Spring has officially sprung! The slight break in weather that makes it not quite warm yet but not freezing anymore, either, has arrived in the northeast and it makes me want to knit a veritable army of lightweight, slouchy, spring-appropriate, one-to-go-with-every-outift hats.

Photo copyright Kelly McClure. Click for pattern page.

I think the slouchiest of all slouchy, lightweight hats has to be this Sockhead Hat pattern by Kelly McClure. It’s free and utterly simple but really effective, too, knit with a great stripey skein of sock yarn. Quite frankly, 4500+ Ravelers can’t be wrong — this is a great hat. I’m planning to knit one in a skein of Blue Moon Fiber Arts BFL Fingering in one of Tina’s nifty Tipsy Clan colorways.

Photo copyright Hunter Hammersen. Click for pattern page.

Not surprisingly, one of my must-knit-someday hat patterns was designed by Hunter (I just love everything she does). I knit a couple of pairs of her Fracas Cuffs a while back (oh dear, a year ago already?!) and really like how the lace pattern translates to the brim of this Fracas Hat. It’s sweet, simple, and brimming (pun accidental but I like it) with springtime freshness.

Photo copyright Brooklyn Tweed / Jared Flood. Click for pattern page.

This hat — Norby designed by Gudrun Johnson — is so texture-iffic, I love it. The sample shown is knit with Brooklyn Tweed Loft, which we’ve talked about before. I bet it feels velvety, fuzzy, and cohesive and is probably plenty warm for those days when March might behave more like the lion than the lamb. I can absolutely picture this knit with handspun and check out this great striped version, too.

Photo copyright Coop Knits. Click for pattern page.

Confession time: this is the hat that inspired this entire post. It’s the Bedale pattern from Rachel Coopey’s new book Toasty Knits Volume 1. I love the color choices and the classic yet geometric shapes created by the all-over colorwork. On the pattern page you’ll see it with a big ol’ pom pom on the top, which is kind of irresistible. The yarn used in the collection sounds really interesting, too: Titus by baa ram ewe. It’s a blend of wool from two British breeds (Wensleydale and BFL) with some UK-raised alpaca added for softness. It sounds delightful and I’m itching to get my hands on some…

Photo copyright Kelbourne Woolens. Click for pattern page.

I couldn’t resist showing you one more hat! This is another lovely little colorwork number, Selbu Modern designed by Kate Gagnon Osborn. This one is knit with an alpaca, merino, bamboo blend which is likely providing that great drape. It has such a gorgeous, romantic feel to it that I think is really enhanced by the light, neutral colors.All of the hats in this post were knit with fingering or light fingering yarns, so I’m definitely going to be inventorying my sock yarn stash to see what I can delegate to headwear instead of footwear! How about you? Have you a favorite springtime hat pattern? What’s been inspiring you, lately? Let us know in the comments below!