LET’S START KNITTING

Baby hat knitting patterns are the most useful patterns to stash away for a rainy day. Easy, quick, and super cute, baby hats are great ways to bust your yarn stash and grow your skills with these bite-sized projects.

Every knitter should have one or two baby hat knitting patterns handy just in case they encounter a friend, neighbor, or relative expecting a new baby. Handmade hats make fantastic gifts year-round and are both stylish accessories and, more importantly, keep the littlest babies cozy. The best part is that all of these knit baby hat patterns are free!

Our Favorite Baby Hat Knitting Patterns

Today we’ve gathered some of our go-to knit baby hat patterns, including a few interesting patterns that we can learn use to learn a new technique or two! For new knitters, we recommend taking a moment to bookmark our Knitting for Beginners and Knitting Stitches pages as quick references for all the basic knitting techniques you’ll need to make a hat from start to finish.

Made with Love - Knit baby hat pattern
© Julie Tootill

1. Made With Love

by Julie Tootill

YARN: Bulky, Stylecraft Special Chunky

SIZES: Newborn – 3 years

Among the many baby hat knitting patterns, this is our top go-to pattern because it’s quite flexible. It’s also a perfect project to using circular knitting needles!

This hat is a basic rectangular shape that is a great, flexible shape to modify to make it your own. You can make a bear hat with little ears, add pom poms, or leave it as it in its rectangular shape. 

See the pattern!


2. Baby Yoda Hat

by Knit Julep

YARN: Worsted Weight Brava Worsted Yarn from Knit Picks

SIZES: 3-6 months

May the force be with you!”

It doesn’t get any cuter than this Baby Yoda hat. Slightly more advanced than the first pattern, it’s still just a basic knitted hat pattern embellished with ear flaps. This project is a great time to learn how to use K2tog decreases and M1 increases, make sure to read through our tutorials for both.

See the pattern!


Hat "shark" - Knit baby hat pattern
© Love Crafts

3. Hat “Shark”

by Schachenmayr

YARN: Schachenmayr Merino Fine 120

SIZES: 38cm – 42cm

This hat is a guaranteed baby favorite! Just as the Baby Shark song become an instant classic, this hat is sure to make the littlest recipients squeal with joy.

This simple pattern calls for garter and stockinette stitches using DPN needles or circular knitting needles and is a great opportunity to practice the basics while learning how to knit in the round.

See the pattern!


Sweet Watermelon - Knit baby hat pattern
© Little Red Window

4. Sweet Watermelon Hat

by Little Red Window

YARN: Worsted Weight

SIZES: 1 year

This pattern is a great way to try using multiple colors in one project. Simple details like the stitched seeds make a lot of visual impact on such a simple project.

See the pattern!


Mommy and Me Beanies - Knit baby hat pattern
© Louise Bollanos 

5. Mommy And Me Beanies

by Louise Bollanos

YARN: Super Bulky Lion Brand Wool Ease

SIZES: Baby & Adult

Chunky / bulky yarns can make one’s knitter life much easier; they work up fast. If you’re in a hurry, pick baby hat knitting patterns that are using bulky or thicker yarns like this one.
This super bulky knit baby hat pattern uses seed stitch, which is a simple stitch design to do but easily adds texture to the knitted piece. To learn about seed stitch, see our tutorial here!

See the pattern!


Baby Rollin' Beret - Knit baby hat pattern
© Koeniginhelene

6. Baby Rollin’ Beret

by Woolly Wormhead

YARN: Aran Weight Debbie Bliss Rialto

SIZES: 12 – 18″

What’s the first thing that you think of when you hear the word beret? For us, it’s the fashionable Parisians. 

This beret knitting pattern is divided into handy-dandy sections so it’s easy to know what part of the hat you are knitting. Need a refresher for knitting in the round? You can find a tutorial our knitting in the round here.

See the pattern!


Ava Beret - Knit baby hat pattern
© Cheryl MacLennan

7. Ava Beret

by Sarah Grieve

YARN: Fingering, Koigu Painter’s Palette Premium Merino (KPPPM)

SIZES: Baby, Toddler, Child

The Ava Beret adds slightly more advanced stitch skills to our round up. This knit baby hat pattern uses the brioche stitch technique, which gives this hat a super squishy texture that’s worth the challenge. 

See the pattern!


Big Bow - Knit baby hat pattern
© The Bradens

8. Big Bow Hat

by Casey Braden

YARN: Worsted Lion Brand Vanna’s Choice

SIZE: Newborn

We just cannot say no to that oversized purple bow! Baby hats are a great time to go BIG with details, everything baby-sized is always oh-so cute. Make the bow in any color to suit the new baby and the new parents’ color scheme!

How cute is that?

See the pattern!


Garter Ear Flap - Knit baby hat pattern
© Purl Soho

9. Garter Ear Flap Hat

by Purl Soho

YARN: Aran Purl Soho Alpaca Pure or Purl Soho Plenty

SIZES: Baby – Adult Large

This is a fantastic beginner-friendly free knit baby hat pattern! Garter stitch is both squishy and coxy, plus it makes a timelessly cute texture. Add a pompom or tassel for an even cuter finish.

See the pattern!


Bear Ears Worsted Weight - Knit baby hat pattern
© Fox and Pine Stitches

10. Bear Ears Worsted Weight Hat

by Fox and Pine Stitches

YARN: Aran Loops & Threads Impeccable™ Tweed

SIZES: Newborn – Adult Large

This classic hat combines a simple shape with easy-to-knit ears for an instantly cute accessory. You can leave them off to keep things classic or even do a multi-color hat with bear colored ears on top! The are tons of customizable options with this pattern which makes this a useful addition to any knitter’s pattern library.

See the pattern!

Related Articles

Now that you’ve got plenty of inspiration to work with, we’ve got the tutorials to learn all of these skills too!

5 Beginner Basic Knitting Skills to Learn

We’ve got everything you need to get started knitting, all you need is a ball of yarn and some knitting needles! Five beginner tutorials will show you how to get started knitting as a total beginner.

Top 10 Beginner Knitting Supplies!

Not sure where to start or what to buy as a beginner knitter? Don’t worry! We’ve got you covered. This article goes over all of the basic must-have tools for new knitters.

Looking for free patterns and a community of fellow crafters?

Ravelry is an amazing free resource, perfect for beginner knitters. This is a vibrant community built by knitters, for knitters (and crocheters too). You’ll be able to explore a huge range of patterns (free and paid) as well as join in on community forum discussions too!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *