Whether you’re a plant lady waiting to happen, or just have a deep love of all things cactus, this Crochet Cactus Hat Pattern is enough to make you swoon without getting prickly! A great project for intermediate crochet-ers.
My family has this tradition… or I have this tradition with my family… who knows. BUT ever since I learned to knit and crochet I make one hat a year that is usually inspired by food. And my mom keeps and wears those hats all year long. At one point there was a watermelon hat that made the rounds and we have photos of everyone including the hosted exchange students wearing it over the holidays. I know!!! Recipe for lice, am I right?!? But don’t worry, it gets washed and weirdly enough there has never been a lice outbreak at our house so knock on wood or whatever.
This year, since I’ve been living in California for a while, I decided to make a cactus hat and I gotta say… it turned out pretty nice! My sister has claimed it so look out Nashville! This is also the first hat that I’ve crochet. What I mean by that is that I usually knit my hats so this ribbed stitch was super new for me. If you’re a little nervous, don’t be. There’s a bit of a learning curve, but once you learn it, you’ll be making ribbed hats all over the place!
Crochet Cactus Hat Pattern
Cost: $10 or less
Time: Weekend project
Comfort level: Prickly (not really but it was too good to not post!)
Supplies:
H crochet hook
Yarn needle
Scissors
Large pom pom maker
Bright Green yarn or dark green depending on the shade you want your cactus.
Bright pink or fuschia yarn
White yarn
ABBREVIATIONS:
HDC: Half Double Crochet
SL ST: Slip stitch
CH: Chain
NOTE: The number of stitches you make for the first row determine the height of the hat. If you want to add in a brim, add 10 extra stitches.
MAKE IT: Easy Crochet Slippers
Row 1: Start with a Foundation Half Double Crochet of 37 stitches. Not sure what that looks like? Here’s a video!!! Then Ch. 2
ALL STITCHES ARE WORKED IN BACK LOOPS
Row 2: Starting in the first HDC on your row and work HDC in the BACK LOOPS of the next 32 stitches. SL ST in back loops of next 5. Ch 1
Row 3: Work 1 HDC in BACK LOOPS of each stitch across. Ch 2
Row 4 onward: Alternate rows 2 and 3 until your hat can wrap around your head.
The side with the more visible tapering is the inside.
With the right sides together (more visible tapering) join the edges using a slip stitch. This is where it gets a little tricky and I’m kinda kicking myself for not photographing this, so bear with me.
If you look at the edges stuck together you’ll see 4 loops. Number them 1, 2, 3 and 4. Now you’re going to do your slip stitch through loops 1, 2, and 4. When you’re done, fasten off and leave a nice long tail.
To close the top of the hat, weave around the top (tapered) edge of the hat a few times with the yarn needle and pull tight. Stitch a few more times through the tightened top and fasten off.
MAKE IT: Hogwarts House Crochet Ear Warmer
ADD THE NEEDLES
Thread your yarn needle with a length of white yarn. Then double it over. Make a small stitch through the front of the hat (in the front and back out) cut it so you have a 2-3″ piece of yarn and double knot it. Sew these randomly around the hat until you’re happy with it.
ADD THE POM POM
Using the large pom pom maker make a pink pom pom following the instructions. Tie it off with a length of pink yarn and weave it through the top of the hat, securing it with a double knot on the inside. Secure with a bit of hot glue for extra hold if you feel so inclined.
And… there you go! These things are so fun to make you’ll be making them for all of your gal pals and you’d be like a cactus garden! Or.. just extra prickly? Have fun being super cute! Don’t forget to PIN this project and SHARE it with your favorite crochet buddy!
6 Comments
I’m slightly confused as to what to do with the 5 sl st at the end of row 2 before starting row 3. Do I go back over them with 5 more sl st, Make 5 HDC, or start directly at the last HDC?
May 12, 2020 at 8:54 amHey Christina! You would do HDC in all stitches including those that you just slip stitched. I have updated the post to reflect that. Happy crafting!
May 12, 2020 at 7:10 pmHi I’ve never crocheted anything before but I really want to make this for my niece, could you give me advice on what kind of yarn I should use and how much I should buy?
July 28, 2020 at 1:36 pmHi Jessi! I just used a skein of Red Heart Yarn (the cheapy yarn) in Spring Green. Whatever green color you like will do, just use a worsted weight. I used the same brand for the spikes and the pom pom on top. You shouldn’t need too much. The hat should take way less than a whole skein and the accents were just extra yarn that I had lying around. You can use probably any color or type for those since you won’t be crocheting with it.
Good luck and happy creating!
July 28, 2020 at 1:59 pm– Chelsea
Hi Christina
October 19, 2020 at 11:51 amI have been trying to make this fun hat for my daughter! It started as a joke because she likes everything cautus! I just want to complete it. Those 5 sl st at the end of second row is so confusing. Help! I have not found any additional post.
Hi K,
so you’re going to do 5 slip stitches for the last stitches on that row. Then, once you turn your work, you’re going to start back in doing half double crochets on that whole row including the 5 that you just did. I’m not sure if you’re new to crochet, but if you’re not, please ignore the next sentence. Slip stitching in crochet is not like knitting where you slide a stitch to the other needle and not work it. For crochet you’re going to pull a loop through the stitch and instead of pulling another loop through it and your working loop, you’re just going to pull that one loop up through the working loop. So you’re skipping pulling up that extra loop. When you head back the other direction, you’ll treat them just like any other stitch and work them with your HDC.
These stitches exist for shaping the hat. If you’re okay with some bunching at the top you can work them in regular HDC or even SC. It won’t have the exact same shaping but that is an alternative if you’re having some trouble. Thanks!
October 19, 2020 at 12:20 pm