Hello! Nicolina here with a very beginner-friendly hat pattern! I am totally new to making hats and these are the first ones I have ever made. These are perfect for anyone that is new to crochet in general and wants to start with a smaller project. Instead of working in the round, these hats are made by making a simple rectangle, then sewing the sides together and gathering the top.
Materials
for one adult size hat
Patons Shetland Chunky Tweed Yarn (75% Acrylic, 25% Wool, 100 g/ 3.5 oz, 136 m/148 yds)
3 skeins Aran, Rich Teal or Pewter
Size J/6mm hook, scissors, tapestry needle
Pom pom maker
Stitches
Half Double Crochet (HDC): Yarn over, insert hook into designated stitch, yarn over and pull a loop back through, yarn over and pull through all three loops on the hook.
Half Double Crochet Front Bottom Loop: Work as a normal half double crochet, except insert your hook underneath the front bottom loop that faces you as you work across the row. (Video below)
Pattern
How to determine hat size:
The best way to make sure your hat fits is to make your base chain the same length as the tip of your nose to the crown of your head. You are making this hat lengthwise, so the length of your base chain will be your hat height. You can also use the chart below for some standard head sizes to measure your chain.
Make a base chain that measures the same length as your desired hat height. For adult size hat: Chain 52 (or 60 for a slouchier look—see the Rich Teal colored hat for appx. 11 in x 19 in hat, 8 inches tall when you fold up the brim).
ROW 1: Starting in the 3rd chain from the hook, work a half double crochet (HDC) in each chain. (A HDC is YO, insert your hook, pull up a loop, YO, pull through all three loops on your hook.) Chain 2 and turn.
ROW 2: HDC across the row, inserting your hook up through the front bottom loop only. (The turning chain does not count as a stitch, so your first stitch should be worked directly into the first front bottom loop of the row below.) Chain 2 and turn.
Repeat row 2 until your rectangle measures about 3 inches less than the diameter of your head. For example, I have a 23 inch diameter head and I made the width of my rectangle 20 inches, which ended up being 65 rows of the front bottom loop HDC.
After I worked my 65 rows, I chained 1 and turned along the side of my work. I worked a HDC slip stitch along the side so that the brim of my hat would be a little straighter when I folded it up. This is optional, but if you do want to add it, a HDC slip stitch means you YO, insert your hook, pull up a loop, then pull directly through the two loops on your hook.
After adding the border on the side, I tied off and left myself a really long tail (probably about 15 to 20 inches). I used the tail and a tapestry needle to sew the two sides of the rectangle together, making sure that the straight edge of the HDC slip stitch I just did was facing outward. When I finished sewing the sides together, I used the rest of the tail and my tapestry needle to weave in and out around top of the hat, pulling it tight as I went to gather it together.
If the part about sewing up the sides and gathering the top doesn’t make sense, here is a video clip to show you what I mean!
After gathering the hat I finished weaving in the tail and attached a homemade pom pom. I have a large pom pom maker from a craft store. Make sure to leave yourself a long enough tail to securely weave the pom pom into the top of the hat. 
Thank you so much for coming to read this pattern, I hope you enjoy making this hat! When you’re finished, please come share a picture with us on Facebook or Instagram, we’d love to see! xo, Nicolina
Here’s my friend Hillary wearing the hat I made for her!
Click here or on image below for printable pattern
