Feb
When I Actually Made These Things
So back in March 2023 my sister told me she was pregnant and I immediately panicked because I knew everyone would expect me to crochet something. I made like three newborn hats that month trying to get one that didn’t look weird. The first one was way too big, honestly could’ve fit my cat, and the second one was so tight I’m pretty sure it would’ve given the baby a headache.
The thing is, nobody really tells you how small newborn heads actually are? Like you think baby, you think small, but then you make something and it’s still too massive. I ended up measuring one of those small cantaloupes from the grocery store because I read somewhere that’s about the right size and honestly that helped more than any pattern.
Yarn Stuff You Gotta Know
I used Red Heart Soft Baby yarn for most of them because it was at Walmart and I was already there buying other stuff. It’s actually pretty decent for newborns because it’s not scratchy. I tried using some fancy merino wool once that cost like $15 a skein and yeah it was soft but the baby spit up on it immediately according to my sister so maybe don’t invest too much money.
Bernat Baby Blanket yarn is really popular but honestly it makes HUGE stitches and the hats end up looking kind of chunky. Good for bigger babies maybe? But newborns just disappear in them. I stick with the lighter weight stuff now, usually a 3 or 4 weight yarn works fine.
You want probably 50-80 yards total for a basic beanie, maybe less if you’re doing preemie size. I always buy two skeins though because running out of yarn halfway through is my personal nightmare.
The Basic Pattern I Use (Sort Of)
Okay so I don’t really follow written patterns anymore but here’s what I do. Start with a magic circle, which I know sounds complicated but it’s literally just wrapping yarn around your fingers in a weird way. There’s videos everywhere. Make like 8 or 10 double crochets into that circle, pull it tight.
Then you’re gonna increase in a spiral. Round 2 is two double crochets in each stitch, so you end up with 16 or 20. Round 3 is increase, then one regular stitch, increase, regular stitch, all the way around. Round 4 is increase, two regular stitches, increase, two regular stitches. You see where this is going.
The annoying thing is deciding when to stop increasing. For newborns I usually do like 5 or 6 rounds of increases until the circle is about 4.5 inches across. Maybe 5 inches if it’s gonna be a bigger baby but honestly you’re just guessing unless you have the actual baby in front of you.
The Sides Part
After you get the circle the right size, you just stop increasing and crochet around and around without adding stitches. This makes the sides of the hat. For newborns maybe 3-4 inches of straight sides? I usually hold it up next to my phone because my phone is about 6 inches tall and the whole hat should be like 5-5.5 inches total.
I was watching Love is Blind while making one of these and completely lost count of my rows, so now I use stitch markers every 5 rounds or I just tie a piece of different colored yarn in there to keep track.
What Actually Annoyed Me
The most irritating thing about making baby hats is that they work up so fast you think you can just crank out a dozen of them, but then you have to weave in the ends and that takes forever. Well not forever, but it feels like it when you’ve already made the hat in 45 minutes and then you spend 10 minutes weaving in two yarn ends.
Also people always want them in pastel colors which is fine but pastels show every single mistake. That one stitch where your tension was off? Visible. That spot where you accidentally skipped a stitch? Everyone can see it. Dark colors hide everything, but try telling someone you want to give a newborn a black beanie.
Variations That Actually Work
You can add a brim by doing the last few rows in single crochet instead of double crochet, makes it less likely to roll up. Or do a ribbed brim with back loop only stitches but honestly that’s more work and babies don’t care.
Bear ears are cute and super easy, you just make two small circles and sew them on top. I made one with ears for my friend’s baby and she sent me photos of him wearing it for like three months straight, so that felt pretty good actually.
Top knot hats are having a moment I guess? You just don’t close the magic circle all the way or you make the hat taller and then gather the top and tie it. Looks fancy, takes the same amount of time.
Stripes
If you want stripes just change colors every few rows but here’s the thing, you’ll have SO many ends to weave in. Like I said before that’s the worst part. Maybe carry the yarn up the inside instead of cutting it each time? I’ve done that but it can look messy if you’re not careful.
Sizing For Different Ages
Newborn is like 4.5 inch diameter circle with 4 inches of sides. 0-3 months you’d go bigger, maybe 5 inch circle with 4.5 inches of sides. 3-6 months is bigger again but honestly at that point I just make a hat and hope for the best because babies grow at completely different rates and—wait I should probably give you actual measurements.
Preemie sizes exist too which is sad to think about but necessary. Those are like 4 inch circles with 3.5 inch sides. Super tiny. I made one once for a NICU donation and it was smaller than my fist.
Dealing With Pattern Problems
If your hat is too pointy at the top, you didn’t increase enough in the beginning rounds. If it’s too flat and wide, you increased too much or for too many rounds. If it looks like a pancake, same problem.
When the sides are too loose and floppy, either your tension is off or you need to go down a hook size. I use a 5.0mm hook with worsted weight yarn usually but sometimes I’ll use 4.5mm if I want it tighter.
Too tight and it won’t fit over the baby’s head, which seems obvious but I’ve done it multiple times. Babies have bigger heads than you think in terms of circumference even though they’re small overall? That doesn’t make sense but you know what I mean.
Practical Stuff Nobody Mentions
Wash the hat before you give it to anyone. Yarn has weird factory stuff on it sometimes and also it helps you see if the colors are gonna bleed. I made a pink and white striped hat once and didn’t wash it first and apparently the pink bled onto the white parts after the first real wash. My sister was nice about it but I felt dumb.
Don’t use buttons or small decorations on newborn stuff. Choking hazard, everyone will yell at you. If you want decoration do embroidery or appliques that are sewn on really well.
Cotton yarn is good for summer babies, acrylic is fine for any time honestly because it’s easy to wash. Wool is warm but some babies are sensitive to it and also it’s annoying to care for.
My Dog Ate A Hat Once
Well not ate, but she pulled one off the couch and chewed on it. It was covered in dog slobber and I had to throw it out and start over. Now I keep them in a bag until I’m ready to give them away. Just a tip if you have pets that like yarn.
Time Investment Reality Check
A basic newborn hat takes me maybe 30-60 minutes depending on if I’m paying attention or scrolling my phone at the same time. If you’re new to crochet maybe 2 hours? They’re good beginner projects because they’re small and if you mess up you can just start over without wasting much yarn or time.
The fancy ones with lots of color changes or texture patterns take longer, maybe 90 minutes to 2 hours. Still pretty fast compared to like, a blanket which takes forever and you start questioning all your life choices halfway through.
What To Do With Leftover Yarn
You’ll have leftover yarn from every hat, just keep it. Eventually you’ll have enough scraps to make a striped hat or a rainbow one or whatever. I have a whole bin of partial skeins that I use for baby stuff now.
Or make matching mittens I guess, though newborn mittens are ridiculously small and kind of annoying to make because you have to make two of them. I don’t usually bother unless someone specifically asks.
