I love making baby hats and have recently been working on making them for newborns in hospitals as part of a church charity project. I started out making simple hats from other designers but quickly got bored and started creating my own. This Whirly Swirly baby hat is one of a few of the designs I came up with. I love how the ribs twist and add a fun splash of color to these sweet little hats.

To make these hats I recommend you have intermediate crochet skills since this is a tricky pattern! You need to be able to switch colors, make front post single and double crochets and get all the stitches in the right places. This design is tricky to get started but once you get past those first few rounds its really fun to make. I’ve included photos of the first four rounds so you can compare what you have with mine. Be sure to use your tape measure and check the size of your circle against the chart. The size of your hat may be different dependent on your tension – I work on the tighter side.

Hook Size: Different size hooks are used to achieve different size hats. Use the hook suggested for the size you want to make. At the end of round 4 measure the diameter of your circle and check it against the chart. You may need to go up or down a hook size to achieve the size you want.

G/6 – 4.25mm for Premie size

H/8 – 5mm for newborn (green hat)

I/9 – 5.5mm for 0-3 months (blue hat)

J/10 – 6mm for 3-6 months (purple hat)

K/10 1/2 – 6.5mm for 6-9 months (pink hat)