How to Make a Witch's Hat by Sewing

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Things You'll Need

  • Tape measure

  • Black felt

  • Tailor's chalk

  • Ruler

  • Scissors

  • Calculator

  • Compass

  • Paper

  • Sewing machine

  • Floral wire

  • Floral tape

Skip a trip to the costume store this Halloween, and make your own witch hat.

Margaret Hamilton played arguably one of the most widely recognizable movie witches in the 1939 film "The Wizard of Oz," in which she uttered the famous line "I'll get you, my pretty, and your little dog, too!" as the Wicked Witch of the West. Hamilton wore the classic pointy witch hat in the film -- an essential for any witch costume. Sew a classic witch hat from black felt to complete your witch costume.

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Step 1

Measure the circumference of your head with a tape measure. Draw a line as long as the circumference of your head plus an inch on black felt with tailor's chalk using a ruler as a guide. Make a dot 16 inches above the center of the line. Draw lines connecting the end of the first line and the dot to form a triangle. Cut the triangle out for the cone of the hat.

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Step 2

Divide the circumference of your head by pi (3.14). Draw a circle with this diameter on a piece of paper with a compass. Draw a circle around the first with a diameter 12 inches wider. Cut out this donut-shaped template, and trace it onto black felt. Cut the shape out for the hat's brim.

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Step 3

Fold the triangle of felt in half, but don't crease the fold. Sew the side edges of the triangle together with a 1/2-inch seam allowance. Turn the cone shape right side out so the seam allowance is on the inside.

Step 4

Make snips slightly shorter than a 1/4 inch every 1/2 inch around the inside edge of the brim. Insert the open end of the cone through the center hole of the hat's brim. Line up the inside edge of the brim with the open edge of the cone -- the small snips in the brim make this easier. Sew the two pieces together with a 1/4-inch seam allowance.

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Step 5

Multiply the diameter of the hat's brim minus 1/2 an inch by pi. Measure and cut three pieces of floral wire to this length. Wrap the three pieces of floral wire together with floral tape. Form a circle with the wrapped wire, and wrap the ends together with more tape.

Step 6

Make snips slightly shorter than a 1/4 inch into the edge of the hat's brim every 1/2 inch around its circumference. Place the wire circle on the underside of the hat's brim and fold the edge of the brim over the wire. Sew the folded over edge in place as close to the wire as possible to encase the wire.

Tip

Attach ball fringe to the underside of the brim or embellish the top of the brim with homemade decorative flowers. Skip the floral wire if you want a hat with a floppy brim. Draw designs on the hat with glitter or glow-in-the-dark fabric paint. Use a zipper foot on your sewing machine, if you have one, to sew around the brim of the hat to encase the wire. The zipper foot will allow you to sew closer to the wire than a presser foot.

Warning

The hat is not machine washable; use a damp cloth to wipe away any spots on the hat.

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