
© Photography by Kindred Photo & Design
Thank you to Lion Brand for providing the yarn for this pattern sample.
Last winter, I released a pattern set – the Maribel Cowl and Boot Cuffs. They are still some of my favorite patterns from that season!
So this year, I decided to do what I always meant to do, but never got around to… designing a matching hat.
This slouch is worked differently from my other slouch hats, in that it’s worked flat and then cinched (as opposed to being worked in the round). This enables us to get vertical stitch work that you can’t get when you work a hat in the round. Cinching it up at the end is easy, and I’ve provided photos for you in the pattern.
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The Yarn
I used Lion Brand Heartland in “Grand Canyon” for my sample. Heartland is one of my go-to worsted weight yarns. It has a beautiful sheen to it, it’s lightweight, and the color choices are gorgeous. You might recognize it in some of my other patterns, like the Sandy Slouch & Cowl Set.
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THE MARIBEL SLOUCH HAT

Level: Easy
Size:
One Size Fist Most (Preteen – Adult Woman).
Hat measures 9.5” across at band (when laid flat), and is 9.5” tall.
Materials:
- I hook (5.50mm)
- Yarn needle
- About 210 yards of Lion Brand Heartland* (Sample color: Grand Canyon)
*About Heartland:
Weight: #4 worsted
Fiber: 100% Acrylic
Yardage: 5oz/142g (251yd/230m)
Gauge: 12 sc + 15 rows = 4 inches on size J-10 [6 mm] hook - 7 small buttons (I used 1/2″)
Gauge:
With I hook, 10 rows of 7 SC = 2″ square
Stitches Used:
CH (chain)
SS (slip stitch)
SC (single crochet)
HDC (half double crochet)
RibHDC (also known as Camel Stitch or 3rd Loop HDC; see Special Stitch, below)
Special Stitch:
RibHDC – instead of putting your HDC in the top loops, find the 3rd loop. Because we’re working in turned rows, the third loop will be located just underneath the front loop. Insert your hook there and create your HDC. This forces both of the top loops to rest on the front of your project, creating a ribbing effect. It is also referred to as a Camel Stitch or 3rd Loop HDC. (Confused? You can view a photo tutorial here.)
Notes:
(1) This hat is worked in rows and cinched at the end.
(2) This pattern is written in American Standard terms.
(3) Starting chains do not count as stitches.
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To begin:
Using I Hook, and leaving a 12″ tail, CH27. Don’t weave in the tail until instructed (we’ll use it later to cinch the hat).
Row 1: SC in 2nd CH from hook and in each ST across. (26)
Rows 2-6: CH1, turn. SC in each ST across. (26)
Row 7: CH1, turn. HDC in each ST across. (26)
Rows 8-64: CH1, turn. RibHDC in each ST across. (26)
We are now going to begin working along the long edge of our project to create the band of the hat.
Row 65: CH1. Working along the long edge, SC across. Put 1SC in each row, for a total of 64SC. (64)
Rows 66-76: CH1, turn. SC in each ST across.
Edging: CH1, turn. SC evenly around the entire project, putting (SC, CH1, SC) in each corner. Fasten off, leaving a 12″ tail.
At this point, your project should look like this:
Seaming the Hat
Use your finishing tail to whip stitch the two short ends together, then fasten off and weave it in.
Cinching the Hat
Turn your hat inside out. Thread your starting tail through the yarn needle and weave it in and out of every other SC along the top edging of the hat. (I’ve highlighted my yarn needle in yellow in the photos below.) When you’re done, pull it tight to cinch the hat (but carefully… you don’t want to break the yarn!). Use the yarn needle to reach across the cinch a few times to make sure it’s closed up nice and tight, then make a knot and weave in the tail. Turn your hat right side out.
Sew your buttons along that very first section of SC rows, extending them down across the band of the hat, too.
Thanks for sharing this pattern. It’s beautiful.
Don’t have a website
I have thick curly hair. Do you have any suggestions on the size of this hat? I saw some hats that are like 12 in or 14 in. I am trying to see how they make it.
If you want to be able to fit lots of hair under it, I would just keep going with the repeat rows until it is the width you want it to be to go around your head. If you’re afraid your hair will make it not slouchy enough, you can add to your starting chain to make the hat taller.
Ok It is worth to try. Thanks! Also I try to do your other slouchy hat, it came out tight. Do I need to increase the stitches or add more rows on body?
I have a lot of slouchy hat patterns on my blog, can you be more specific?
Oh this pattern is amazing! Thank you! I made one for myself and now want a matching one for my daughter but I’m at a loss as how to change the pattern/count to get a toddler size. Any thoughts?
My advice is to look up the standard dimensions for a toddler slouch (or a toddler beanie, plus an inch or two). Then decide how much of the height you want to be the body of the hat, and how much you want to reserve for the band of the hat. Make your starting chain the same length as the total height needed minus the band, then follow the pattern and repeat the 3rd loop rows until the flat piece is as long as the hat needs to be around. Then go and do the band for as many rows as needed to get the total height. Good luck 🙂
Hi! Thanks for sharing your pattern!
I’ve a little doubt, when doing RibHDC rows I lost always a stitch 26-25-24 and so on… so I keep undoing e redoing… aaaargh… Why? Have you some tips?
When you work in third loops, the last stitch of the row is always harder to see than it would be if you were working in the top loops. If you need some extra help, I would grab 2 stitch markers (bobby pins work great) and every time you make the very first stitch of a row, put a marker in that stitch’s third loop. That way, when you come back to that edge on the next row, you’ll know that you need to put a stitch where the bobby pin is. Do it for both sides and you should be set. 🙂
I am totally enjoying crocheting the Maribel Slouch! My whip stitch doesn’t seem to look at all like yours! Do you have a tutorial on that! Lol! I realize it is probably a very simple stitch but I’m not getting it! Or could you describe the steps for me?
Thanks so much!
Donna
Hi Donna! Thank you for commenting, as I’ve just discovered (through the process of looking for a tutorial video for you) that I learned how to “whip stitch” wrong. 🙂 So, what I did on this hat is not technically whip stitching. Although, the best way for me to explain to you what I did do is to link you to a tutorial video for whip stitching anyway: here’s one from Moogly – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZS5Rbp2tMw
What I did differently was instead of inserting the yarn needle through the same side each time, causing the yarn to cross over the seam in a decorative way, I actually go back and forth. So I would go through all 4 loops, then turn and go through all 4 loops of the next stitches but starting on the same side as I ended with the previous stitch. That will make more sense after you watch the video (hopefully). 🙂