How to Make a Homemade Crocheted Slouch Hat!

I learned to knit and crochet when I was young. For some reason I always thought that knitting was much more legit so I did the majority of my projects with the double needles of death. It shouldn't have come as a surprise that everything I tried to make would take weeks and some things would never even be completed. This became evident a few nights ago when I had to call my mom on speaker phone and have her remind me how to finish your last row, because I hadn't actually completed anything I'd started knitting in so long. And that about sealed my fate to forever be a crocheter. It is quicker, easier, a breeze to transport and it is the way that I throw together the hat I'm about to explain.

You will need yarn and a crochet hook. Please learn to chain, double crochet, increase and decrease.

Hi Bethany! (Photo by: Ashley Long)

Chain on about 60 or however many it takes to loop around the circumference of your head or the head of who will be wearing this hat.

Double crochet a second row, beginning at the first chain loop, thus connecting the two ends and making a circle. You will be crocheting in a circle from now on.

Double crochet rows continuously until you've achieved a nice inch-or-so long band. At this point you could tie off and have a nice headband. Or,

Increase by adding a stitch every 10 loops. I do this by picking up the front stitch, double crocheting it, then picking up the counterpart back stitch and double crocheting it. Some people do this by adding a chain loop after the double crochet which you'll pick up next row. Either way, do this for about the same length as the band you've just completed. This will give the hat its token slouch. For a slouchier hat continue for longer, making the hat nice and large.

Double crochet, neither increasing nor decreasing, until your hat is reaching the size you'd like it at. This might translate to 30 odd rows, or more, or less.

Decrease by double crocheting two loops together, every 10 stitches. If this doesn't appear to be finishing the hat off at the rate you'd like, you can decrease every 8 stitches or even every 5, whatever appears to be creating the shape you're going for. I often begin at decreasing every 10, then end up decreasing much more often - every 4 or 5 usually. Continue until you have only 10 stitches left.

Draw string your last 10 stitches together by cutting your string off (leave half a foot for good measure) and pulling it through each loop, from top to bottom, then pulling the string tight. This will close your hat. Tie off and re-tie off just to be careful. Hat complete!

Did something go wrong? Common problems include making the original circumference too big or small. If this is the case, give the hat away as a gift and next time pay extra attention to the stretch and flexibility of your yarn of choice. Also sometimes the hat's inner volume is too small for your head, next time add many more rows and you won't have this problem. I've also run out of yarn before the hat is complete - Tie a piece of similarly coloured (or heck - totally differently coloured) yarn and continue on as usual.

Canadian winters are cold. Don't be caught without a homemade crocheted slouch hat!