Although the Derby is tomorrow, it’s not too late to make a very special hat. Once you start thinking creatively, you’ll be able to make wonderful hats for any upcoming event with limited resources and limited funds. I don’t have hundreds of dollars to be spending on a hat that I’ll wear once so I decided to create my own. This was my very first attempt at creating a (somewhat) fancy hat and I’m quite proud of it. I’ll definitely be making more of these in the future!
Handy helpers:
- Scissors
- Hot glue gun
- A large mirror
- A clean space for assembling
Some ideas for materials:
- Fabric – satin, silk, tulle, ribbon, chenille, crinoline
- Feathers – peacock, dyed chicken
- Flowers – a single big bloom, many small blooms
- Paint – according to the morning news shows, a popular trend this year was two colors on one hat (for example: 1/3 white and 2/3 black or 1/2 and 1/2, not including the embellishments – similar to this one)
Step 1 – Get some inspiration and gather all materials. Going to your local craft and fabric stores can help you get ideas too.
For inspiration, you can visit:
Step 2 – Trim extras off the hat if needed. Mine had “decorative” straps that hung off of it and a tag.
Step 3 – If you’re doing a band around the base of the hat, it helps to either wear the hat or have something wear it for you so that you have a steady work surface. I rolled the fabric, wrapped it around my head and then knotted it once. I took the hat off and placed a dab of hot glue under the knot and also on the opposite side of the hat to keep the band from slipping.
Step 4 – Now we have to hide that ugly knot! This is the place for a cluster of flowers, a single large bloom, or a big bow. I chose a single large bloom. I purchased the stem and once home just plucked the bloom off. I used hot glue to place it over the knot.
Step 5 – I really like the way the hat looks right now, but I think it needs a little something more. I hot glued the ends of feathers and then placed 3 black ones behind the band by the flower.
Step 6 – You’re done! Take a photo and then go show off!
This photo just doesn't do the hat justice!
Dollars and $ents:
Designer Kentucky Derby Hat – $100-$800+
My imitation hat:
- Hat – $7.00 at Walmart
- Fabric – $0.25 ($0.74 for 1/4 yard) at Walmart
- Flower – $2.00 at Dollar General
- Feathers – $0.34 ($2.74 for pkg of 24)
- TOTAL: $9.59 +tax
Update: My hat got a lot of compliments at the party on Saturday! It cost under $10 and took less than 30 minutes of my time to create!