Supplies & Equipment
– stiffened felt, this is available at craft and fabric stores and comes in 9 x 12″ sheets in a variety of colour (and with glitter, which you know I had to use)
– decorations like pompoms, rhinestones, feathers, etc (optional)
– 1/8″ or 1/4″ elastic
– needle & thread (to match your felt colour)
– scissors
– ruler
– binder clips
– cardstock (for templates)
– pencil or marker
– glue (optional)
Party Hat Instructions
Mark and cut a half-circle from the cardstock to make your party hat template. You can use a plate or a bowl as a template for your template.
Trace the template on to the back side of the stiffened felt and cut it out. Depending on how wide you want the base of your hat you may want to trim a wedge off one half of the circle, as pictured below.
Twist the felt half circle into a cone, overlapping the edges by about a 1/2″ and clipping in place with a binder clip.
Sew the overlapped edges together. Go as high up the cone as you can, but remember it’s not necessary (or really possible) to sew all the way to the tip. I double stitched mine for extra durability.
Crown Instructions
For the crowns the only template you need is a triangle in the size you want the points on the crown to be. This can be as large or as small as you like.
To make the sides of you triangle symmetrical, fold the cardstock in half and cut a half-size triangle from it.
Once you have your triangle template, you need to mark the crown on the back of the stiffened felt and cut it out. Lay your ruler on the felt along one of the long, 12″ edges. This will be the part of the crown below the points. Place the triangle template on the felt above the ruler. Trace the triangle, move it over, and repeat until you have fit as many triangles as you can on that edge. There should be a small flap left at the end; this will be the overlap for sewing.
Clip the ends of your crown together with the overlap on the inside and the “valley” between the two end points matched up. Sew together up from the base of the crown to the “valley.”
To make a larger crown cut two pieces, one from each long side of your felt sheet. Clip the two pieces together with the overlaps on the inside of the crown and sew together.
Finishing Touches
Cut a piece of elastic in the proper length to fit the head of the child or adult (or pet…) who will be wearing the crown. For children especially you don’t want the elastic to be too tight. I like to make my elastic long enough to go around the back of the head like a headband, rather than under the chin (which I find uncomfortable). Sew the elastic to the inside of the base of the crown or hat.
Decorate your hats and crowns by sewing or gluing pompoms, feathers, rhinestones or whatever items you have on hand.
Gwen is a true princess. ox