How to Crochet a Chunky Beanie

US crochet terms throughout. Sizes here are worked out from gauge rather than from a finished sample, so swatch and measure as you go, and the pictures of finished pieces are illustrations. Made one? Send a photo through the contact page.

A winter hat fails in one of two ways. It slides off because the brim is too loose, or it leaves a red line because the brim is too tight. Chunky yarn hides uneven stitches and works up fast. It does not hide a brim that was never measured, or a body that flares out above the brim like a chef’s hat.

That flare is the mistake this page is built around. The brim is worked sideways in rows, then the body is picked up along its edge. The brim’s length is counted in rows, and the body is counted in stitches, and the two are almost never the same number per inch. Pick up one stitch per row and the body comes out the wrong size. Below is how to work out the right count.

US terms. US single crochet is UK double crochet. Abbreviations. The pictures are illustrations. No hat for this page was crocheted or worn. The example gauges are invented to show the arithmetic.

An oatmeal chunky crochet beanie with a folded brim — Illustration. A bulky hat with the brim folded once.

Measure the head

Measure around the head just above the ears and across the forehead, where the hat will sit. A hat stretches, so it is made smaller than the head. About 2 inches smaller is a common starting point. With very stretchy yarn that may be too little. With firm yarn, 1 inch is enough.

Then measure the depth. Run the tape from the bottom of one ear, over the top of the head, to the bottom of the other ear, and halve it. That is roughly how far the hat needs to reach from the brim edge to the crown, with the brim folded the way it will be worn. Treat it as a guide, not a rule, because a slouchy hat is deeper on purpose.

Children’s heads are not small adult heads. Measure the child.

The example: a 22 inch head, so a 20 inch hat.

Yarn and hook

A skein of bulky oatmeal yarn and a large hook — Illustration. Start with the hook on the label, then swatch.

Bulky yarn, weight 5 on the yarn weight chart.
The hook printed on the label, often in the US L to N range (8.0 to 10.0 mm). Hook chart.
Yarn needle, scissors, tape measure.

Two swatches, two gauges

You need two numbers, so make two small swatches or one swatch with two parts.

Body gauge: 12 sc for several rows. Measure stitches per inch. The example uses 2.5.
Brim gauge: 8 sc wide, about 15 rows in back-loop single crochet. Measure rows per inch, relaxed. The example uses 3.

Back-loop rows squash together into ridges, so the rib’s row gauge can be very different from the body’s stitch gauge. That difference is the whole reason for the next section. Gauge.

The worked example

A sideways ribbed brim is counted in rows and the body in stitches. The example brim is 60 rows for 20 inches at 3 rows per inch. The body needs 50 stitches at 2.5 stitches per inch, so work 5 single crochet over every 6 row ends, skipping one. One stitch per row would make 60 stitches, a 24 inch body that flares. — Work out the body count from the body gauge, then spread it along the brim's row ends.

Step	Arithmetic	Result
Hat	22 in head − 2 in	20 in
Brim rows	20 × 3	60 rows
Body stitches	20 × 2.5	50 sts
Pick-up ratio	60 rows for 50 sts	5 sts over every 6 rows
Crown	50 − 5 per round	9 rounds to 5

The crown decreases in groups of five, so a body count divisible by 5 makes it neat. If yours is not, round to the nearest multiple of 5.

Stage 1: the brim

Ch 1 does not count as a stitch.

A ribbed oatmeal crochet band — Illustration. Back-loop single crochet makes the rib. The band is flat.

Chain 9.

Row 1: Sc in the 2nd chain from the hook and across. Ch 1, turn. (8)

A foundation chain of 9. The chain nearest the hook is skipped and the first sc goes into the 2nd chain from the hook, so row 1 has 8 sc. — Step 1. Chain 9 for an 8-stitch brim. The chain is the brim's height, not the hat's width.

Row 2: Sc in the back loop only of each stitch. Ch 1, turn. (8)

Two steps. 1: the top of each stitch has a front loop, nearer you, and a back loop, farther away. For the rib, insert the hook under the back loop only. 2: the front loops left behind form a raised ridge on every row. The fabric stretches across the ridges, in the direction the rows stack up, so a band worked sideways stretches around the head. — Back loop only on every row from row 2 makes the stretchy rib.

Repeat row 2 until the band, relaxed, measures the hat size. In the example, about 60 rows. Then wrap it around the head. It should feel snug and stay put without pressing. Add or remove rows until it does, and use that row count.

