Classic Brioche Hat
Oooh, a super soft and cozy hat that slips right over your ears and makes you feel all safe and snuggly… Now that’s a hat!
Our Classic Brioche Hat is one such hat thanks, in part, to the brioche stitch. Basically a rib pattern that incorporates yarn overs, brioche stitch is exceptionally lofty, extra squishy, and insulating, too!
If you’ve never knit brioche before, here is a very good place to start! Practice very basic one-color brioche until you get to the crown, then learn basic right- and left-leaning brioche decreases. Our video tutorials walk you through every step, first with one for brioche stitch itself, then with one for basic brioche decreases… Both techniques are fun to learn and even more fun to know!
Okay, brioche stitch, check. Now add to that our Cashmere Merino Bloom, and you’re in ultimate hat territory! Extra fine merino lends durability and elasticity, while cashmere boosts the coziness and provides a soft and very beautiful bloom, like a warm halo.
To knit up any size Classic Brioche Hat from baby to adult large, you’ll need just one skein of Cashmere Merino Bloom. One skein? Amazing!
Designed by Purl Soho designer, Jake Canton. Click here to see even more of Jake’s designs!
Share your progress + connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoClassicBriocheHat, and #PurlSohoCashmereMerinoBloom. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
- 1 (1, 1, 1) skein of Purl Soho’s Cashmere Merino Bloom, 75% extra fine merino and 25% cashmere. Each skein is 218 yards; approximately 94 (122, 163, 218) yards required.
- US 4 (3.5 mm), 16-inch circular needles
- A set of US 4 double pointed needles
- 3 stitch markers + 1 unique stitch marker
For our samples we knit the following sizes in the following colors (NOTE: Some of these colors are no longer available…
- Baby: Wheat Flour
- Kid: Crocus Bud
- Adult Small: Blue Jeans
Gauge
16 stitches and 24 rounds = 4 inches in brioche stitch
22 stitches and 32 rounds = 4 inches in stockinette stitch
Sizes
Baby (Kid, Adult Small, Adult Large)
Finished Circumference: 15 (18, 21, 24) inches
Finished Height: 6½ (7½, 8½, 9½) inches
Notes
Slip Stitches
Slip all slipped stitches purlwise with yarn in back.
Brioche Abbreviations
YOS (yarn over slip): Bring yarn forward, slip 1 purlwise, bring yarn over right needle.
BK2TOG (brioche knit 2 together): Knit the next stitch together with its paired yarn over.
BP2TOG (brioche purl 2 together): Purl the next stitch together with its paired yarn over.
For tips on working the steps of Brioche Stitch, please visit our Brioche Stitch Tutorial!
Brioche Decreases
Left Leaning Brioche Decrease
BSK2P (brioche slip knit 2 pass): Slip 1 brioche stitch with its paired yarn over knitwise, k2tog (the next purl stitch with the following knit stitch and its paired yarn over), pass the slip stitch and its paired yarn over together over and off the right needle. [2 stitches decreased]
Right Leaning Brioche Decrease
BK3TOG (brioche knit 3 together): K2tog (the next knit stitch with its paired yarn over and the following purl stitch), slip the resulting stitch back to the left needle, pass the following stitch (a knit stitch and its paired yarn over) over the first stitch on the left needle and off the left needle, move the resulting stitch back to the right needle. [2 stitches decreased]
For tips on working the steps of Brioche Decreases, please visit our Brioche Stitch: Basic Decreases Tutorial!
Pattern
Body
Cast on 60 (72, 84, 96) stitches. We used a basic Long Tail Cast On.
Place unique marker and join for working in the round, being careful not to twist the stitches.
Set-Up Round: *K1, YOS (see Notes), repeat from * to end of round.
Round 1: *YOS, bp2tog (see Notes), repeat from * to end of round.
Round 2: *Bk2tog (see Notes), YOS, repeat from * to end of round.
Repeat Rounds 1 and 2 until piece measures 5¼ (5¾, 6½, 7¼) inches from cast-on edge.
