Free Mini Crochet Santa Hat Pattern

By Jan Bay

This free mini crochet Santa hat pattern makes a tiny red Christmas cap with a white brim, long tapered tip and little yarn pom-pom. The hat has a jaunty Santa-style droop instead of a stiff pointed cone, and you can use the finished mini hats for Christmas baby shower decorations, garlands or even on a wine bottle tucked into a new mom gift basket filled with pampering items or newborn baby care products.

4 mm Crochet Hook and supplies for this project

Free Mini Santa Hat Crochet Pattern

This little hat is worked from the pointed tip down to the white brim, so there isn't a seam running up the back. The first few rounds stay deliberately narrow. That's what gives the upper part enough length to bend over instead of standing straight up like a party hat.

The finished hat shown here is meant as a small decorative Christmas piece. You can drape several across a basket as a garland, tuck one into a gift arrangement or slip one over the neck of a bottle for presentation. The basic pattern stays the same, with separate variation sections below for turning the finished hat into a Christmas ornament or using it as a decorative bottle topper.

Using the yarn and gauge below, the finished hat should measure about 4 3/4 to 5 inches from the lower brim to the tip before the pom-pom, with an opening approximately 6 to 6 1/2 inches around. Those are calculated finished measurements because this pattern has not been physically test-crocheted.

If you want a full-size version rather than this miniature one, see the free crochet Santa hat pattern. You can also browse the Christmas crochet patterns for more holiday projects.

Materials

You don't need much yarn for a hat this size. Small leftovers are plenty as long as the red and white yarn are close to the same weight.

• Approximately 15 yards of red Category 4 medium/worsted-weight yarn
• Approximately 7 yards of white Category 4 medium/worsted-weight yarn, including the pom-pom
• 4 mm (G/6) crochet hook
• Yarn needle
• Scissors
• Removable stitch marker
• Small pom-pom maker or cardboard, optional

Try not to pair a thin red yarn with an especially fluffy or bulky white yarn. The white band should look like a trim on this miniature hat, not a heavy cuff that overwhelms the red cone.

Gauge and Finished Size

The target gauge is approximately 18 single crochet stitches and 20 single crochet rounds per 4 inches.

Exact gauge isn't critical for a decorative mini hat, but it does determine the finished size. If your stitches are much looser, the hat will come out wider and taller. If they're much tighter, the opening can become noticeably smaller.

The expected finished measurements are approximately:

• 4 3/4 to 5 inches tall before adding the pom-pom
• 3 to 3 1/4 inches across the lower opening when laid flat
• 6 to 6 1/2 inches around the lower opening
• 3/4 to 1 inch diameter white pom-pom

Don't stuff the cone. The top needs to stay flexible enough to fall naturally to one side.

Crochet Abbreviations

This pattern uses standard U.S. crochet terminology. The Craft Yarn Council crochet abbreviation guide is useful if you need to check a stitch term while you're working.

• BLO = back loop only
• ch = chain
• hdc = half double crochet
• inc = work 2 single crochet stitches in the same stitch
• MR = magic ring
• sc = single crochet
• sl st = slip stitch
• st/sts = stitch/stitches

Pattern Notes

The red cone is worked in continuous rounds. Don't join at the end of those rounds. Put a stitch marker in the first stitch and move it up each time you begin a new round.

The shaping is simple once you see the rhythm. Each increase round adds four stitches, then two plain rounds keep that new stitch count before the next increase.

Those plain rounds matter. Without them, the hat would widen too fast and you'd lose the long Santa-cap shape shown in the example image.

The white brim is crocheted directly onto the bottom of the red cone. There isn't a separate band to make or sew on later.

The pom-pom is added last. Keep it small. A big pom-pom can pull a miniature hat down so much that the cone loses its shape.

