I made my brother a Howlcat for Christmas, and it turns out that he loves it. He was a real ham for the camera. 
Howlcat can be worn as a cowl or a double thick hat. This is good for my brother, Charlie, because he lives in Minnesota. That seems like a complete frozen tundra to me since I live much further south in Arkansas. Just thinking of those winters makes me shudder. 
Charlie requested “a hat that actually fits” for Christmas this year, as two previous attempts were not large enough for his 23.5″ noggin. For this hat I added 10 extra stitched to the width, and a full inch to both sections.
I used some Cascade 220 Superwash in Summer Sky and some Knit Picks Essential Solids and Twists in Brown. Both are washable, which is a good thing for those that aren’t wool aficionados by nature. The hat took slightly less than one ball for each. 
It was extremely gratifying to see him wear it for hours each day at my parent’s house from the time he opened the package until we parted ways a few days later. Christmas gift success!
More examples to come soon…
Best kind of gift-giving: when you know it’s just right for the recipient! Cute hat/cowl, and your brother definitely is a ham.
Love the color combination and love silly siblings. 🙂 Glad the gift was such a hit!
LOVE that hat/cowl. You’ve inspired me to knit that one too! Your brother is a hoot! I’m so glad he liked it!!!
This is one clever hat/cowl! And your brother looks so happy that you can’t stop smiling while looking at these pictures! 🙂
Heeheehee! He looks like he loves it! Great gift!
Fantastic! (both the project and your brother) You’ve inspired me to get the pattern and make a few for next year.
He is quite the ham. What a great, knitworthy brother! I have to agree with you on the MN winters – no thank you! It’s a wonderful hat though.
I also love the howlcat ! made one already and will do some more 😉