Cascade Yarns FW Fingering Wheel of Hearts Beanie Knitting

Wheel of Hearts Beanie by Cascade Yarns

What is Being Made

The Wheel of Hearts Beanie is a women's medium/large fitted hat with an 18-inch circumference, designed by Laura Farson. This intermediate-level knitting project creates a colorful, patterned beanie using stranded colorwork techniques that showcase vibrant geometric motifs inspired by a wheel of hearts design.

Techniques Used

This beanie is constructed using several key knitting techniques:

• Stranded colorwork: The pattern incorporates multiple yarn colors worked simultaneously, with dark yarns carried under or in the left hand throughout the rounds
• Worked in the round: The beanie is knit seamlessly from the bottom up using circular needles, eliminating the need for seaming
• Bottom-up construction: Knitting begins at the cuff and progresses upward to the crown
• Increases and decreases: Strategic increases are worked into the ribbed cuff section, and double decreases are used during crown shaping to create a fitted finish
• Ribbed cuff: The base features a K3, P1 ribbing pattern (with an optional K2P2 variation) that provides stretch and structure

Stitches Used

The pattern employs fundamental knitting stitches combined with colorwork elements:

• Knit and purl stitches: Form the ribbed cuff in a K3, P1 repeat pattern
• Make one (M1) increases: Used to expand stitch count from 148 stitches to 196 stitches after the ribbed section, and again to 203 stitches before the final wheel of hearts motif
• Knit two together (K2tog): Applied during crown decreasing to reduce stitches from 14 remaining stitches
• Slip, knit, pass slipped stitches over (double decrease): A more decorative decrease technique referenced in the pattern notes
• Stranded pattern stitches: The wheel of hearts chart is worked using two-color stranded knitting across multiple rounds, creating the geometric design

Materials and Yarn Specifications

The Wheel of Hearts Beanie is knit using Cascade 220® Fingering Weight Yarn, a premium yarn choice for detailed colorwork. Each skein contains 50 grams (1.75 ounces) and yields 273 yards (250 meters) of yarn. The yarn is composed of 100% Peruvian Highland Wool, providing warmth, elasticity, and excellent stitch definition for stranded patterns.

Six coordinating yarn colors are required, each representing one skein:

• Burgundy (color 2401)
• Orange (color 7825)
• Dark Green (color 9429)
• Yellow (color 7827)
• Light Green (color 8903)
• Pink (color 9478)

Needles and Notions

The beanie requires US #3 circular needles in a 16-inch length, or alternatively a set of four double-pointed needles of the same size. Additional notions include seven stitch markers for tracking pattern repeats across the seven sections of 28 stitches, and a blunt sewing needle for weaving in yarn ends and cinching the crown.

Gauge and Sizing

The pattern is worked at a gauge of 18 stitches over 2 inches in the stranded pattern, which is essential for achieving the correct finished dimensions. The beanie begins with 148 cast-on stitches and increases to accommodate the colorwork sections before decreasing at the crown to create a fitted silhouette.

Gauntlets/Fingerless Mitts by Cascade Yarns

What is Being Made

The Gauntlets, also called Fingerless Mitts, are a coordinating accessory to the Wheel of Hearts Beanie, designed by Laura Farson. These fingerless hand coverings feature the same stranded colorwork design and are knit as an intermediate-level project using matching yarn colors and construction techniques.

Techniques Used

The gauntlets employ similar advanced knitting methods