Loom Knit Hats & Hats Knit with Knitting Needles

I wanted to make some hats quickly to donate, so I thought I would buy a set of round looms for knitting that come in 4 size looms. The round looms will knit size newborn to adult, depending on the size loom chosen. I made one newborn size (the smallest loom), a couple of adult sizes (the largest loom) and a couple in the second largest size, which can fit a teen or smaller adult head (like mine).

Well maybe it's me, but these hats didn't knit up as quickly as I thought or as others online said they would. Most people say it takes about an hour to make a hat. Well the newborn hat was quick to make, but the 2 largest size loom hats took me hours to make! 

Loom knitting uses bulky weight yarn (or 2 strands held together of a worsted weight yarn to = a bulky weight yarn). The knitting on the loom is easy to do, but I found hurts my hands after a while, especially holding the largest loom. It also uses more shoulder power as I was using my entire hand and arm to lift the yarn over the pegs. I came to the conclusion that my regular knitting on knitting needles is much more satisfying and easier on my body. Plus, if I knit normally in a bulky weight yarn, it knits about as quickly as loom knitting.

There are certainly pros and cons for loom knitting versus knitting needle knitting. I will list these below. This is only my personal opinion after having tried loom knitting and you may be a die hard loom knitter, so please continue loom knitting if that is your thing.

Loom Knitting versus Knitting Needle Knitting 

 Pros of Loom Knitting:                                     

1. Easy to do for the basic knitting
2. Quick to learn the basics
3. Loom set of 4 is inexpensive
4. No need to knit a gauge first, just choose the size round loom that will knit the size hat you desire

Cons of Round Loom Knitting:

1. Hard to hold and use for long periods of time
2. Harder on your body to knit, especially for long periods of time
3. Knitting other stitches is awkward and more tedious to do
4. Takes up more room to store than knitting needles
5. Awkward to take with you to knit when traveling or in a group
6. Only uses bulky weight yarn
7. Hats are less fitted on the top as there are no decreases (yarn is drawn together like a drawstring bag, leaving the top looking bunched)
8. Will only knit in the round (I am sure you can probably knit back and forth instead of round and round, but could be harder to do?)
9. The hook tool can sometimes be hard to lift the yarn over the peg

Pros of Knitting with Needles:

1. Knitting needles come in a ton of various sizes, lengths, materials (wood, nylon, bamboo, metal, aluminum and plastic) and types (straight, circular, double pointed)
2. Easy on your body to use as you mainly use your hands and you can bring your hands close to your body so as not to stress your arms and shoulders
3. Can use any size/weight of yarn (just need to choose correct needle size to yarn weight
4. Portable to take with you when traveling on a plane, car, etc. and to a knitting group
5. Can knit dozens of different patterns for texture
6. Can knit in the round or knit flat, depending on what you are making
7. Needles don't take up as much space unless you own hundreds of needles, but even then you could place them all in a small box or bag

Cons for Knitting with Needles:

1. Must knit a gauge for anything that needs to fit, such as a hat, sweater, mittens, etc.
2. More expensive if you will knit using various yarn weights, since you will need to have the correct size needles 
3. Needs more tools such as a yarn gauge, stitch makers, stitch holders, cable needle, etc.
4. Knitting in the round requires either double-pointed needles in various lengths, or 2 circular needles in the same size, or one long circular needle (doing the Magic Loop method), which means buying or having a lot more knitting needles on hand
5. Costs more money due to the variety of needles you need to have and the tools you need to have on hand

Again, those are only my opinion and I have been a knitter using knitting needles for a much longer time, so perhaps I see the advantages of knitting needles more than as a beginner Loom knitter?

I knit this hat using knitting needles. It was a cable knit hat, but because this is a bulky weight yarn that was very soft and fuzzy, the cable stitches really didn't show up. I knew better, but I guess I wanted to knit this hat anyway.

Another fuzzy yarn that I knit with knitting needles, but no cable stitches.

These are my first two loom knit hats. I started with the smallest round loom and knit the baby hat on the left. Then I knit the largest round loom in red yarn (I doubled a worsted weight yarn) and folded up the cuff and knit it in. I think I should have knit more rounds before making the cuff.

This yarn is bulky with a sparkle to it, but not bulky enough, so I added a fuzzy yarn and knit both together. I loom knit this hat. The double weight was harder on my hand s to loom knit.

You can see the sparkle and fuzzy yarns together here, even though the sparkle doesn't quite show as well on camera.

I used a double yarn of worsted weight to create a bulky weight and loom knit this hat. I let the bottom curl on this one, rather that make a brim.

I only had a bit of the purple yarn (leftover from the first hat above), so I knit the brim in purple and then added the black yarn to finish the hat. This is loom knit.

My last 2 loom knit hats together. 

I will go back to knitting needle hats for now, but it's nice to know I can easily knit a loom hat when I want to. Do you have a favorite method of knitting or do you have a favorite look?

I donated these hats, along with other scarves and hats I had knit to the Giving Tree at the local library to give to the local food banks. 

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