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Marja Niemi and Outi Elina Kansanen have many things in common: a friendship born at their shared workplace, a love of handicrafts, and trauma from knitting at school.

‘After all the test knitting, the woollen socks I made in primary school still turned out to be doll-sized, even though they were supposed to fit my feet,’ laughs Niemi.

‘I remember at that time the stiches were added with yarn overs, leaving horribly ugly holes. The sweater I knitted in high school was also a terrible experience,’ says Kansanen.

Now, the trauma is a distant memory. The duo is sitting on a bench at the Maarintie 8 building at Aalto University, knitting needles in hand, talking about their love of the craft.

‘Knitting relaxes you and helps you concentrate,’ says Niemi. ‘You can knit in any state of mind and anywhere. Although my spouse tried to tell me that I couldn't take my yarns and needles on our biking trip, I knit on a raft in the breeze - and it made waiting for the raft much more enjoyable.’

Knitted with thick yarn, the colorwork hat is straightforward to make if you have at least some previous knitting experience. For beginners – or people who’ve been traumatised in school craft lessons – Niemi and Kansanen recommend a plain-coloured hat instead.

Knitting with heavier yarn and matching circular needles is quick and rewarding, and YouTube is full of good tutorial videos.

‘It's worth choosing a yarn that feels good in your hand and inspires you. You can invest a little in the yarn, because if your knitting fails, you can always pick it apart and start over,’ says Niemi.