Buffalo Horned Earflap Hat

Buffalo Horned Earflap Hat

What Is Being Made

The Buffalo Horned Earflap Hat is a crochet hat design created by Lisa Ferrel. This hat features a structured crown with decorative earflaps and horn-like shaping, making it a distinctive accessory suitable for intermediate crocheters. The design combines a fitted main body with tapered earflaps that decrease in width toward the bottom, creating the characteristic "horned" silhouette.

Craft and Primary Technique

This project is worked entirely in crochet, a fiber craft that uses a single hook to create interconnected loops of yarn. Crochet allows for quick fabric development and easy stitch manipulation, making it ideal for structured pieces like hats. The Buffalo Horned Earflap Hat demonstrates intermediate-level crochet skills, requiring familiarity with basic stitches and the ability to work in continuous rounds and rows.

Stitches Used

The pattern employs several fundamental crochet stitches:

• Chain stitch (Ch) – Used to create foundation chains and turning chains throughout the pattern
• Double crochet (dc) – The primary stitch used for the main body of the hat, worked in rounds to build height and width
• Slip stitch (sl st) – Used to join rounds together and create a seamless circular construction
• Decrease (dec) – Applied in the earflap sections to systematically reduce stitch count, creating the tapered shape that forms the horn effect

Pattern Structure and Shaping

The hat is constructed in two main sections. The crown begins with a small foundation and expands through eight rounds of increases, with each round adding stitches in a repeating pattern. Rounds 4 through 7 feature strategic increases (doubling stitches at regular intervals), while rounds 8 through 15 maintain the full stitch count without further shaping, creating the main body of the hat.

The earflaps are worked separately in rows, beginning with 15 stitches and decreasing by 2 stitches every row until only 3 stitches remain. This consistent decrease pattern creates the characteristic tapered earflap shape, and working both earflaps identically ensures balanced, symmetrical horns.

Materials and Yarn Weight

This pattern is designed for worsted weight yarn, a medium-weight yarn that works up quickly and provides good stitch definition. Worsted weight is ideal for hat construction because it creates a fabric with appropriate drape and warmth without excessive bulk. The pattern requires a crochet hook appropriate for worsted weight yarn, typically a size H/8 (5mm) or I/9 (5.5mm), though the specific hook size should be verified in the complete pattern instructions.

Finished Design Details

The completed hat features a rounded crown that fits snugly on the head, with two tapered earflaps that extend downward. The "horned" appearance comes from the earflap construction, which creates pointed, decorative extensions. The hat is worked in continuous rounds for the crown section, then transitions to flat rows for the earflaps, demonstrating the versatility of crochet construction methods within a single project.