How to Crochet the Mini Santa Hat

With red yarn:

Round 1: Make a MR. Work 4 sc into the ring. Do not join. Place a stitch marker in the first stitch. (4 sts)

Round 2: Sc in each stitch around. (4 sts)

Round 3: Sc in each stitch around. (4 sts)

Those first three rounds are supposed to look narrow. Leave them that way. They form the soft tip that will bend over once the pom-pom is attached.

Round 4: Work 2 sc in each stitch around. (8 sts)

Round 5: Sc in each stitch around. (8 sts)

Round 6: Sc in each stitch around. (8 sts)

Round 7: *Sc in next stitch, 2 sc in next stitch.* Repeat from * to * 4 times. (12 sts)

Round 8: Sc in each stitch around. (12 sts)

Round 9: Sc in each stitch around. (12 sts)

Round 10: *Sc in next 2 stitches, 2 sc in next stitch.* Repeat from * to * 4 times. (16 sts)

Round 11: Sc in each stitch around. (16 sts)

Round 12: Sc in each stitch around. (16 sts)

Round 13: *Sc in next 3 stitches, 2 sc in next stitch.* Repeat from * to * 4 times. (20 sts)

Round 14: Sc in each stitch around. (20 sts)

Round 15: Sc in each stitch around. (20 sts)

Round 16: *Sc in next 4 stitches, 2 sc in next stitch.* Repeat from * to * 4 times. (24 sts)

Round 17: Sc in each stitch around. (24 sts)

Round 18: Sc in each stitch around. (24 sts)

Round 19: *Sc in next 5 stitches, 2 sc in next stitch.* Repeat from * to * 4 times. (28 sts)

Round 20: Sc in each stitch around. (28 sts)

Round 21: Sc in each stitch around. (28 sts)

After Round 21, remove the stitch marker. Cut the red yarn, leaving a tail long enough to weave in, and fasten off.

Crochet the White Santa Hat Brim

Round 22: Join white yarn with a sl st in the first stitch of Round 21. Ch 1; the chain does not count as a stitch. Sc in the same stitch and in each remaining stitch around. Join with a sl st to the first sc. (28 sts)

Round 23: Ch 1; the chain does not count as a stitch. Working in the BLO, hdc in each stitch around. Join with a sl st to the first hdc. (28 sts)

Round 24: Ch 1; the chain does not count as a stitch. Hdc in each stitch around. Join with a sl st to the first hdc. (28 sts)

Fasten off the white yarn. Pull the starting magic ring tightly closed if needed, then securely weave in the starting red tail, the red color-change tail and the white finishing tail before adding the pom-pom.

The back-loop round leaves a small ridge through the white section and gives the brim some definition. Don't add increases to make it flare. Keeping all three rounds at 28 stitches gives you the narrow white band shown on the finished hat.

Add the Pom-Pom and Finish the Hat

Make a white yarn pom-pom approximately 3/4 to 1 inch across. You can use a small pom-pom maker or wrap the yarn around a narrow piece of cardboard.

Tie the center securely before trimming the loops. Shape the yarn into a small round pom-pom, but don't cut off the two long tying strands.

Thread one long strand through a yarn needle and take it through the stitches at the very tip of the red cone. Take the second strand through a nearby stitch.

Turn the hat inside enough to reach those strands, tie them securely and weave the ends through several stitches before trimming.

Gently bend the narrow upper section toward one side. Don't stitch the tip down and don't put wire inside it. The tapered construction and the small pom-pom give it enough weight to fall over on its own.

Keep it simple. That's what makes the little hat look right.

Turn the Mini Santa Hat Into a Christmas Ornament

If you want to hang one of these little hats on the Christmas tree, finish the Santa hat exactly as written first. Then add a separate yarn hanging loop rather than hanging it by the pom-pom.

Thread a length of matching yarn through a yarn needle and pass it through two red stitches near the upper back of the cone, just below the pom-pom attachment. Tie the yarn into a hanging loop and secure the knot inside the hat.

