Wolf Beanie

A wolf beanie is a winter piece first and a themed piece second, which is the right order and the reason this group works. A hat that does not keep your head warm is decoration, and nobody wears decoration in February.

The range here is broader than it first appears, covering plain knitted beanies, novelty ear designs, children's sizes and full sets that arrive with a scarf and sometimes mittens as well.

Choosing a wolf beanie for warmth or for looks

These pull in slightly different directions and it is worth knowing which you are buying for.

For warmth, look for a deeper knit that covers the ears fully. A shallow beanie perched on the crown looks good and does very little in real cold, which becomes obvious the first time you wear one at a bus stop. The Adult Lone Wolf Beanie and the Wolf's Head Beanie sit in the warmer camp.

For looks, the novelty designs are where the theme is most obvious. The Wolf Ears Beanie carries shaped ears rather than a printed or embroidered wolf, which is a different proposition entirely and reads as playful rather than as outdoor kit.

Both are legitimate. What causes disappointment is buying a shallow novelty piece expecting it to handle a winter commute.

Sets with scarves and mittens

Several pieces here are not single items at all, and this is easy to miss.

The White Wolf Hat Scarf Mittens arrives as a three-piece set, and the Wolf Fur Hat Scarf and Wolf Beanie Scarf come as pairs. That changes the value calculation considerably, since you are buying most of a winter outfit rather than one item.

Sets also solve a coordination problem. Matching a scarf to a hat bought separately is difficult when both carry a design, and buying them together removes the guesswork entirely.

Worth checking the listing to see exactly what is included before ordering, since the contents vary across the range and the price reflects it.

Children's sizes and what changes

Two pieces here are made specifically for children, the Children's Wolf Hat and the Wolf's Head Beanie For Child, and children's headwear has different priorities to adult.

Fit matters more, because a hat that slips over the eyes gets pulled off and lost within a week. Look for something that sits snugly rather than something with room to grow, since a season of actually being worn beats two seasons in a pocket.

Comfort against skin matters more too. Children are considerably less tolerant of an itchy knit than adults are, and a hat that scratches will simply not be worn regardless of how good the design is.

Ear coverage is the practical priority. Cold ears are what children complain about, and a design that covers them properly is the one that stays on.

Knit, lining and what actually keeps heat in

Not all knitted hats are equally warm, and the differences are worth knowing before you buy for a genuinely cold winter.

Knit density does most of the work. A tight knit traps air and blocks wind, while a loose open knit looks good and lets cold through the gaps. If you can see daylight through a hat held up to a window, it is a styling piece rather than a warm one.

A lining changes things considerably. A fleece-lined beanie is warmer than an unlined one of the same thickness and is far more comfortable against the forehead, which matters for anybody who finds wool itchy.

Depth is the third factor and the most overlooked. A hat that covers the ears fully is dramatically warmer than one that stops above them, because ears lose heat fast and are the first thing to hurt in cold wind.

Colour across the range

Options here cover black, red, beige, pink, navy blue, brown, blue and orange, which is the widest colour choice in our clothing range.

Dark colours are the practical choice for anything worn daily through a wet winter, since they show less and need washing less often.

Brighter options have a genuine safety argument for children, being far more visible on dark afternoons, which is worth weighing against whatever colour a child says they want.

Beige and brown tones are the most adult of the range and the ones that pair best with a wool coat rather than a technical jacket.

Care and keeping the shape

Knitted hats lose their shape faster than they wear out, and that is what to guard against.

Wash by hand in cool water where possible, or on a wool cycle if your machine has one. A standard cycle agitates knitwear enough to stretch and felt it.

Never wring a knitted hat out. Press the water out between towels instead, then dry it flat rather than hanging it, since a wet knit hung on a line stretches under its own weight and never fully recovers.

Store flat rather than stuffed into a coat pocket for months, which sets creases into the knit.

The rest of the winter kit

Our wolf cap collection covers the warmer-weather equivalent, and between the two most people have headwear covered year round.

For the layer underneath everything, our wolf hoodie collection covers pieces that work under a coat, and a hoodie with a plain beanie is a considerably better-looking combination than two printed pieces together.

Our wolf clothes collection holds the full wearable range in one place.