Domovoy Cap

Do you think I’ve made enough pointy hat designs by now? I don’t! 🙂

Keep for details and for the FREE crochet pattern instructions for this hat, or if you want to support my art directly, consider buying the portable, printable, ad-free PDF version of this pattern! It’s available in my Ravelry Store and Etsy Shop, but we’re adding something: the Domovoy Cap is also available in my new Ko-Fi Shop <3 I’m using this pattern to test out this new shop front and am very excited about the possibilities – try it out, let me know what you think, and stay tuned for further developments 🙂 But don’t worry, I’ll still be using Etsy and Ravelry !

Prompted by a cute outfit photo I saw somewhere floating in the ether, this little velveteen cap design practically FLEW off my hook once I decided to make it. With a mischievous peaked top that expands down into a short fitted brim and subtle post stitch ribbed texture at the edge, this free crochet hat project is full of impish charm!

I named it the “Domovoy Cap” – a domovoy being the Slavic spirit of household and ancestors (click here for a Wikipedia article about them). These spirits provide important protection for the animals and family of a house, and must be appeased with offerings in order to procure their blessings and assistance.

Bernat Velvet is the recommended yarn for this project, and you’ll need less than half a skein to get one cap, so it’s perfect for using up spare balls of the stuff. I worked almost the whole hat in single crochet to eliminate Velvet’s tendency to “pull out” of the stitch due to the pile of the fiber (which happens if you work this kind of yarn in regular hdc stitches or taller). The end result is an easy project that looks adorable, feels soft as butter, and can be made in a day for maximum finished-object satisfaction.

I myself made a bunch of these, tweaking and re-tweaking to get JUUUUUST the right shape, and even did a few smaller versions – modifications for kids’ sizes are given in the notes of the pattern 🙂

Domovoy Cap Pattern

Materials:

5.00 mm hook
Bernat Velvet (#5 bulky, 300 g / 315 yards, 100% Polyester) – 1 skein

Scissors & yarn needle

Gauge: 3 sts & 3 rows – 1”

Finished Measurements (approximate):
22” brim (16-18″ for child size modificiation)
10.5” tall (from tip to bottom edge)

Stitches & Abbreviations:
magic ring (mr) – free tutorial from my blog here
single crochet (sc)
slip stitch (sl st)
half-double crochet (hdc)
half-double crochet decrease / half double crochet 2 together (hdc2tog)
front post half double crochet (fphdc)
back post half double crochet (bphdc)
free tutorial for post stitching found on my blog here
stitch/es (st/s)
each (ea)
round (rnd)

Notes:
Initial ch-1 at beginning of rounds does not count as first st.
This pattern uses parenthetical repeats. Instructions occurring within () should be repeated as written as many times as the number directly after indicates. Ex: “()5 times”

Notes for how to modify the hat to fit children’s sizes is included in the written portion of the pattern where deviating from the original instructions.

Make magic ring.

Rnd 1: Ch 1 (does not count as first sc – see Notes) 3 sc into the ring. Join with a sl st to the first sc of the rnd. – 3 sts

Working into single crochet in a 3-stitch round can be pretty tight– the tension of the first round gives a nice pointed tip to the cap, but if you are struggling to work so few stitches in the round, you can work 6 single crochet into the initial Magic Ring instead, join with a slip stitch, then pick up the pattern from Rnd 3.

