How to Make a Fleece Hat with Ear Flaps

Print, tape, and cut out the pattern pieces. I’ve done an extra small for babies, a small for children, and a medium and large for adults.

Lay out the fleece with the wrong side up. Stretch the fleece both ways to figure out which is stretchier. Place the pattern pieces accordingly.

Trace around the hat top, then flip the pattern over on the fold line and trace the rest of it. You would normally fold the fabric in half and place the fold line on the crease, but since fleece is thick, it’s easier to cut through one layer. Either way, you should have one piece after cutting.

Trace and cut the hat bottom piece in the same way.

Repeat for the faux fur.

When cutting out the faux fur, try short snips to avoid cutting the pile too much.

Also cut 2 pieces of fleece that are 1 inch wide and about 18 inches long for the ties.

Take the top piece and fold the first 2 triangles together with right sides facing. With ¼” seam allowance, sew down the side of the triangle away from the end.

Put the edges of the 2nd and 3rd triangles together and sew.

Continue sewing the triangles together. When only the 2 ends are remaining, Put them together and sew all the way down so the circle is completed.

Take the bottom piece and sew the ends together with right sides facing.

Line up the seams of the top and bottom pieces and pin with right sides facing. Make sure the ear flaps are facing up.

Sew all the way around.

Repeat the same steps for the faux fur. It’s a little slippery, so you may want to pin more than with the fleece.

Cut one of the fleece strips into 3 equal strands. Leave about an inch at the top.

Braid the strands together until you get to the end. If you want the ties to be shorter, you can cut off extra.

Knot the end, leaving about an inch below the knot.

Make the strands even, then cut each in half to create a tassel look.

Repeat for the other fleece strip.

Pin the edges of the fleece and lining together with right sides facing and the seams aligned.

At the bottom of the ear flaps, add the ties so just the top can be seen.

Continue to pin all the way around.

Sew around the entire hat, but leave a gap of about 3 inches.

Pull the hat through the hole to turn it right side out.

If some of the fur gets caught in the seam, use a pin to pull it out.

Fold the edges of the opening in and hand sew with an invisible stitch to complete the hat.

If using a different lining, you could top stitch around the entire edge, but with faux fur, it looks better to have it sticking out.