If you’ve never worked a crochet hat pattern, you shouldn’t be afraid to try. If you’ve only done flat work before, there isn’t much that’s different about working in the round. The first thing to do is find the right crochet hat pattern for you. If you need practice, try a child’s size hat to limber up. There are many free crochet hat patterns on the Internet.

Before you commit, read through the pattern and make sure that you understand the instructions. Start with something simple. If it starts to go wrong, try another crochet hat pattern before you give up completely. The masses of free patterns on the Internet are a wonderful treasure trove. Just remember that some of the diamonds are unpolished.

Round and Round We Go

If you’re used to working in rows, the first thing you’ll notice on a crochet hat pattern is that you’re now working in rounds. If your crochet hat pattern has earflaps or other flat work, you’ll see rows again. Before you begin, find out if the rounds are worked without stopping. Usually they are for a crochet hat pattern.

First you will need something to mark the beginning of the round. A short piece of yarn in a contrasting color is good. You can just work the first stitch of the round around it. When you get back to that stitch, pull out the marker and work around it again. You can use a safety pin or bobby pin just as well. You need to mark the rounds because it’s very difficult to spot the beginning of a round after it’s been worked over. For counting stitches and shaping, it’s a good idea to know where the current round begins.

If you are familiar with reading patterns and know your stitches, you shouldn’t have any more problems. A crochet hat pattern can start at the top of the head and get larger or start at the brim and get smaller. Either way, there’ll be shaping involved. To add more stitches, the crochet hat pattern will just say to increase.

That only means that you put two stitches into one stitch in the previous round. Decrease is the opposite. Make two stitches into one by starting the stitch and instead of doing the last yarn over, leave the last part of the stitch on the hook and start the next stitch. Yarn over and pull through the last of both stitches. On the next round, the decrease will look just like a normal stitch. Beyond that, all you basically have to do is just follow the directions and have fun.

One of the first things a beginner to crochet should learn how to make is the ever-versatile crochet granny square. Variations of this pattern appear in just about any type of crocheted items – from sweaters and ponchos to bedspreads and tablecloths. It is an especially popular pattern for afghans and baby blankets.

The best thing about a granny square is that it will teach you three of the crochet stitches that you will use extremely often in your crochet projects. The stitches are the slip stitch, which is used most often to finish rounds of crochet; the chain stitch, which is the foundation row for nearly every crochet project; and the double crochet, which will give you the basic idea for how to do a number of other crochet stitches.

A crochet granny square can be worked to any size and with as many colors as you would like to see in your finished project. You can work from a pattern to create an item, or use your imagination to fashion your own individualized piece.

Crochet Granny Square 101

The basic pattern for a crochet granny square is very simple. Chain six stitches, and slip stitch together to form a ring. Make three chains that will act as your first double crochet on this round. Stitch two more double crochets into the original ring you made, and then make three more chain stitches. Next, stitch three double crochets into the ring and make three more chain stitches.

You will repeat this process two times more, and then finish off your first round with a slip stitch in the top of the chain three at the beginning of the round. Pat yourself on the back! You just completed the first round of your first crochet granny square. This process is repeated for as many rounds as you choose to add to your square. You can make many little squares and sew them together to make an item, or you can make a blanket or throw with one square that simply grows in rounds until it is the desired size.

Attaching Your Crochet Granny Square

If you choose to make a number of smaller squares for an item, you will need to sew them together to create your finished piece. Some crocheters prefer to do this as they complete squares, and some will wait until all the squares are finished to assemble the item all at once.

You can join your squares by sewing them together with a simple whip stitch, or you can actually crochet your outside rounds together by slip stitching through the back of each stitch on the last round. The second option will give you a ridge between squares along the back of your piece, and may be more durable on items like blankets that might go through the wash frequently.

A crocheted granny square is a great way for a beginner to try her hand at a crocheted creation. So grab a ball of yarn and a crochet hook, and start crocheting!