Nathan's Knit Slouchy Beanie

It finally turned cold here, way too cold, and I thought it would be the perfect time to make our first FREE pattern here on the blog!  I have made lots of these beanies over the years and they are especially popular with the tweens and teens.  It's a one-size-fits-most pattern, and I love that I can use the same sizing for toddlers on up to adults!  

What I especially love about the slouchy beanie is that I can pull it wayyyy down over my ears where it won't keep slipping off. 

Let's get started! 

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Supplies:

Printed pattern piece for Nathan's Knit Slouchy Beanie 

1/2 yard stretch knit fabric (will make 2 beanies)

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First, download and print the pattern piece. It is best to download it to your device before printing. Check to make sure the 1" square printed correctly. Tape the pages together by overlapping the lines.  Then cut out the pattern piece so it looks like the photo above. 

Take your knit fabric and fold it so you have two layers. Check to make sure the stretch is going from side to side. Lay the pattern piece on the fabric and pin in place. 

Cut the fabric following the pattern piece's curves. You can cut using fabric scissors or a rotary cutter and cutting mat.  When I use a rotary cutter, I don't pin the piece to the fabric - I just set a weight on top to keep it from moving, as shown above. 

After cutting, you will have two mirrored pieces of fabric. 

Match the pieces with right sides together and pin in place along the sides, curves, and top.  Do not pin the bottom straight edges. 

Sew the pinned curves/edges using a 3/8" seam allowance.  Be sure to use a long stretch stitch and a ball point needle.  Do not sew the bottom edge. 

Fold the bottom raw edge of the beanie 1/2" to the wrong side of the fabric, all around.  Use an iron if necessary, and pin the fold in place. Then sew the fold in place by stitching 1/8" from the raw edge, all around the beanie.  See the photo above. 

When you are done sewing, the bottom edge of the beanie should look like this. 

On the bottom edge of the beanie, fold another 3" to the wrong side of the fabric.  Pin in place only at the side seams. 

Turn the beanie right side out. Find the side seams where you pinned and "stitch in the ditch" on the right side of the fabric, to sew through all the layers and hold the inner folds in place. You will only be doing this for the 3" that are folded under on each side. Make sure you don't sew over the pins. See photos above and below.  

After sewing on the right side of the fabric, this is what the stitching should look like on the inside. The stitching should be directly on (or very close to) the side seams. 

On the outside of the hat, the stitching should be difficult to see because you did the stitching in the existing seam. 

Your beanie is now finished!  

I love that there aren't any folds to worry about coming unfolded, and also that it's super long making it ideal for the slouchy look and for keeping my ears and head completely covered. 

If you want it to have a visible fold, you can fold it however much you want, and stitch in the ditch again to hold the fold in place. Play around with where you like it the best. My family likes it without any folds, for maximum fullness and no folds to worry about. 

It is teen approved!

If you have a teen with fluffy curls, no problem at all! There's plenty of room and it's stretchy and soft enough that hat-head isn't an issue. 

 

Seriously though, I love the slouchy look!   

After taking his photos, I stole the beanie from him (temporarily) so I could have him take my photo too. 

It's super comfy and I can pull it to exactly where I want it. I guess time will tell whether this particular beanie ends up being mine or his. The good news is, they are super fast and easy to make, so I can make many more like it in all our favorite fabrics! 

 I hope you love Nathan's Knit Slouchy Beanie as much as we do!  I would love to see your photos, especially on your teens and littles, so please share them in our sewing community or in the blog comments below!  

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Happy Sewing!