Hair in a ponytail and a hat on top? We all know it’s annoying. That’s where the Hobo Hoodie comes in handy. It’s designed for those times when you want to pull the hood over your head as needed, and otherwise, it wraps around your neck like a cowl.

You can knit this hood with almost any yarn, as long as you achieve the same gauge as specified in the instructions. Feel free to use leftover yarn because you’ll need just under 200 meters / 218 yards of a single strands. You have a wide range of possibilities: knit the hood with multiple strands of lace-weight mohair, double-strand it with thicker mohair, or mix almost any compatible yarns. I personally enjoy the touch of luxury of it, so my beige hood is worked from cashmere and baby alpaca, while the white one is made from a silk-merino blend and baby alpaca. If you have single skeins in your stash, explore your stash and combine them effortlessly!

The pattern allows for two different styles of hoods: if you don’t have enough yarn, keep the ribbed edge simple. If you have enough yarn and want a sportier look, fold the edge and knit an i-cord that you can thread through. I even added golden stoppers to add a touch of sparkle to my own hood.

Knitting the hood is straightforward: it’s worked in basic ribbing and brioche stitch, starting from the neck and going towards the crown. The trickiest part is at the crown, where shaping is achieved with German short rows. However, you’ll surely manage it, as common sense goes a long way, and every row is meticulously detailed. This hood is a comfortable and quick project to work on when the chill hits!

Tip: If you want to make a tighter balaclava, use thinner yarn and smaller needles.

WHAT YOU NEED
Yarn:
Beige hood with basic edge ribbing without ribbon:
50 g of Laines du nord Cashmere (100% cashmere – 25 g = 100 m/ 109 yd), color beige, and 50 g of Flutter by Amirisu (65% baby suri alpaca, 18% silk, 17% merino – 50 g = 175 m / 191 yd), color nougat.
White hood with folded edge ribbing and ribbon:
50 g of West Yorkshire Spinners Exquisite 4PLY (80% wool, 20% silk – 100 g / 400 m / 437 yd) and 50 g of Flutter by Amirisu (65% baby suri alpaca, 18% silk, 17% merino – 50 g = 175 m / 191 yd), color marshmallow.
The ribbon was worked with white base yarn only.
OR: Approx. 180 m / 196 yd of any waste yarns that goes to gauge and look good. You might use heavy mohair as the only strand – then the hood will feel super light on your shoulders – combine it with fingering weight yarn or add 2 lace weight silk mohair strands to fingering weight base yarn – just make a swatch to try out your scraps and go with the result you prefer! Note that different materials stretch differently in use. For example, 100% cashmere gets loser than yarns that have some twist on them.
Needles: 4 mm (US6) and 5 mm (US8).
Gauge: 11 sts x 17 rows = 10 cm / 4” of brioche.
Notions: 2 removable stitch markers, tapestry needle, stoppers if you prefer.
Technique: The hood is worked from neck to forehead. First, cast on the sts for the neck and work it round in ribbing. Then work the hood in brioche flat, work smooth crown decreases with short rows and last pick up the sts from the edge and work the ribbing band.

*
The pattern is in English.