Beanie Help

[Kate17]

This is probably one of the easiest things to crochet, but I'm missing something somewhere!  I am a very new crocheter.  I have crocheted before just very simple scarves.  I found a group called The Magic Yarn Project that uses beanies as the base for their Disney Princess wigs, Jack Sparrow wigs and superhero designs for pediatric cancer patients.  They have a pattern online and I have looked at several youtube videos.  The pattern uses the half double crochet stitch and I have no problem crocheting the crown but I cannot crochet the rest of it properly.  The finished beanie looks like a lemon slice.  I think my problem is that after I finish a round and then slip stitch, to join, I chain 2 and then I'm not sure where to start the next half double crochet. I have included a photo of two of my beanies below.  They are supposed to measure 6.2 to 6.5 inches in length and I've got that.  But then they should measure 8 to 8.5 inches across the brim.  These measure at least 10.

Can anyone help me figure out what I'm doing wrong?

Thank you so much

Kate

[Granny Square]

It's possible your stitch tension is different from the pattern.

There's a bit of math that can help you make a hat without a pattern, using plain stitches like HDC.  It involves a little geometry.

8 to 8.5" across the brim would fit a 16-17 inch head, this is pretty tiny--for a baby 6-12 months.  Here's a site with hat measurements http://www.bevscountrycottage.com/size-chart.html  Is that the size you are going for?  Your measurement of 10 is more in the toddler/elementary school  range.  I sort of disagree with the 'hats should be smaller' thing, because crochet isn't always really stretchy (depends on yarn and pattern) and I personally don't like them tight...and kids grow fast, so...

Anyway, the math.  You need to know the intended wearer's head circumference, which the chart gives you measurement ranges by age.  Now, remember your geometry, the circumference of a circle is pi times diameter.  Therefore, when you are making the flat circle for the crown, you need to make a circle whose diameter measures the circumference divided by 3.14.  So If you are really aiming for a 17" head, you need to make the circle 17 ÷ 3.14 = 5.4" across, and then stop increasing and work around until you get the depth you need.

As far as the problem of knowing where your round starts, you might find it useful to put a stitch marker into the first stitch (I like bobby pins, they are cheap and stay put, don't snag, but a safety pin or bent paper clip would work too.)  Or, you could just work round and round in a spiral for this sort of hat, as well.  If you do a spiral, you'll probably want to taper the last stitches to avoid a jag to sc, slip stitch, then fasten off.

By the way the shape of what you have looks OK to me.  What you have should be fine for a 3-10 year old patient (you might need to adjust the depth for an older child).  As Bev from the link I gave you said, "someone will fit into it!"