Before tightening the knot completely, hold the ornament by the loop and check the angle. Move the attachment point by a stitch if needed so the hat hangs with the red tip naturally drooping to one side instead of twisting backward.

Don't use the pom-pom itself as the hanging point. The loop should be anchored to the crocheted cone so the weight of the ornament isn't pulling on the separately attached pom-pom.

Use the Mini Santa Hat as a Bottle Topper

The mini Santa hat also works as a festive bottle topper when the finished opening is loose enough to slip over the neck of the bottle you want to use. The basic pattern finishes at approximately 6 to 6 1/2 inches around, so check the bottle before assuming it will fit exactly.

For a gift basket, I would use the hat as a decorative topper rather than try to make it grip the bottle tightly. Slip the finished hat over the neck, let the white brim rest where it looks balanced and turn the drooping tip toward the front or side of the basket.

If the opening is noticeably too large, don't cinch it with wire, elastic or anything that changes the crochet construction. A fitted bottle topper needs its own measurements for that particular bottle.

The bottle topper shown in the example image is styling inspiration rather than a promise that one finished size will fit every bottle.

Ways to Use a Mini Crochet Santa Hat

A single mini hat is cute, but a handful of them gives you more options. String several along a cord for a small Christmas garland, tuck one onto a package instead of using a disposable bow or work one into a holiday gift basket.

The example image also shows a mini hat used on a bottle for gift-basket styling. The pattern above is not specifically sized as a fitted bottle topper, so check the bottle neck against the finished 6 to 6 1/2-inch hat opening before using it this way. Bottle sizes vary, and I wouldn't change the basic pattern just to force a particular fit.

A fitted bottle topper deserves its own measurements. So does a doll hat.

If you're making a Christmas gift basket for a new mom, I like the mini hats as the handmade detail rather than trying to crochet every item in the basket. A few little red hats are enough to tie the whole arrangement together.

You can also pair this project with the crochet Santa lovey pattern if you'd like one larger handmade Santa project in the same gift.

A Quick Safety Note

This mini Santa hat is intended as a decorative crochet project. It isn't an infant hat or a baby toy.

The yarn pom-pom is a separately attached piece and could come loose with handling. If you use these hats on a garland, gift basket or other Christmas display around a baby, keep them out of reach rather than handing one over to play with or chew.

Mini Crochet Santa Hat Pattern FAQ

Can I use a different yarn weight?

Yes. A thinner yarn with a smaller hook will make a tinier Santa hat, while heavier yarn and a larger hook will make it bigger. If you're simply scaling the entire project, you can keep the same stitch counts and let the yarn and hook change the finished size.

Why are there only four stitches in the first three rounds?

That narrow beginning gives the hat its long pointed tip. If you begin increasing right away, the cone gets wider sooner and the finished hat becomes shorter and more upright.

Can I make the white brim wider?

Yes. Add one more round of 28 hdc before fastening off. I wouldn't add several extra rounds unless you're also enlarging the red portion because a very deep white band can overpower a hat this small.

Can I make the brim fluffy?

You can substitute a textured white yarn, but stay reasonably close to the thickness of the red yarn. Very bulky novelty yarn can change the opening size and make the lower edge flare.

Do I have to add the pom-pom?

No. The hat will still work without it. The small white pom-pom is part of the classic Santa look shown in the finished example, though, and its little bit of weight helps the tip fall over.

Can I turn this into a crochet mini Santa hat ornament?

Yes, but I'd add a hanging loop at a deliberate balance point rather than tie a thread through the pom-pom. A proper ornament version should hang at the angle you want without pulling on the pom-pom attachment.

Can I use this mini Santa hat on a doll?

Possibly, but measure the doll's head first. This version is a decorative mini hat with an expected opening of about 6 to 6 1/2 inches around. A fitted doll hat needs to be sized to the actual head rather than forced onto whatever happens to fit.

If you want to keep going with Santa projects, the full-size crochet Santa hat and the Santa lovey take the same Christmas idea in two very different directions.