Help—my hat just isn’t turning out...

Hi, 

I’m trying for the umpteenth time to crochet a hat for my fiancé (I’ve already unraveled the whole thing 4 times). 
I’m using yarn that should be crocheted with a size 4 hook. 

Here’s my pattern... 
I started with a magic ring and crocheted 11 half double crochets into it. 
Then in the 1st round I doubled every stitch, in round 2 every second stitch... until I had reached 18 cm (that’s what the pattern said for a head circumference of 59 cm). 
Then I just continued crocheting every stitch normally... 

and the result:
1st time: a plate
2nd time: a bowl (I tried decreasing stitches again), because it was turning into a plate again 

The 3rd time I worked with post double crochets (4 front post double crochets, 4 back post double crochets), and it ended up looking like a Chinese hat—pointy and much too small (more like for a baby). 

The 4th time I tried using thicker yarn... and that turned into a large Chinese hat and was almost unbendable. 

My 5th attempt (with size 4) didn’t get unraveled, but it has the shape of a swim cap and lets a lot of wind through... 

Can anyone give me a tip on how to crochet a simple men’s hat that is windproof and has a nice shape? 

I’m at my wits’ end but still don’t want to give up... 

THANK YOU!!! 
Best wishes, 
Becky 

Hi Becky,
have you already looked through the free patterns here on CP?

Just search for “free hats”—there are 116 different patterns.

That would be ideal for trying things out; maybe there’s something there that’s described better.

Hi Becky,
for half double crochet, 11 stitches at the start is too many—you do that when crocheting circles with double crochet stitches. I’d try starting with 8 or 9, depending on how tightly you crochet. And then increase as you described: double every stitch, then every 2nd stitch, and so on.
You can also try Googling “crocheting circles”—there’s a detailed description on ribbelmonster.

Maybe you crocheted it too tightly. In that case, you should just try using a larger hook size.

Hi,

thanks for all your helpful tips—I’ve already downloaded a new pattern—I’m curious to see if it’ll work out—otherwise, I’ll just go back to knitting—that always works out ;-)

THANK YOU!!!!!

Hugs,
Becky