Crown
NOTE: Change to double pointed needles when necessary.
Set-Up Round: *[YOS, bp2tog] 10 (12, 14 16) times, place marker (pm), repeat from * to end of round.
Round 1: [Bsk2p (see Notes) *YOS, bk2tog, repeat from * to 5 stitches before next marker (not counting yarn overs), YOS, bk3tog (see Notes), YOS, slip marker] 3 times. [12 stitches decreased]
Round 2: *YOS, bp2tog, repeat from * to end of round.
Round 3: *Bk2tog, YOS, repeat from * to end of round.
Round 4: Repeat Round 2.
Repeat Rounds 1-4 three (4, 5, 6) more times, ending with Round 4. [12 stitches remain]
Cut yarn and thread tail onto a tapestry needle. Thread tail through remaining stitches. Pull taut and bring tail to inside of hat to weave in.
Weave in the ends and block as desired.
Hello,
This pattern (Classic Brioche Hat) lists circular or double pointed needles but do not see a place in the pattern to switch to double pointed or vice versa. Please advise.
And, would another yarn blend work – ?
Thanks in advance.
Caroline
Hi Caroline,
Thanks for reaching out! For this pattern you need both a US 4, 16-inch circular needles and a set of US 4 double pointed needles, and you will switch to the double pointed needles when necessary (when the stitches begin to get tight on the circular needles) while working the CROWN section!
Warmly,
Gianna
Hi Gianna, Is it possible to knit the crown section with magic loop rather than DPNS?
Hi Alex,
Thank you for your question! You can absolutely use the magic loop method for the crown of your hat instead of DPNs. We have a Magic Loop tutorial here that might be helpful for your project.
I hope this helps, and please let us know if you have any other questions!
All the best,
Carly
Hi there. The instructional videos are all for brioche flat are you able to add a picture or video tutorial for in the round, primarily the yarn over slip purl two together. The yos note says bring yarn forward. If this is the case does this still create the necessary yarn over? Thanks!!
Hi Caitlin,
Thanks for reaching out! At this time we don’t have the available resources to make a tutorial for for Brioche in the round but thank you very much for expressing your opinion, I will be sure to pass this along to the rest of the team! Although the tutorial only shows Brioche worked flat, the technique is the same for working it in the round! For the YOS you work it the same, you will bring yarn forward, slip 1 purlwise, and then bring the yarn over right needle as we show in the tutorial!
I hope this helps, happy knitting!
Gianna
Wondering if this hat would work in any of your nonwool yarns.
Hi Carol,
Thanks for reaching out! Any DK/light worsted yarn would work for this pattern! We don’t have a DK/light worsted non wool option, but I would suggest our yarn Cotton Pure! It is a sport weight instead so it is a slightly lighter weight but should work great with the pattern! I recommend working a gauge swatch prior to beginning to insure that you are consistent with the pattern or if there are any adjustments necessary. Our tutorial All About Gauge is an excellent resource to use!
Warmly,
Gianna
Wondering if I can make with hat (kids size) with Mulberry Merino Yarn? Would I need to make any adjustments to the pattern or needle size?
Hi Robin,
Thanks for reaching out! Mulberry Merino could certainly work for this hat! It is similar but a bit of a smaller gauge than Cashmere Merino Bloom since it is a sport weight and Cashmere Merino Bloom is a light worsted/DK weight so I would recommend working a gauge swatch and seeing how it compares to the written gauge or if you need to make any adjustments! Our tutorial All About Gauge is a great resource to use!
Warmly,
Gianna
confused by working on a circular needle and then round 1 is bk2tog but then round 2 is bp2tog. if you’re working in the round, why isn’t it all the same stitch?
Hi Diane,
Thanks for reaching out! If you were working the Brioche flat you would be bk2tog on both sides of the work, since you are working in round and only on the right side of the fabric you bp2tog on the odd number rows to insure that you are creating a brioche pattern!
I hope this clears things up!
