Find the best yarn for hats here! Whether you are crocheting or knitting a hat, you can’t go wrong with these recommendations.
Are you planning on making a some amazing knit or crochet hats? The yarn you choose can make a big difference in how your finished project turns out. I used to think any ol’ yarn would do for my hat patterns, but I was wrong! Once I started using the right yarn, it made a world of difference!
When choosing a yarn for your knit or crocheted hats, there are a lot of factors to consider. It will depend upon several factors, such as how elaborate your stitch pattern is, how easy the yarn is to care for and how it feels worn on the sensitive skin of the head (especially the forehead – ever worn an itchy hat??).
Wait, Can’t You Use Any Yarn for Crochet or Knit Hats?
While you can use any yarn you like for a crochet or knit hat pattern, there are huge differences in how the finished project looks and feels due to yarn choice.
It’s perfectly okay to use acrylic, wool, polyester and blends of fibers for hats. You can even use loop yarn for a needless hat knitting pattern!
Today we are going to look at some of the best yarns that I have personally used and love for my hats – so you know these are good quality yarns. You’ll find a collection of yarns here that are affordable and work up well in most any stitch pattern.
What to Consider when Choosing the Best Yarn for Hats
Let’s take a look at the factors to consider when choosing a yarn for your next (or first!) knit or crochet hat!
1. How Easy is it to Care For?
If your hat is going to be worn (and, let’s face it, why go to all the trouble making it if no one wears it?!) then you need a yarn that is going to be easy to care for. You might be okay with hand washing your hat when it gets dirty, but I know that’s not something I’m likely to do.
I love to throw my items into the washing machine, so I look for yarns that don’t mind being thrown in with the rest of the laundry. Superwash wool, wool blends, and premium acrylic yarns are all good choices for hats that can be laundered, as you’ll see below.
Acrylics are good because they hold up extremely well to repeated washings, but some people aren’t crazy about the way they breathe (or don’t). If you aren’t sure about the yarn you’re considering, get one skein and whip up a swatch. Then, toss that swatch in the washer and dryer and see how it turns out.
2. What is the Fiber Content?
This really piggybacks on the last question, because the fiber content of the yarn will, in large part, determine how easy the finished project is to care for. When making a hat, you want a yarn that won’t kill your hands while you are making it (not too rough), looks great in your chosen stitch pattern and holds up well to being worn and washed (plus it can’t be too scratchy on the delicate skin of the forehead!).
Let’s take a look at some of the most popular fibers for hats.
Acrylic
Acrylic is wonderful for a lot of uses, including hats. It is machine washable, which is the first important item to consider! It’s also usually inexpensive, so if you are making a hat and scarf set you won’t have to worry about breaking the bank.
Acrylic yarn can be found in just about any color you can imagine, so the sky is the limit when crocheting or knitting a hat out of this fiber! This yarn isn’t too rough on your hands as you work it (unlike some of the scratchy bargain acrylics of the old days!) and it is very durable.
Wool
Another popular choice is wool yarn. This fiber has amazing stitch definition and is super warm. Some people find wool to be itchy or bothersome around their foreheads, so the type of wool yarn definitely makes a big difference. I know, for me, I can wear a 100% wool hat for a while, but eventually I find it itchy.
Superwash wool is machine washable and very durable. I don’t usually use 100% wool for my hats because of the inevitable itchiness, but I know plenty of people who do and love it. I prefer a superwash wool if I’m going to use it, or even a wool blend, as we will see below.
Wool Blends
By adding in another fiber with wool, you will find that the feel of it is much softer on your skin and doesn’t itch like 100% wool. I do like to use wool blends in my hats as they combine the qualitites of wool that I love with the softness of other fibers such as bamboo, alpaca or other natural fibers.
Wool is often blended with synthetic fibers such as acrylic or nylon and this blends the easy care of synthetics with the natural qualities of wool.
What about cotton?
You could use a cotton yarn for a summery hat, but I’m thinking winter hats here, so I haven’t included cottons in the list as I find they are not warm enough. Stick with a wool or alpaca yarn if you are looking for a natural fiber for winter hats.
3. How Much Does it Cost?
Since you are usually not buying a lot of yarn for a single hat, this doesn’t factor in as much as if you were making something large like a blanket or sweater. However, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t care how much the yarn is!
For me, I love it if a pattern calls for a single skein, as I can use up my odds and ends, but I also will go for patterns that use two skeins of a nice yarn, especially for some nice color work.
