Winter is just around the corner — which beanie are you rolling with?

It’s that time again: the leaves are falling, the football season is in full swing, and, inevitably, beanies are about to become an indispensable part of your everyday wardrobe. Like a warm blanket for your dome, a good beanie is a comfy piece that can also tie together your fit during the cooler winter months. And by creating a custom beanie with CapBeast, you’re setting your look apart even more. To help you avoid having to default to that nondescript toboggan you grab out of your winter clothes box every year, we’re rounding up four of our favorite beanies and throwing them into a Super G race to see which one finishes first. We’re starting by giving you a quick history of the beanie, then lining up some of our favorite styles, giving you customization ideas, and then crowning a winner. 

A Brief History of the Beanie

There’s a lot of debate about how the beanie got its name. Some contend it came from the old slang word for head, “bean,” while others say it’s a reference to the bean-sized button on the top of the hat. Whatever the case, beanies — also called toboggans, skullcaps, or toques — haven’t always been a mainstay of cold weather wardrobes. Initially worn by blue-collar workers who needed practical headgear, they were first sported in a casual manner by college students in the first half of the century, eventually becoming more of a hazing ritual than a fashion statement. They were again briefly popular with artists and beat poets in the ‘60s and ‘70s, but were mostly in and out of style until the ‘90s, when they began fashionably warming the heads of supermodels, rappers, and sports stars, thus ensuring their role as a staple of winter wardrobes in the decades since. 

The Contestants

If you’re looking for variety when it comes to keeping your head toasty, CapBeast has you covered with four very different high-quality beanies. With so many options, there’s something for everyone. 

CUFF KNIT BEANIE HAT | '47 BRAND

This is an all-purpose, anytime beanie — perfect for not only your pond hockey game, but also beers at the pub afterward. The ’47 Cuff Knit has a super warm and comfortable acrylic material that looks and feels fantastic, along with a cuff style that allows you to wear the beanie several different ways; and it comes in three classic colors: charcoal, navy, and black. At $35, this is the priciest of our contenders, but that legendary ’47 quality and the versatility of this beanie make it more than worth it. 

 

BEANIE TOQUE - 12" | CAPBEAST

 

It wouldn’t be a CapBeast beanie if it wasn’t ready to be completely personalized. The 12” Toque is the most customizable option on this list due to its plethora of color choices, including forest green, navy, and black heather. The beanie’s acrylic fabric is more than enough to protect you from the elements, and the hem can be easily folded to accommodate any head size. We love the snug fit of this beanie, the low price (at $24, it’s the most affordable hat on the list), and, obviously, the camo options. 

 

BEANIE HAT | CHAMPION

Super light and incredibly soft, Champion’s beanie is so ridiculously comfy, you’ll forget it’s on your head. At $30, it’s a solid mid-range option; and you can get it in 7 different colors, including heather gray, scarlet, white, and navy. We love the premium feel of this beanie — an ideal mix of lightweight materials and sturdy construction — and who doesn’t love that Champion logo?

 

BEANIE HAT | NEW ERA

We give this one props for being the absolute warmest piece of headwear we have in our rotation at the moment. The acrylic shell of the New Era beanie is lined with a crazy comfy polyester fabric that keeps the heat from going anywhere. The mixture of both 1x1 and 3x3 rib knit gives this beanie some added texture and creates a perfect canvas for any kind of design. Plus, you can get it in black, red, deep navy, pink, or gray, so matching with that new ski jacket is going to be a breeze. We like the warmth and quality of this one (the New Era logo says it all); and, at $27, we love the price. 

How to Style Your Custom Beanie

Whether you’re looking to create a minimalist, low-key toque or a loud, vibrant statement piece, you’ve got a myriad of options. Our embroidery experts are at the ready, prepared to stitch almost anything you can come up with. There are just a few things you’ll want to keep in mind. 

• Bold is better – Thick letters and large graphics are going to stand out when stitched onto your beanie. Make sure you’re not using small text or fine lines that might not show up as well. 

• Stick to solid colors – We can use up to 15 different thread colors to craft the piece of art that is your custom beanie. This means you can get incredibly creative — just avoid using graphics with gradients, which don’t lend themselves to the embroidery process as well.  

• Tweak your text – With a ton of different formatting and font options, you can create dynamic, eye-catching text quickly and easily.

Choosing the right beanie is the first step in bringing your vision to fruition. Need schwag for an upcoming event? Throw your company name on the front of a CapBeast 12” Toque and thank us later. Have an outdoor brand? Utilize the cuff of the ’47 Cuff Knit by having our experts stitch on a clean geometric emblem for an understated, classic style. Need to outfit a hockey squad? Trust us, your team’s logo is going to look dope next to that New Era logo. And if you just want to showcase your personal style, the Champion Beanie will look fantastic with a simple graphic you’ve designed yourself.

The opportunities are endless, so start putting together your own custom beanie today. Take a look at our Do’s and Don’ts to get a better idea of how to customize your beanie; and browse CapBeast’s beanie selection to get some inspiration and see for yourself how simple and fast the process is. 

The MVP 

All of these options are amazing, but which of our beanies is the GOAT? We have to go with the next-level coziness and unique construction of the New Era Beanie. Like we said, though, you can’t go wrong. And with a custom beanie from CapBeast, you have the ability to pair high-quality headwear with an incredibly versatile customization process that lets you bring almost any idea to life. We won’t blame you if you want to wear your custom beanie through the summer. 

-Christopher Adair