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Crochet graduation cap: an ornament with a tassel

Crochet a 30-stitch cap whose sides turn down on a back-loop round, close it with a matching circle, sew a board of two squares with card between them on top, and tie a tassel to the button.

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A square board on a round capUS termsHook: 3.5 mm (US E-4), or the size that gives you gaugeSize from your washed swatchDK yarn

Know these stitches: magic ring, single crochet, crochet increase, back loop only, chain

The finished graduation cap.

Materials and yarn planning

Yarns we’ve reviewed that suit it: Bernat Softee Cotton yarn, Lion Brand 24/7 Cotton DK yarn, Lion Brand Wool-Ease DK yarn. For the hook, choose by size and handle.

Yarn estimate: the 906 stitches of the cap and the board at about 3.5 cm of light yarn each come to about 32 m in the main color, plus about 3 m of gold for the button, the loop and the tassel.

This pattern has about 932 stitches in all the pieces. For a closer figure in your own yarn, weigh what you have made once a good part is done, divide by the stitches made so far, multiply by 932 and divide by the ball weight on the label. Taller stitches use more yarn than short ones, so allow a margin.

Finished size and gauge

At about 20 tight single crochets and 22 rows per 10 cm, each board square, 16 stitches by 18 rows, is about 8 cm a side, and the cap’s 30 stitches are 15 cm round, about 4.8 cm across, and its sides about 2.3 cm deep. If your squares come out a different size, cut the card 0.5 cm smaller than a square. These are calculations from the counts, not a measured sample.

The gauge calculator compares your swatch with the pattern. A stitch name you do not know is in the abbreviation chart; a UK pattern’s names are in the US/UK term reference.

The pattern

Count rows for this pattern

Cap

  1. Round 1: make a magic ring, chain 1 and work 6 single crochets in it. Pull the ring closed and join with a slip stitch to the first single crochet (6 stitches).
  2. Round 2: chain 1 (it does not count), 2 single crochets in each stitch, join (12 stitches).
  3. Round 3: chain 1, [single crochet in the next stitch, 2 single crochets in the next stitch] 6 times, join (18 stitches).
  4. Round 4: chain 1, [single crochet in the next 2 stitches, 2 single crochets in the next stitch] 6 times, join (24 stitches).
  5. Round 5: chain 1, [single crochet in the next 3 stitches, 2 single crochets in the next stitch] 6 times, join (30 stitches).
  6. Round 6: chain 1, single crochet in the back loop only of each stitch, join (30 stitches). The sides turn down from here.
  7. Rounds 7–10: chain 1, single crochet in each stitch, join (30 stitches). Fasten off, leaving a long tail.
  8. Base: work Rounds 1–5 again (30 stitches). Fasten off.
  9. Stuff the cap lightly, lay the base in its open end and sew the base’s edge to the last round with the long tail.

Board

  1. Chain 17. Row 1: single crochet in the second chain from the hook and in each chain across: 16 stitches.
  2. Rows 2–18: chain 1 and turn (it does not count), single crochet in each stitch across: 16 stitches. Fasten off, leaving a long tail.
  3. Make a second square the same way. Lay the card on one square, cover it with the other and whipstitch all four edges together with the tail.

Button, loop and tassel

  1. Button: in gold, make a magic ring, chain 1 and work 6 single crochets in it. Pull the ring tight and fasten off, leaving a tail.
  2. Loop: in gold, chain 20. Fasten off and knot the two ends together.
  3. Tassel: wrap gold yarn 20 times round a 5 cm strip of card. Slide a 15 cm strand under the wraps at one end and tie it tightly; cut the wraps at the other end. Wind another strand three times round the bundle 1 cm below the tie and knot it.
  4. Sew the board to the middle of the cap’s flat top. Lay the loop’s knot and the tassel’s tie in the middle of the board and sew the button over them, so the loop stands up and the tassel hangs over one edge.
  5. Backstitch the graduate’s initials on the board in gold if you like, and hang the cap from its loop or tie it to a card or a gift.

Check the work

The cap grows by 6 a round to 30, turns down on a back-loop round and keeps 30 for 4 more rounds; the base repeats its first 5 rounds. Each board square is 16 by 18: 288 stitches, 576 for the two.

Single crochets by round in the cap6 · 12 · 18 · 24 · 30 · 30 · 30 · 30 · 30 · 30
  • If the board bends, the card is too thin: use two layers, or a square of plastic canvas.
  • If the cap’s sides flare, the back-loop round was worked loosely or missed: it turns the sides straight down.
  • If the tassel looks thin, wrap the yarn 30 times instead of 20.

Updated . Stitch counts checked row by row; we haven’t crocheted a sample of this one yet. How the patterns are checked. Keep your yarn label, hook and swatch on the printable project worksheet.

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