4. Where Can I Find it?
Sometimes I really just want to feel the yarn before I choose it. Can you relate? I like to squish the skeins and see how the fibers feel against my skin, especially as a hat can be worn for long periods of time.
So as much as I love online shopping, there is just something about being able to handle the yarn that appeals to me. I tend to use yarn that is available nearby, although there are times that I really love ordering online, from places such as Knit Picks/We Crochet.
So while I am providing links to the yarns below, many of these are also available at your local store (think JoAnn or Michael’s, and sometimes even WalMart!) and a lot of times you can use a coupon at the big craft stores or they run sales on yarn! (I love the 20% off total purchase coupons when they run them and sometimes they will have 25% off a certain brand, so be on the lookout for deals!)
5. What Colors are Available?
Color is another choice you’ll have to make when deciding upon a yarn for your hat. The color you choose will play a big factor in how happy you are with the finished product. The color of the yarn is huge to me and definitely affects how happy I am with my finished hat.
If you choose a yarn that doesn’t come in many colors, you’ll be restricted to what color you can create. You should also bear in mind the stitch pattern you’re using. Busy, bright yarns will obscure intricate stitch work, so make sure the chosen yarn and color are appropriate for displaying them. There’s nothing worse than working an intricate stitch pattern only to find that you can’t even really see it because your yarn is too busy (trust me, been there!).
On the other hand, if you are using a simple stitch such as garter stitch or Stockinette stitch or a basic single crochet or double crochet stitch, the yarn itself may be the star and you might want a colorful, striped or crazy yarn.
Best Yarn for Hats (Crochet or Knit)
There are many different yarns on the market that make amazing hats, and it would be impossible for me to list them all here, but these are some of my favorite ones that I have personally used and loved.
I’ve broken them down by fiber type so you can easily choose the yarn that best meets your needs.
Acrylic
Lion Brand Vanna’s Choice
This nice acrylic yarn has withstood the test of time and has been a fan favorite for years! Some of my pals who are die-hard knitters and crocheters swear by this yarn when making any project that calls for acrylic. It’s inexpensive, available in a variety of colors, and has good stitch definition. Not to mention that it’s simple to care for!
Fiber Content: 100% acrylic for most colors, some have a slight rayon content
Yarn Weight: Worsted Weight #4
Yardage/Weight: Varies by style (solids vs prints, etc), but solids have 100g/3.5oz and 156 yards
Care: Machine Wash, Machine Dry
Click here to check out Vanna’s Choice!
Berroco Comfort
This is really one of my all-time favorite acrylics. I remember the first time I saw this in my Local Yarn Store and squished it. I really couldn’t believe it was acrylic!
Even though this yarn is sold in yarn shops and online, it’s an inexpensive yarn. It’s a premium acrylic that doesn’t even FEEL like an acrylic, so be sure to check it out. It is a blend of acrylic and nylon.
Fiber Content: 50% acrylic, 50% nylon
Yarn Weight: Worsted Weight (#4) and it also comes in Sock (#2), DK (#3) and Chunky (#5)
Yardage/Weight: 100g, 210 yards
Care: Machine wash gentle, tumble dry low
Click here to check out Berroco Comfort!
Red Heart Boutique Unforgettable
The color changes of this yarn are absolutely amazing! I created the Unforgettable One-Skein Scarf with this yarn and fell in love. Apparently so did many others because it’s been made almost 100 times with projects on Ravelry! I then had to create a matching hat!
You can find both a knit and crochet version of the scarf I designed with the Petunia colorway of this yarn. (And see the hat here).
Fiber Content: 100% Acrylic
Yarn Weight: Worsted weight #4
Yardage/Weight: 270 yards/100g
Care: Machine Wash and Dry
Click here to check out Unforgettable yarn!
Wool
Patons Classic Wool Roving
If you are looking for a great roving yarn for your hats, this is it! Just like it’s Classic Wool cousin, this yarn is soft and strong. I love the stitch definition that the roving yarn provides, so it’s an excellent choice for intricate stitch work.
Fiber Content: 100% Wool
Yarn Weight: Bulky (#5)
Yardage/Weight: 120 yards/100g
Care: Hand wash and dry flat
Click here to check out Classic Wool Roving yarn!
Swish from Knit Picks/We Crochet
Swish is one of my favorite wool yarns! You can get this yarn in several weights and it comes in a wide variety of colors. Swish is a superwash wool so it can be laundered.
