gives correct stockinette gauge) plus preferred needles for smaller circumferences

Herringbone needles: 5 mm / US 8 circular needle, 40 cm / 16” length (or needle size that gives correct herringbone stitch gauge)

Notions: Scrap yarn, stitch markers, darning needle for sewing in ends.

Buy it with

need some yarn?

You can pair this knitting pattern with my hand-dyed Mendip yarn, spun locally and hand-dyed by me in Somerset.

Get Mendip 4-Ply

Get Mendip DK

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