I have been looking for this pattern. My mother use to make can hats but I never really wrote down her patterns. I have been looking for years to find a pattern on the internet here it is.

http://bohemianmermaid.blogspot.com/2009/09/beer-can-hat-part-1.html

I happened to copy and paste on my Deezas Crochet Blog in case I loose this pattern. LOL! Going to make one myself with Diet Coke. LOL!

 

 

I'm going to attempt to share with the world my pattern for the coveted Beer Can Hat. Some years ago I started making these and spread them around to many friends and unsuspecting acquaintances. I believe they originated during the 70s cheesy crafts era, which I completely adore.

Many a birthday party have I attended bringing a 6 pack of beer, a skein of yarn, a couple compact tools... and a few hours later, left the host with a special party hat and gift made right before his drunken eyes. Now YOU can be that fascinating craft nerd, amazing your friends at parties. Or just drinking and crocheting at home. 

All told, this project takes me about 2 hrs if I'm really paying attention… up to maybe 3 or 4 hours if there's beer and distraction involved.


The Cans:

You will need 5 can labels for one hat. Assuming your cans have two labels on them, front and back, you will need 3 cans (if your cans have only 1 label each, you will need 5 cans). 

Choose cans that have colorful or interesting labels... I have used Kern's, Miller High Life (w/ the girl on the moon), Pabst Blue Ribbon, Harley Davidson Beer, Schlitz Malt Liquor and Guinness. Coors is rather boring, but it's what I had available. Obviously the cans should be relatively clean.

The Other Supplies:

- Yarn - one 3oz skein in a color to match your cans
- Crochet Hook - size H or I
- Utility Scissors - regular household scissors will work fine
- Paper Hole Punch - very inexpensive at any office supply or drug store


Note: I used tall cans for my sample hat, adjustments for using regular size cans will be shown in [brackets].
 

 

1. Cut the Cans*Safety Note* Yes, you should be careful while cutting the cans. Jagged edges could scratch or poke you. But once the cans are cut smoothly along the edges, they are not sharp at all. You will not slice up your fingers doing this.

To start cutting the cans, choose an area that won't affect your label (such as the warning/bar code area) and stab through the can with one end of your scissors. 

Continue to cut up the side, and then along the top edge of the can all the way around. Do the same for the other side.

You will have the body of the can minus the top and bottom ends. Cut the two labels apart.
 

Now cut around the labels, leaving no jagged edges and rounding the corners as you go. The edges should be as straight as possible to keep a rectangular shape. Cut as large a label as you can without showing any of the warnings or small print.

Yes, the labels should be close to the same size and shape, but don't get too finicky about it. Imperfections will be covered by the yarn and will not make much difference in the end.  

2. Punch the HolesUsing the paper hole punch, punch holes into the can labels as shown. The holes should be about 1/4" from the edge. Place one hole at each corner, then a total of 5 [4] holes along the tall sides, 4 holes along the short sides. Space them as evenly as possible, about 1/2" apart.

Again, you probably don't need to get out your ruler here. Eyeballing the placement will be good enough for a lovely result.

 

Note: I used tall cans for my sample hat, adjustments for using regular size cans shown in [brackets].
 

3. Edge the Can LabelsBasically, the cans will be edged just like a granny square. 5 dc into each corner, and 3 dc into each hole along the sides. For those who prefer a written pattern, here you go:

Sl st into corner hole, ch 3 (counts as 1 dc). Work 2 dc into same hole. *Work 3 dc into next hole and each hole across. Work 5 dc into corner hole. Repeat from * around label, ending with 2 dc into starting hole. Sl st into 2nd of ch 2 from beginning. Tie off.

Repeat this for each can label.

4. Join the Labels

This part is a little bit tricky. You will be joining the pieces while holding them back-to-back, one is in Front, one is in Back. The Front label will be worked by inserting your hook from the front, the Back label will be worked by inserting your hook from the back. I find it helpful to hold the Front label a little lower than the Back label while I work.

To join these, we will use a sort of joined sc, hdc, and dc to get an A-line shape to our hat. I can't describe it much better than that, so I'll defer to my written pattern instructions:

A) Starting in the top left corner of Front label, sl st into 3rd of 5 dc. Insert hook into same st, *yo and draw a loop, insert hook into corresponding st of Back label, yo and draw a loop (3 lps on hook), yo and draw a loop through all lps on hook. Insert hook into next st on Front label. Repeat from * across next 5[2] sts (6[3] sts total).

**Yo, insert hook into next Front st and draw a loop, yo, insert hook into corresponding Back st and draw a loop. Yo and draw a loop through all 5 lps on hook. Repeat from ** for next 2[5] sts (3[6] sts total).

***Yo, insert hook into next Front st and draw a loop (3 lps on hook), yo and draw a loop through 2 lps on hook. Yo, insert hook into corresponding Back st and draw a loop, yo and draw loop through 2 lps on hook (3 lps on hook). Yo and draw lp through all lps on hook. Repeat from *** across, working last st into 3rd of 5 dc in corner. Tie off.

Repeat from A) until all labels are joined together.

If you want to stop here with the Beer Can Crown, simply sc along the top and bottom edges to finish, covering the yarn ends as you go. Boom, done.

5. Make the Base (Top): 

I call this part of the hat the Base because that's where a hat usually begins. Crochet the Base of the hat from the Basic Hat Pattern. Work in the dc stitches as described until the underlined number is 4. You should end up with a nice circle that has 60 sts around the outer edge. Do not tie off.

6. Join the Base to the Crown:


Hold the Crown and the Base wrong sides together with the labels facing you and matching up the stitches as you work. Sl st into any st at top edge of Crown, *insert hook through same st and corresponding st of Base, yo and draw a loop, yo and draw a lp through both lps on hook. One Joining Sc done. Repeat from * around top of Crown, working into edge dcs only (not the stitches joining the labels). Sl st into first sc worked (60 sts total). Tie off.

At this point, the hat can make a great Beer Can Fez. Just sc around bottom edge, then make a tassel and attach to the top. Boom, Fez. Still a very respectable party hat.

7. Make the Brim: 

Hold the Crown with the labels facing you, working from the lower edge. Stitches will be worked into each edge dc, and 2sts into the space under joining dcs (the joining dcs are laying sideways, work 2 sts around each of these bars as you work around). 

Optional: To even out the lower edge of your Crown before adding the brim (and make working the first row of increase a little easier), you may choose to work one row of sc all around before moving on to the next step.

Start Brim: Sl st into any edge dc, [ch3 (counts as 1 dc), dc into next 6 sts (7dc total). *Work 2 dc into next st. Dc into next 7 sts. Repeat from * around, sl st into third of starting ch3.]

Repeat from [ to ] adding 1 to the underlined number for each additional row (ie. Row 2 = 8, row 3 = 9, etc) until your brim is as wide as you like. I worked 3 rows for a big sunhat brim, but I think 2 would have been better for the fisherman style I was going for. 

After you're happy with the brim, work one row of sc around (no increase). I went one step further and worked another row of sc into the same sts worked (over the top of the sc just worked), which adds a little more stability to the edge. That's totally optional of course.