Warmly,
Gianna
I actually missed the difference until I got to the decrease but the hat still turned out fine – just not a pronounced rib for section below crown😂
Hello,
Could you recommend what size hat would be best for someone with a head circumference of 22.5”? I am not sure if the brioche stitch is as stretchy as a regular rib stitch and I don’t want to make the hat too big.
Also, is it ok to cast on a number of stitches different from the pattern, as long as it is a multiple of four?
Thank you!
Lilli
Hi Lilli,
Thanks for reaching out! For a 22.5″ circumference I would recommend making the Adult Small size! You could alter the pattern but I would suggest casting on one of the listed amounts to insure that the crown shaping works accurately! The increase instructions are written directly based off of the specific sizes and number of stitches you cast on.
I hope this helps, happy knitting!
Gianna
When you knit a YOS, followed by a YOS, do you bring the yarn around again? I have tried starting this hat 3X and having difficulty. Without explaining how to knit it in the round with the rows being different, it is confusing. I see others are having problems too. Thanks.
Hi Janna,
Thanks for reaching out! Fist step is to be sure that you have the correct number of stitches cast on to insure that stitch pattern will work accurately! For the set up round you will *K1, YOS (see Notes), repeat from * to end of round. Then for round 1 you will *YOS (the previous rows K1), bp2tog (see Notes), repeat from * to end of round. So you wont be working a yarn over slip directly following a YOS, it will always be offset by one whenever working brioche!
I hope this clears things up!
Warmly,
Gianna
So, does this mean the last stitch of the set up round is not a YOS?
Hi Amy,
Thanks for reaching out! For the Set-Up Round you will *K1, YOS (see Notes), repeat from * to end of round ending with a YOS. Then for row 1 you will be *YOS, bp2tog (see Notes), repeat from * to end of round ending with a bp2tog, you will be working this bp2tog on the previous rows YOS. Above I was explaining that you will not be working a YOS with another YOS it will always be offset by one, as you can see in these 2 rows!
I hope this clears things up!
Warmly,
Gianna
I’m so sorry to be this dense, but when knitting in the round am I not moving from the final stitch of the set up round into the first stitch of the first round? What am I missing? I believe when I’m executing the last stitch of set up and the first stitch of Row 1 I’m making a mistake that results in an inadvertent extra stitch.
Hi Amy,
Thanks for reaching out! I may have misinterpreted the previous comment and understood it as a question regarding working a YOS on top of a pervious YOS and not next to a YOS. So you are correct, you will be ending one row with a YOS and then starting the next with a YOS. Essentially you will work the YOS, slip the marker, then wrap the yarn over the needle again working the next YOS and then working the bp2tog.
Sorry any confusion, I hope this helps!
Warmly,
Gianna
Concerning the above question, will you ever end a round with a bp2tog and start a new round with bk2tog, or vice versa. Also, being at the beginning of the hat where I can’t see the pattern yet, I can’t keep track of whether I am on a purl row or a knit row, when I stop in the middle. Do I need to just write it down on a pad?
Hi Bonnie,
Thanks for reaching out! In the Crown section you will end Round 2 with a bp2tog and begin Round 3 with a bk2tog, but that is the only are of the pattern that these two will be next to each other! Also yes, I definitely would recommend writing all of the steps down on a note pad and checking them off as you go to keep track of the rows!
I hope this helps and please let me know if you have any more questions!
Warmly,
Gianna
Thank you so much, Gianna. You’ve been a tremendous help.
Thanks, Gianna. I figured it out! I’m at the crown now and round 1 states Bsk2p (see notes), but I don’t see it used in the pattern. Only BK3tog is used. Is this correct.
Thank you!
Hi Janna,
Thanks for writing in again! I am glad to hear that you figured it out! Thank you for brining this to our attention, the Bsk2p should be in the notes section, but the pattern is correct! You will be working the Bsk2p in the crown section, you can find out tutorial for how to work this increase here: Brioche Stitch: Basic Decreases (bsk2p + bk3tog)!
