Cabled Bobble Hat - Free Knitting Pattern for Women in Debbie Bliss British Wool Aran by Debbie Bliss

Cabled Bobble Hat – Free Knitting Pattern for Women in Debbie Bliss British Wool Aran

This free downloadable knitting pattern by Debbie Bliss guides knitters through creating a classic cabled bobble hat sized to fit an average adult head. Worked in Debbie Bliss British Wool Aran, the finished hat features prominent cable panels running vertically up the crown, finished with a fluffy pompom for a cosy, timeless look. The pattern is rated as beginner-friendly, making it an ideal introduction to cable knitting for those who are comfortable with basic knit and purl stitches and are ready to take their first steps with a cable needle.

What Is Being Made

The project is a cabled bobble hat designed for women, knitted in one size to fit an average adult head. The hat combines a neat ribbed brim with a series of bold cable columns across the body, then finishes with a shaped, decreasing crown and a handmade pompom sewn to the top. It is a satisfying single-skein-scale project that can be completed relatively quickly, making it popular as a gift or a seasonal make.

Techniques Used

• Cable knitting: The defining technique of this pattern. Cables are created by temporarily placing stitches onto a cable needle, working the next stitches from the left-hand needle, and then working the held stitches. This crossing action twists the fabric and produces the characteristic rope-like or braided cable texture. The pattern uses both C4B (cable 4 back) and C4F (cable 4 front) as well as their six-stitch equivalents C6B and C6F, allowing the cables to twist in opposite directions for visual interest.
• Ribbing: The brim is worked in a 2×2 rib (k2, p2 repeat) using smaller 4.5mm needles. Ribbing creates a stretchy, form-fitting edge that helps the hat grip the head comfortably.
• Increasing: An increase row using m1 (make one, picked up from the bar between stitches) is worked at the transition from rib to cable section, adding the extra stitches needed to accommodate the cable pattern.
• Decreasing for the crown: The crown shaping uses k2tog (knit two together) and skpo (slip one, knit one, pass slipped stitch over) to reduce the stitch count progressively. A decorative decrease row is worked in conjunction with the cable crossings to create a tidy, structured crown finish.
• Pompom making: The pattern instructs knitters to make a pompom using either a pompom maker or a piece of cardboard cut to shape, which is then attached to the crown of the finished hat.

Stitches Used

• Knit (k) and purl (p) – the foundational stitches forming both the rib and the stocking stitch background between cables
• 2×2 rib – alternating k2, p2 columns for the brim
• Stocking stitch (st st) – used as the background fabric against which the cables stand out in relief
• C4B / C4F – four-stitch cable crossings worked to the back or front
• C6B / C6F – six-stitch cable crossings worked to the back or front
• m1 – make one increase
• k2tog – right-leaning decrease
• skpo – left-leaning decrease (slip 1, k1, pass slipped stitch over)

Materials Required

• Yarn: 2 x 50g/1¾oz balls of Debbie Bliss British Wool Aran in Cream 01. This is an aran weight yarn, meaning it is a medium-heavy weight that knits up quickly and gives