Roll Brim Hat "Recipe", by request

I've had a few requests for the "pattern" for a basic roll brim hat. In fact, I don't use a pattern for this. In reality, it's just a basic tube, knit in the round, either bound off straight across or easily decreased for a rounded top. I saw instructions for a preemie hat many years ago on a knitting website and realized that it could be sized up very easily - baby, child, adult.

I have made close to 200 hats using this formula over the past nine years - even the hat I use in my avatar follows this same formula (knit very large in a roving-type yarn & felted down to toddler size).

Here is an (edited version of a) post I made at the Ravelry website a while ago regarding the basic roll brim hat:

I think of a basic rolled brim hat as more of a “formula” than a pattern. Here’s a quick overview….

You will need a 16" circular needle (I prefer the Addi Turbo brand) and a set of double point needles. For worsted yarns I typically use a size 7 or 8 for this pattern.

Cast on a number of stitches that is divisible by 8 - for worsted yarns I used the following number of stitches:

Preemie: 48
Newborn - 3 months: 56
3 - 12 months: 64
Toddler/small child: 72

For adult sizes about 80 stitches is a good place to start.

So, cast on, join, and knit straight up in stockinette. Again, length depends on size:

Preemie: 3-3 1/2 inches
Newborn: 4 1/2 inches
3-12 months: 5 1/2 inches
Toddler/child: 6 1/2 inches
etc.

Begin your decreases. If you cast on with a multiple of 8 stitches, you can just knit 6, knit 2tog all the way around. Alternate each decrease round with a round of plain knitting - this gives the top of the hat a nice shaping. You will need to switch to the double point needles after a few rounds of decreases. When there are too few stitches to slide easily around the needle, it's time to switch to dpn's! When you do switch to dpn's, try to do it at the beginning of a round & divide your stitches as evenly as you can between needles.

When you get down to the last 8 stitches on your needles, cut yourself a tail of 4-6 inches, thread it onto a tapestry needle, and pull it through those last 8 stitches. Pull it firmly closed, pull the yarn through to the inside, and weave in your ends.

Bing, bang, boom, done.

You can embellish this kind of hat in a zillion different ways. Weave a ribbon between a couple of stitches & tie a bow - easy as pie and you are done. Or you can make pom poms, tassels, a row of eyelets for weaving ribbons through, etc. etc. One thing I really like to do is add i-cord at the top for loops, knots, etc. Once you really get the swing of it you can make just about any kind of hat you want.

Here are a few pics of different hats I have made using this recipe:

A very small preemie version, I added stripes and double i-cord knot at the top:

Very basic, with an i-cord at the top doubled over into a circle:

This hat is completely basic, following the recipe in a small child size. The loops at the top were simple crocheted chains (the kind you don't even need a crochet hook to make if you want) doubled back over and attached to the hat:

And this one is simply as easy as it gets. It's just knit without any variations or embellishments. I simply took a 1/4" grosgrain ribbon and threaded it between two stitches & tied it into a bow. That's it!