I hope this helps, happy knitting!
Gianna
Sorry but I’m still confused as Caitlin was earlier. How do you YOS, moving the yarn to the back of the needle then purl two together (when purling requires the yarn be in front)? Do you fully loop the yarn all the way around the needle?
Hi Belinda,
Thanks for reaching out! Yes that is correct, since you are working a purl stitch you will fully loop the yarn around the stitch so that it comes back to the front of the work.
I hope this clears things up, happy knitting!
Gianna
Hi, I am confused about the gauge saying rounds and it being 4 inches. It makes sense the gauge swatch would turn out 4 inches tall but I’m not sure how to get a measure of it if it would be done in the round
Hi David,
Thanks for reaching out! The gauge should measure 16 stitches and 24 rounds = 4 inches in brioche stitch, this basically just means 24 rounds (24 rows worked) should
equal 4″. I recommend checking out our tutorial Swatching for Circular Gauge, it will explain a little more in depth about how to get an accurate gauge swatch for working in the round!
I hope this clarifies things!
Warmly,
Gianna
Hello. I am still having issues with this round 1 of the crown. Once you have decreased the 12 stitches, how do you complete the row.
Can you please explain the decrease on this first round.
Thank you.
Hi Janna,
Thanks for reaching out! Basically, you will [Bsk2p then *YOS, bk2tog, and repeat from * to 5 stitches before next marker (making sure not to include the yarn overs), then with the remaining 5 stitches you will YOS, bk3tog (see Notes), YOS, slip marker] You will repeat everything within the brackets 3 times. [12 stitches decreased] ending the row with the YOS, bk3tog, YOS to end of round marker.
I hope this helps!
Gianna
Hello! I am having trouble with the decrease that begins the round. OK, I’ve just finished a bp2tog to finish the set-up round, and as I head in for the bsk2p starting the decrease round, where is my working yarn? The tutorial examples begin with a YOS with the working yarn in front, but that doesn’t apply when we’re finishing the round with a bp2tog. I’ve attempted this several times now, and the stitches at the start of the round end up being loose and funky. I’m not having trouble in the other two decrease spots, just the start of the round. What’s the secret? Thanks!
Hi Maren,
Thanks for reaching out! Please send our team a photo of your work to our email customerservice@purlsoho.com ad we can troubleshoot what may be the problem from there!
Warmly,
Gianna
Hi
Thanks for this beautiful pattern! I’m doing the 84 stitch cast on. Marking for the crown decrease I have one marker at start of round then two other markers— so three areas where i’ll Decrease. Is this correct? Can’t tell from the photos
Hi Anna,
Thanks for reaching out! You should have placed 3 stitch markers in the set up round, 4 total including the end of round marker! Keep in mind that the when it says [YOS, bp2tog] 14 times that is 28 stitches, so there should be 28 stitches between each stitch marker and all 4 will be evenly spaced throughout the 84 stitches!
I hope this helps and please let me know if you have any more questions!
Warmly,
Gianna
I am having the same trouble with round 1 of the crown. I have even gone to local knit shop and several women there are trying to figure it out. I have 84 stitches on my needle. I don’t’ think that you place 3 extra markers in the set up row. You have your original end of row marker to start, #1, then you work 28 stitches, place marker #2, work 28 more stitches and place marker #3 (56 stitches from start of row), work 28 more stitches and you are at end of row, which is now 84 stitches. So at this point, I should have the original end of row marker and 2 newly placed markers for a total of 3, is this correct? I will now send a separate text to ask the question where I am stumped.
Hi Linda,
Thanks for writing in again, that is correct! I misspoke it should be 3 stitch markers total, the end of round marker plus 2 additionally placed markers.
Warmly,
Gianna
Hi Gianna,
Thanks for this beautiful pattern. I’m knitting with circular needles for the first time, and feel I am making a mistake when I join for knitting in the round.
Can I ask what method you recommend for joining? And where you start the set up row (ie. does the join count as part of the set up row, or is it separate?)