Rnd 2: Ch 1. 2 sc in the same st as join. 2 sc in ea of the next two sts. Join with a sl st. – 6 sts

Rnd 3: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join and in ea st around. Join with a sl st. – 6 sts

Rnd 4: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join, 2 sc in the next st. (1 sc in the next st, 2 sc in the next st) 2 times. Sl st in the first sc to join. – 9 sts

Rnd 5: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join and in ea st around. – 9 sts

Rnd 6: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join, 1 sc in the next st. 2 sc in the next st. (1 sc in ea of the next 2 sts, 2 sc in the next st) 2 times. Sl st to join. – 12 sts

Rnd 7: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join and in ea st around. – 12 sts

Rnd 8: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join. 2 sc in the next st. (1 sc in the next st, 2 sc in the next st) 5 times. Join with a sl st. – 18 sts

Rnd 9: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join and in ea st around. – 18 sts

Rnd 10: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join, 1 sc in the next st. 2 sc in the next st. (1 sc in ea of the next 2 sts, 2 sc in the next st) 5 times. Join with a sl st. – 24 sts

Rnd 11: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join and in ea st around. – 24 sts

Rnd 12: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join, 1 sc in ea of the next 2 sts, 2 sc in the next st. (1 sc in ea of the next 3 sts, 2 sc in the next st) 5 times. Join with a sl st. – 30 sts

Rnd 13: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join and in ea st around. – 30 sts

Rnd 14: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join, 1 sc in ea of the next 3 sts, 2 sc in the next st. (1 sc in ea of the next 4 sts, 2 sc in the next st) 5 times. Joint with a sl st. – 36 sts

Rnd 15: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join and in ea st around. Join with a sl st. – 36 sts

Rnd 16: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join, 1 sc in ea of the next 4 sts. 2 sc in the next st. (1 sc in ea of the next 5 sts, 2 sc in the next st) 5 times. Join with a sl st. – 42 sts

Rnd 17: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join and in ea st around. Join with a sl st. – 42 sts

Rnd 18: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join, 1 sc in ea of the next 5 sts. 2 sc in the next st. (1 sc in ea of the next 6 sts, 2 sc in the next st) 5 times. Join with a sl st. -48 sts

Rnd 19: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join and in ea st around. Join with a sl st.– 48 sts

Rnd 20: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join, 1 sc in ea of the next 6 sts. 2 sc in the next st. (1 sc in ea of the next 7 sts, 2 sc in the next st) 5 times. Join with a sl st. – 54 sts

Rnd 21: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join and in ea st around. Join with a sl st. – 54 sts

If you wish to make a child size hat with a circumference of 18 inches (standard size for 1-3 year old), skip Rnd 22 and proceed to work Rnds 23-26 at 54 total stitches per round.

This is figured by taking the gauge (3 sts per inch) and finding the desired circumference for the hat (18”) for the formula (3 sts x 18 inches = 54 sts). You can use the same formula for smaller hats such as baby size (16 inches x 3 = 48 sts per round, so you’d stop increasing at Rnd 18 and then skip to Rnds 23-26. You may need to adjust the length by adding extra non-increasing rows if you do this, however.

Rnd 22: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join, 1 sc in ea of the next 7 sts. 2 sc in the next st. (1 sc in ea of the next 8 sts, 2 sc in the next st) 5 times. Join with a sl st. – 60 sts

Rnds 23-26: Ch 1. 1 sc in the same st as join and in ea st around. Join with a sl st. – 60 sts

Rnd 27: Ch 2. 1 hdc in the same st. 1 hdc in ea of the next 7 sts. 1 hdc2tog over the next 2 sts, making a hdc dec (see Notes). (1 hdc in ea of the next 8 sts, 1 hdc2tog) 5 times. – 54 sts.

8 hdc made. To make hdc2tog dec, work as follows:

YO and draw up a loop from next stitch

YO and draw up a loop from next stitch again – 2 stitches now have been worked, 5 loops on the hook

YO once more

Draw through all loops on the hook

If you’ve modified the pattern for smaller size, Rnd 27 stitch counts will be different – just make sure you decrease by 6 stitches, placing the hdc2tog decreases at regular intervals.

Rnd 28: Ch 2. 1 fphdc in the same st as join. 1 fphdc in ea of the next 2 sts. 1 bphdc in ea of the next 3 sts. (1 fphdc in ea of the next 3 sts, 1 bphdc in ea of the next 3 sts) around. Join with a sl st in the first fphdc of the round.