Hat Knitting

When do I start reducing a knit hat for an adult?

I am knitting an adult sized hat and I’m kind of winging it without a pattern so I’m not sure when I should start reducing. I don’t want it to end up as a beanie, or on the other extreme a stocking. I’m using US 7 16″ circular needles and a worsted weight yarn. It’s loosely based on the Umbilical Cord Hat in Stitch ‘n Bitch, it’s a stockinette stitch and it does not have a hem, it just naturally rolls up at the end. I’ve made several of those and I’m just making it bigger for an adult. I cast on 100 stitches originally, right now it’s about 5″ long. How much longer should it be before I start reducing? And once I start reducing what pattern should I follow? Don’t know if this helps but the baby hat cast on 64, knit to 5″ then round #1 knit 6, knit 2 together, #2 knit 5, knit 2 together, etc. Thanks!

I knit a few adult hats with a rolled brim and started decreases when the straight section was ~4-1/2 inches. I used 8 decreases (k2tog) per round evenly spaced, every other round. I used thicker needles & yarn, so if you start decreases at 5″, it should be about right.

Here’s the pattern.

http://knitflix.blogspot.com/2004/12/fo-26-27-quickie-hat-scarf.html

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