If I am using a simple join, do I place the stitch marker, join with a knit stitch THEN start the pattern for the set up row (ie. with a other knit stitch)? Or do I join and that joining knit stitch counts as the first stitch in the set up row?
I hope these questions make sense.
Thanks again
Caroline
Hi Caroline,
Thanks for reaching out! I recommend using a simple joining method, you will place your stitch marker and then knit the first stitch to join in the round. This first knit stitch will count for the setup row, so you won’t do a second knit stitch but will go right into the YOS!
I hope this helps, happy knitting!
Gianna
Perfect! Thanks so much Gianna, I was going nuts trying to work this out. Such a simple thing but makes all the difference.
Best
Caroline
Hi Caroline,
I am so glad I could help, please let me know if you have any more questions going forward!
Happy knitting!
Gianna
Thank you for this beautiful pattern. Would you please list all of the Purl Soho yarns that can be substituted for Cashmere Merino Bloom and without having to make any gauge adjustments?
Hi Nan,
Thanks for writing in. Cashmere Merino Bloom is a DK weight yarn, which means that most of our other DK yarns (you can find them here) would make good substitutes.
While all of these yarns will produce a similar gauge, I would still highly recommend making a gauge swatch before starting this project. Gauge depends on a lot of things, including fiber content, needle material, and even just how tense your muscles are! If this is daunting, I’d recommend checking out a tutorial called All About Gauge, which covers some incredibly helpful information. I even learned some interesting, new tidbits myself while looking over it, and you may, too!
All the best,
Lili
Hello! I am very confused on the decreases currently!
I am doing the 84 stitch size, and I did read down the comment thread to see that there are only 3 markers total including the unique one, which is somewhat of a relief. But I am beginning to struggle already on the first decrease round, when I get to five stitches before the unique marker. I seem to be in the wrong spot to start a left leaning decrease, as I would need a YOS to start that according to the pattern. How do I fix this issue? Do I just do the decrease no questions asked, or did I mess up somewhere?
I was also in a local knit shop asking about the number of stitches before the decreases, but then I saw a clearer picture of the hat – I just want to clear up, in every decrease round, do we decrease 5 stitches before the marker, or does that number decrease to 4, and then 3, and so on? We were both super confused.
Hi Aingea,
Thanks for writing in. If you’re finding that you’re at the wrong spot when you reach the 5 stitches before the marker, then it’s possible that you’ve placed the markers incorrectly! I’d try moving each marker over by one stitch and seeing if that fixes the issue. In answer to your other question, yes, you’ll knit up to the 5 stitches before every marker on each decrease round! The brioche decreases decrease by 2 stitches every time, which allows this to remain consistent. I’ve made this hat myself, so I know just how tricky it can be, but I hope this helps clarify things!
All the best,
Lili
Hello! Very basic question but if I wanted to knit this in 2 color brioche, I would juste have to follow the pattern but alternating colors between rows right? Thanks in advance! 🙂
Hi Margaux,
Thanks for reaching out. You’re absolutely correct–all you need to do to make this hat in two-color brioche is to alternate colors between rounds!
All the best,
Lili
I think it’s actually easier in 2-color. One color is Always bk2tog and the other color is Always bp2tog. Another advantage: If you put your work down, come back to it later, and don’t know which side you finished with, the yarnovers are ALWAYS the last color worked
Hello- I am attempting this hat again and having issues with the YOS at the end of the set-up round, followed by the YOS at the beginning of Round 1. This gives me the wrong stitches. What can I do to make sure I have an equal division of YOS and bp2tog/bk2tog stitches? In other words, I end up with 2 YOS stitches, if 2 strands each, taking me out of the pattern.
Hi Janna,
Thanks for writing in! Brioche knitting in the round requires there to be either two YOS’s or a bk2tog and a bp2tog situated next to each other at the end/beginning of each round. This is because it is worked over an even number of stitches, but the placement of the YOS and the bk2tog or bpk2tog must alternate on each round so that they are worked into the correct stitch from the previous round.
