PODA is, in a way, the mouse army take on the messy bun hat madness--a wide headband/headwrap/hat with buttons on the side. This chevron-stitched band is a neat way to keep messy hair under wraps, and it can be knit as shown for a slight pixie look and a snailshell silhouette, or knit at a slightly smaller gauge for a narrower band with less of a peak shape at the crown.

Poda makes a nice gift-knit, being relatively quick and low-yardage (knit it in one ball of Lionbrand Amazing or 150 yards of DK-weight handspun singles!), or a good project/accessory for world travelers--you’ll only have to tote around one ball of yarn, and when it’s done, you’ll have a piece that can be worn as a headband or a neckwarmer, and styled multiple ways.

You’ll need:

• Approximately 140 yards of worsted weight yarn (I used Lion Brand Amazing for hasty samples)
• straight needles (or one circular) in size for gauge (most will need to start with US8/5mm)
• 3 large-ish buttons
• a crochet hook in a size that works with your yarn (F-H)
• a tapestry needle for weaving in ends
• optional, depending on the buttons you choose: embroidery thread and a sharp needle for attaching buttons

Keep in mind that I knit a bit loosely when knitting flat, so the needles you see on my sample knit project pages are going to be smaller than what I recommend here. It’s easy to customize and check your size with this project, but gauge is important for yardage estimates, the width of the piece, and making sure you get a good fabric.

PODA: “those who have feet.”
The suffix from the taxonomic class Gastropoda, which is where you find the snails who makes cone-shaped shells, which is a little bit like the shape of this hat. The travel association is accidental.