Have you ever wanted to learn how to knit a hat but do not know how? Do you live in a cold place where you can never have enough knit hats to cover your head? Do you need to constantly keep your head warm and covered with a cozy, homemade knit hat? Are you willing to try new things and have an interest in knitting? Do you need a homemade gift idea to make for your family and friends?
Then this blog is for you!
Here we will explain and unfold three different ways on how to knit a hat.
That way, when winter comes knocking on your door, you will be more than prepared with a knit hat for everyday. Even your family and friends will all be prepared for that cold bite with warm and homemade head socks.
Let us be real – who does not enjoy a warm and cozy knit hat on their head when it is cold outside?
The answer is no one.
So go ahead, commit to knit. The following are different types of ways divulging how to knit a hat.
Knitting can be a challenge, especially if you are new to the art form. With our guidance, however, we will make sure you have all the tools, supplies and instruction you need to learn to knit your own accessories. There are many different ways to knit a hat, but all of the different ways to knit a hat require the same basic supplies.
These supplies include knitting needles, yarn, scissors, stitch markers and measuring tape. Let us talk about knitting needles. Knitting needles come in all shapes and sizes and these different needles will regulate the way your stitch will come out. Most knitters typically use circular knitting needles for hats.
- Knitting needles
- Yarn
- Scissors
- Stitch markets
- Measuring tape
As far as sizing, US #8 is the most standard size of knitting needle that can be used to knit a hat. Anything up to a US size #10 will be perfect for knitting a hat. Circular shaped needles will be the easiest to use for bigger items, such as hats. You will also need a crochet hook or darning needle for finishing up your hat at the end of your project.
Now to the fun part – YARN!
For a hat, you should only need one ball of yarn. Make sure it is reasonably thick, as it will be the material keeping your noggin nice and warm. For beginners, use a thicker yarn, because it is easier to handle and will take less time. If you are a more experienced knitter, you can choose whichever yarn you would like to use to knit your hat.
Make sure to check the yardage of the yarn you are buying. If you are using a worsted weight yarn, you will need between 150 and 300 yards of yarn. If you are using a bulky weight yarn, you will need 125 to 200 yards of yarn. Other necessary supplies needed to knit a hat include a pair of scissors, stitch markers or safety pins and measuring tape.
This is the most important step to ensuring that your knit hat comes out perfectly for the recipient of your hat. Do not skip this step because if you do not measure your head or the person’s head you are knitting a hat for, it might not fit and you have wasted your time and resources.
Measuring a head is very simple. Measure from the forehead all the way around your head. The starting point for a perfect fit is to measure the head of the person you are knitting for. It is important that the tape measure goes around the widest part of the head. For the hat height, measure from the crown of the head to the base of the ear for winter hats. Also, take into account the stretch of your yarn. For example, 100% cotton yarns have very little stretch, but acrylic yarn has a lot of stretch.
Average hat circumference sizes for newborns are 11.5 to 13 inches, for babies three to six months 12.5 to 14 inches, for babies six to twelve months 14.5 to 16 inches, for toddlers up to three years 16.5 to 18 inches and for children three to ten years old 17.5 to 19 inches. For pre-teens and teens, hat circumference is typically 19 to 20.5 inches. In adult women, hat circumference sizes are on average 20 to 21.5 inches and for adult men are 21.5 to 23 inches.
From your measurement, knit one swatch and see how many stitches there are per inch. Multiple the measurements of your head by the number of stitches needed per inch. Let us say that your measurement was 22 inches and you stitches four stitches per inch. You would multiple 22 inches by 4 stitches and get 88 stitches. This is the number of stitches you will use at the base for your knit hat.
Just remember, yarn stretches easier than it shrinks, so it is better to have a little bit smaller of a hat than a bigger one!
A cast on knit is one of the most simple and easy ways to knit a hat. If you have never knitted before, this tutorial might seem foreign to you. Use this guide to help you learn the basics of knitting before you commit to knit a hat. You will cast on the amount of stitches that are necessary for the base of your head. If you are using our example above, you will need to knit 84 stitches for your base round of stitching.
With your circular stitching needle, you can easily join your cast on stitches in the round – just be careful not to twist your stitches! If you twist your stitches, you cannot go back and fix them and will have to start from scratch. The next step is just keep on knitting. You will keep knitting around and around until your hat is at the height you desire. The circular needle is perfect for hats, because it creates a hat brim that rolls automatically. You will need to make the hat a bit longer to accommodate the loss of length due to the auto rolling of the brim.
Next up, you must start decreasing your hat. The decreasing of the stitches is how your hat achieves its ‘snug’ feature. You will place stitch markers or safety pins every eight stitches. When you arrive at two stitches before the marker, decrease your stitch. Decreasing your stitch in the knitting world means to simple knit two stitches together at once. You will continue this pattern, decreasing every go around. Feel free to adjust your needles accordingly to personalize your hat size for your or the recipient of the hat.
You will know to cut your yarn when you have just four stitches left on your needle. Snip off an extra amount of yarn to work with when you are on your final step of knitting the hat. Usually, this length ends up being about twenty inches long. The next step is to remove your needle and pull the loose yarn through the remaining stitches one at a time. This is how your hat becomes tightened as you slide the needle out. You can hide the extra yarn by grabbing the loose end and pulling it down through the top of your hat utilizing your crochet hook. You can also hide the extra ‘tail’ by weaving it through the hat.
This style of how to knit a hat is used with a straight needle of 10mm or US size #15 and (4) medium weight/worsted wright yarn and Aran (16-20 stitches to four inches) and a yarn needle. The gauge will be three stitches per one inch. Using your two strands of worsted weight and size 10mm needles, you will cast on (learned above) 20 stitches. Knit every stitch across the row and repeat this step until the rectangle is long enough to wrap around the lucky recipient’s head.
Cast off the knit and then bring the first and last rows together and sew up the seam to form a tube like shape. Using your yarn needle and the end of the yarn, you will weave through a row of stitches, approximately one inch from the end. Gather up to the close of the top of your hat and form a ruffle-top on the creation. It will take several stitches to secure. To finish the product, fasten off and weave all yarn ends into the finished work!
Knitting can be a daunting and intimidating task to conquer, especially if you are new to knitting. I found this blog super helpful to answer questions about knitting that come up constantly during the process. Refer to it throughout your knitting experience to help smooth out any kinks and assist in helping you through the process. The key to successfully knitting is to just commit to knit!
Know that it might be a difficult, grueling and time consuming learning process, but that it is also so worth it when you see yourself or your loved one wearing a hat you created all on your own. It will take an extreme amount of patience and a lot of Netflix binging before you are confident in your knitting abilities, but just know you are not alone.