It is made from superfine wool so it has a softness to it unlike a lot of wools. A lot of people who don’t like wool DO like this yarn, so I encourage you to check it out.
Fiber Content: 100% Fine Superwash Merino Wool
Yarn Weight: Worsted weight (#4) but also comes in DK (#3) and Bulky (#5)
Yardage/Weight: 110 yards/50g
Click here to check out Swish Worsted!
Malabrigo Arroyo
I love every colorway and type of yarn I’ve tried from Malabrigo, so one of these amazing yarns had to make the list somewhere!
Arroyo is one of my favorites for hats. It is a superwash wool that can be tossed in the washing machine and it comes in SO many amazing shades. You have to check them out (and the pictures just don’t do them justice!).
Fiber Content: 100% Superwash Merino Wool
Yarn Weight: Sport (#2)
Yardage/Weight: 335 yards/100g
Care: Machine wash and dry
Click here to see all the colors of Arroyo!
Blends
Lion Brand Yarn Wool Ease Thick & Quick
This is really the only super bulky yarn that I regularly use for hats. It has amazing versatility for so many projects, and it really shows off your stitch definition if you pick a color that isn’t too busy.
I’ve used it for both knit and crochet hats and love it so much for both. It does have a wool component, so keep that in mind, but there is also a version that does not have wool that works up just as beautifully.
Fiber Content: 80% Acrylic, 20% Wool (some colors have a slightly different fiber content)
Yarn Weight: Super Bulky Yarn #6
Yardage/Weight: 170g, 106 yards (solids)
Care: Machine washable, tumble dry low
Click here to check out Wool Ease Thick & Quick!
Stroll from Knit Picks/We Crochet
Stroll is an amazingly soft yarn that has a wool and nylon component, making it a perfect sock yarn – but it also does just as well for other projects such as hats.
You can get Stroll in solids, tweeds, tonals, gradients and even hand painted! You’ll have no shortage of ideas with all these gorgeous options. (Shown is the tonals)
Fiber Content: 75% fine superwash merino wool, 25% nylon
Yardage/Weight: 50g, 231 yards
Care: Machine Wash Gentle, Tumble Dry Low
Click here to check out Stroll!
Common Hat Yarn Questions
There are many great yarn options for crochet beanies. I prefer a superwash wool or wool blend for my beanies, but you can also use acrylic or 100% wool with excellent results.
Acrylic is an excellent choice for hats as it is a durable fiber that holds up to repeated washings. Many people find acrylic makes a nice warm hat and there are many today that are very nice, unlike the bargain basement acrylics of the old days. Acrylic doesn’t breathe as well as natural fibers, but most people do not have a problem with the hat being too warm.
There are many soft yarns on the market for beanies. You can use a premium acrylic (not the bargain ones!), a superfine wool such as the ones listed above from Knit Picks, or a wonderful blend of fibers that could include cashmere, alpaca or even bamboo.
A typical 100g skein will be enough to make most any hat, unless you are making a super slouchy beanie, or one with multiple colors. So, if you are making a single-color hat, you are usually safe to go with a single skein if it is a typical 3.5oz/100g skein.
Looking for an awesome hat pattern?
Check out these patterns:
Well, that about wraps it up for our talk about the best yarn for hats. I hope this guide was helpful – and that you’ll give a new hat pattern a try sometime soon!
Happy Knitting or Crocheting!
Amanda
Want More “Best Yarn” Posts? Check These Out:
Best Yarn for Babies (includes choices for baby hats!)
How to Choose a Yarn for Your Next Hat
Learn how to choose a yarn for your next (or first!) hat pattern.
Materials
- Information from yarn labels or online
Tools
- None
Instructions
- Find the yarn label on your yarn or have the information pulled up online for each yarn you are considering.
- Check to see if the yarn is appropriate for the hat you are making. Will the color(s) compete with the stitch pattern? Is it the right yarn weight.
- Check to see if the yarn is available in the color(s) you want.
- Check the care information for the yarn to determine if you will be able to care for it correctly. Check the fiber content as well to ensure it's what you are looking for.
- Check the cost to ensure it's not more than you're willing to pay.
Once you have checked to make sure all of these items fit your criteria, you'll know if the yarn is a good choice for your project or not. It's awesome if you can look at the store and feel the yarn, but if you can't get what you want nearby looking at this information online will help ensure you are getting what you want.