| As an alternative to felting a hat from scratch using wool, it is also possible to make a fantastic hat using basic sewing and millinery skills. This hat is inspired by the costume worn by Gandalf in the recent film version of Lord of the Rings.You may find these instructions quite wordy, but I wanted to make sure everything was clear. Its also in a small font to save space. You may want to copy and paste the text into a word document so you can enlarge the text for easy reading. |
| Supplies: Heavyweight felt. Mine is a synthetic felt with a slightly brushed surface, but you will be able to find several weights and qualities of felt in good craft or fabric stores. I don’t find the thin ‘craft felt’ good for more than dressing up use, if you want a hat that will be rally wearable over a number of years, try to find a heavier felt or even a lightweight coat fabric. Having said that, craft felt is great for a practice run. Interlining/Stiffening: I use two types in my hats, a thin iron on interfacing in the point of the hat to stabilise the felt and prevent it sagging over time, and a much stiffer interfacing in the brim. For a very stiff brim that won’t need wiring, try buckrum, which is a specially stiffened coarse canvas used by milliners. Wire: This is optional, I’ve made several hats without it and they work just fine, but for a brim with no ‘flop’ to it, wire is the answer. Millinery suppliers sell a plastic ‘brim reed’ that is fastened with a little metal connector. This is really easy to use, but stiff garden wire (the green covered stuff on a roll) works well. You’ll need to overlap the ends and bind the join smoothly with strong tape when you use it. Hatband: For the inside, you need a strong, smooth ribbon or similar to make the headband. You may also want to add an outside hatband (though the film hat doesn’t have one) Sewing machine or (needle, thread and patience). Iron |
| Method: Start by making a template for the brim. You are going to cut a large ‘doughnut’ shaped piece of paper with the central hole a little bigger than your head measurement, and the outside circle almost as wide as your shoulders. It should look way too big to start with! Cut a slit in the brim so you can overlap the edges until it fits your head. Make it quite tight, as the actual hat will be a little looser. Look at yourself in the mirror and adjust the template until you have a gentle slope to the brim that looks right to you, and mark the brim width if the template is too wide. Recut your template to reflect the new measurements. Use this to cut two layers of felt and one layer of your heavy stiffening. (Don't forget a seam allowance!) Your hat crown will be made out of a triangle of felt, but it will need to slope back slightly and have a curved base. Make a cone of paper and adjust it on your head until the height, slope and fit seem right then mark on the level where you want it to fit the brim (try dropping your brim template over the top to see exactly where this goes). Cut one layer of felt and one layer or light interlining if you are using it. It is usually worth making the bottom edge a little lower than your template to make sure you have enough room for adjustments. Sew each layer of the hat together along the cut and press the seams flat. Depending on what you used as stiffening you may not be able to seam the liner and may have to trim off the seam allowance and overstitch the edges flush together. Start sewing the hat together by placing the two layers of felt right sides together and placing the stiffening on top. Make sure the seams are in the same plane and sew right round the outside of the brim. Trim away the stiffening from the seam being careful not to clip any of the threads, then snip the seam allowance at regular intervals. Turn the hat brim right side round and check that it still has the correct slope. Now is the time to make any adjustments. The brim should still feel a little tight. Trim a little of the stiffening away inside the brim until it now sits just a little loosely on your head. This will leave you with a seam allowance of felt in the brim which you will attach the point to. If you are wiring the brim, do it now make your circle of wire the same size as the brim and slip it into the brim between the stiffener and the underneath. If you think it will wriggle round, use just a couple of stitches to attach it in strategic places. Assemble the pointy crown. If you are using an iron on interfacing, attach it to the wrong side of the felt then sew up the long seam or the hat. Turn it right side round and again check that it is the way you want it. Pin the point to the brim, matching up the seams. If the crown seems too big for the hole, slide the brim up the point until you get a smooth fit. You should be able to machine sew all three layers of brim and point together. At this stage the hat is very nearly done and you can remove the pins and have a final fitting. The hat should sit comfortably and not be too tight. If it is too loose, don’t panic, that can be sorted out when you put the hatband in. If it is just a tiny bit tight, snipping the seam allowance where you attached the brim to the point should help. Tidy up any raw edges (oversew if desired). Wrap the headband ribbon round your head where you want the hat to sit and pin carefully. Stitch inside the hat to cover the seam . If the hat was too loose, the bottom edge of the headband will be larger than the top edge. Make a couple of tiny stitched tucks in the band to get the perfect fit. Final touches, you may find that a little bit of wadding or tissue in the point will help you achieve the right shaping of the point. Enjoy your hat! |
| Return to the Pointy Hat page |
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| NEW CONTENT: There is now a new version of this page in PICTURES! Making Gandalf's Hat |
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| How to make a Gandalf Hat Sally Pointer |
| Go to the new PICTURE instructions |