For example, Round 1 begins with a YOS and ends with a bp2tog. However, the following stitch, the first stitch cannot be a YOS, since you cannot work a YOS into another YOS from the previous round. Therefore, the first stitch of Round 2 must be a bk2tog, even though it follows a bp2tog. I hope this helps clarify things!
All the best,
Lili
I am making this in the baby size. I am on round 1 of the crown. Figured out Bsk2p but struggling on the bk3tog. It says to leave 5 stitches before marker. But when I start that early it doesn’t work out. My stitch before the 5 stitches is a bk2tog. Then my next 5 stitches on the needle are purl, knit&yo, purl, knit&yo, purl. Can you please advise. Thank you.
Hi Jan,
Thanks for reaching out! You’re absolutely correct that the order of your 5 stitches should be purl, knit + yo, purl, knit + yo, purl. But once you reach these final 5 stitches before the marker, you do not begin the bk3tog right away! First, you work a YOS on that first purl stitch. Then, you have 4 stitches left, 3 of which you work the bk3tog over, and the final one you work a YOS on. I hope this helps clarify things!
All the best,
Lili
Can this pattern be used for a 2 color brioche stich? I’d love to make a hat where the ribbing is one color and the rest another color.
Hi Heather,
That’s a great idea! This hat will definitely work with 2-color brioche, and if you try this out, please let us know how it goes!
All the best,
Lili
Hi, I really like the hat that this patterns is meant to produce. However, the pattern is very poorly written. There are many crucial bits of information that only surface in the comments section. Someone should revisit this pattern and insert the crucial details that are missing. For example, when knitting the BODY, the end of one row and the start of the next one are marked by the same type of stitch (that is, either a pair of single stitches or a pair of brioche stitches). Everywhere else it is always a brioche stitch followed by a single stitch. This very important detail surfaced only from reading the comments. The set-up row for the CROWN can benefit with bold [ ] parens to show the entirety of the repeat. Again, for me, this information only surfaced from reading the comments. You can also tell knitters that an easy way to count is to count the columns of knit stitches.
On a personal note, I find the abbreviation BK2tog confusing. It would be better if you simply use BK. This is because K2tog means ‘knit 2 stitches together’. So, to me, BK2tog decodes to ‘knit the brioche stitch and the following single stitch’. The shorthand BK means ‘knit the brioche stitch’. It reaffirms that the brioche stitch is counted as one stitch.
Many thanks!
Hi Pearl,
I’m sorry to hear that you’ve had a difficult time interpreting our pattern! We appreciate your keen observations and will pass your notes along to our design team. While there are many different ways to abbreviate stitches, we’re generally hesitant to change any of the shorthand we use, since we like to keep all of our patterns in line with our style guide.
I also wanted to let you know that you will always run into two stitches of the same type at the end of rounds when working in brioche stitch in the round. This is a feature of the stitch pattern in general (not just in our pattern) and allows it to work correctly to produce the beautiful ridges!
Going forward, I also wanted to let you know about all the avenues in which we offer pattern support. If you have any questions about any of our patterns, you can send us an email or even sign up for a free 1-On-1 Project Help session, where a team member would be happy to chat or demonstrate techniques in real time for you over video!
Again, thank you for sharing your thoughts. We really appreciate your feedback and take it very much to heart!
All the best,
Lili
I have tried multiple times to get this pattern right but keep running into problems. The set up round begins with a k1 and then YOS. But round 1 begins with YOS and then bp2tog. I have the K stitch and then the slipped stitch on Round 1 so I don’t know how to proceed. What am I doing wrong?
Hi Lori,
Thanks for writing in! The way your stitches are currently set up is correct. In brioche knitting, you work each regular knit or purl stitch with a YOS (to create a stitch with its paired yarn over) and you work each stitch with its paired yarn over with either a bk2tog or a bp2tog (to create a regular knit or purl stitch). Hope this helps clear things up!
All the best,
Lili