Eight stitches at 2.5 per inch make a band about 3.2 inches tall, about 1.6 inches folded.

Bring the first row up to the last without twisting the band. Seam the short ends. That seam marks the back.

Stage 2: pick up the body

Join yarn at the seam on the row-end edge that will sit above the brim. The opposite row-end edge remains the lower brim; if the brim is folded, the fold runs halfway across its eight-stitch depth, not along the pickup edge.

The hat body worked upward from the brim — Illustration. The body is worked in the round from the band.

Round 1: Work the body count evenly into the row ends. In the example: (sc in each of the next 5 row ends, skip 1 row end) 10 times. Join. (50)

If your numbers do not divide as neatly, work out how many row ends you have for each stitch you need and skip as evenly as you can. Count at the end. The count matters more than perfect spacing.

Even rounds: Sc in each stitch. (50) Join each round, or spiral with a marker.

Try it on with the brim folded. Measure your round gauge too. The nine crown rounds add about 9 divided by your rounds-per-inch to the fabric length. Estimate that allowance, then start decreasing before the overall brim-to-top target is reached. Crown fabric curves inward, so baste the last opening and try the hat on before fastening off; if it is too deep, undo some even rounds. Do not use a fixed one-inch allowance for every gauge.

Stage 3: the crown

Each round removes 5 stitches, which keeps the crown nearly flat in single crochet.

The crown of the hat decreasing inward — Illustration. Decreases pull the top closed.

Round 1: (Sc 8, sc2tog) 5 times. (45)

Crown round 1: 50 to 45, drawn as rings from the center out. Body: single crochet, 50 stitches. Crown 1: (sc 8, sc2tog) 5 times, 45 stitches. — Step 3. Five decreases a round, spaced evenly, keep the crown flat.

Round 2: (Sc 7, sc2tog) 5 times. (40)

Round 3: (Sc 6, sc2tog) 5 times. (35)

Round 4: (Sc 5, sc2tog) 5 times. (30)

Round 5: (Sc 4, sc2tog) 5 times. (25)

Round 6: (Sc 3, sc2tog) 5 times. (20)

Round 7: (Sc 2, sc2tog) 5 times. (15)

Round 8: (Sc, sc2tog) 5 times. (10)

Round 9: Sc2tog 5 times. (5)

The crown by stitch count, as bars sized by stitch count. Round 0: 50, Round 1: 45, Round 2: 40, Round 3: 35, Round 4: 30, Round 5: 25, Round 6: 20, Round 7: 15, Round 8: 10, Round 9: 5. R0 is the last even body round. Each crown round removes 5. — Step 4. The crown by stitch count: 50 down to 5 in nine rounds, then the gap is closed with the tail.

For another count that is a multiple of 5, start with the round whose repeat matches: 55 stitches starts with (sc 9, sc2tog), 60 with (sc 10, sc2tog). Thread the tail through the last 5 stitches, pull closed, and weave it down inside. A knot on the crown shows through bulky yarn.

Choose one round convention and keep it

For joined body and crown rounds, ch 1 does not count, start in the same stitch as the join, and join to the first sc after each round. For a spiral, omit both joins and ch 1 and move a marker into the first new stitch. Choose before picking up the body; do not switch midway without noting it. The example pickup is fifty stitches across sixty row ends, five stitches per six-row group. Mark ten groups to distribute it. Body stitch gauge, brim row gauge, and body round gauge are separate measurements; all three affect fit.

Troubleshooting

The body flares out above the brim. One stitch per row end. Pick up by the body gauge.

The body pulls the brim in. Too few stitches picked up. Recount.

The rib spirals. The band was twisted before seaming. Open the seam and resew.

The top stays a tube. The crown decreases were skipped.

Loose on the head. The brim was measured stretched. Measure it relaxed.

Covers the eyes. Too many even rounds, or the brim is not folded. Stop sooner.

Care

Bulky hats hold water. Squeeze, do not wring. Dry flat with the brim unfolded. Check the label before machine washing or drying.

Frequently asked

Will one count fit every adult?

No. Measure, swatch, then calculate.

Can I add a pom-pom?

Yes, after the crown is closed. Sew it on firmly. Glue lets go.

Can I skip the fold?

Yes. Stop the even rounds sooner so the hat does not cover the eyes.

Can I use worsted with these counts?

No. Worsted has more stitches per inch. Swatch and redo the arithmetic.

A band with no crown is the ear warmer. Picking up stitches along an edge also comes up in the fingerless gloves.