Easy Ribbed Hat with Variations

I donate a lot of my crochet pieces to charity and wanted a versatile hat pattern that would work up quickly and be suitable for both men and women. I found some patterns for double crochet (DC), but thought the ‘holes’ were too large, and some worked in single crochet (SC), but they didn’t have much stretch to them. I put on my Goldi-locks and found that something in the middle worked just right – the half double crochet.

This pattern can be started with a longer chain for a hat that can be folded up at the bottom (like the forest green one in the photo), or the shorter length with no brim. Make a solid hat in a dark color for a man whose work takes him out in the cold, or a brighter version in stripes or flecked yarn for a woman or teen. A bright orange hat would make a thoughtful gift for the hunter in your life.

Worked in a basic half-double crochet stitch in the back loop only, I can crochet at least two of these hats in a single evening. It’s simple enough that even a beginner with crochet hook in hand can make a hat in a few hours.

Easy Ribbed Hat Pattern

Abbreviations:

Ch = chain
HDC = half-double crochet
BLO = back loop only

The basic directions are for the shorter version that isn’t turned up at the bottom.

Foundation: With size I crochet hook and worsted weight yarn, ch 35.

Row 1: HDC third ch from hook, HDC in each ch across (33 HDC). Ch 2, turn.

Pattern row: HDC in first stitch, HDC in BLO of each stitch across, ending with regular HDC in last stitch (33 HDC). Ch 2, turn.

Note: Working first and last stitch in both loops rather than BLO helps prevent curling.

Work pattern stitch for approximately 40 rows. Fold the piece and slip stitch through top stitches the full length of both first and last row. Leaving a tail of approximately 18″, cut the yarn.

Finishing: Thread tail of yarn onto a large needle and weave through every few stitches at top of hat, going completely around until you end where you started. Pull yarn taut to gather tightly. There might still be a small opening at the top of the hat, so take a few more stitches going from the top of one side of the opening to the other and pull tightly. Work a few stitches to hide tail and cut yarn.

Variations of Basic Ribbed Hat Pattern

For the rolled brim version, chain 41 and work pattern row of 39 HDC stitches across for 42-44 rows for a man’s hat.

For the striped version, work two pattern rows of each color, or vary the width of the stripes like those pictured by alternating four pattern rows of one color and two of a contrasting color. Stay with an even number of rows for each color so that the color changes all end up at the same end.

Bonus: If crocheting the striped hat, carry over the yarn rather than cutting at the end of each color change. When gathering the hat at the top, make sure that the extra bits of yarn carried from one color change to the next are on the inside and they’ll be hidden when you pull to gather. No ends to work in!

You may link to this pattern in an article or blog post, giving me proper credit, but please don’t post the pattern itself. You may print one copy of this pattern for personal use, but if sharing the pattern with friends, please send them the link to the pattern instead of making printed copies. You may sell items made from this pattern, but please don’t sell the pattern. If you are a member of Ravelry, feel free to post your projects made with this pattern.

More from Marie Anne:

Learn to Crochet: What Type of Yarn Should I Buy?
Learn to Crochet: What Size Crochet Hook Should I Buy?
Learn to Crochet: Should I Buy a Kit?