Snowman Hat Tree Topper

When I go shopping for Christmas stuff, I shop different than most people. My brain won’t let me purchase things that I can make. Instead, I look at the product to see how I can make it at home. I have wanted a snowman hat tree topper for the last few years but, instead of buying one, I knew I could make it way cheaper!

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comI made this hat for a under $7. I purchased the fabric and ribbon at Wal-Mart and I used holly from another decoration. It was inspired by one like this at The Weed Patch Store for $35.99. The good thing about making a hat yourself, you can make it tall, fat, short, skinny, or covered in snow. If you can visualize it, you can create it!

Supplies for Snowman Hat Tree Topper:

1 Yard of fabric
Ribbon
DMC Black thread
Needle
Sharpee
Ruler
Scissors
Hot Glue Gun
Holly
Duct Tape

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comThe fabric is a stiff felt with glitter specks that I got at Wal-Mart for $1.99. I liked the specks because it reminds me of the magic of Frosty!

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comCut 2 circles using a plate as a template. My plate was 10 1/2″ and I used a black Sharpie to trace it but, be careful not to get Sharpie on the edge of the plate. It is hard to get off (trust me!). Only one side of the fabric has sparkles on it so we will need 2 to give the hat a finished look.

Cut a hole in the middle of both using a smaller circle as a template. Cut it out carefully so you can use one for the top of the hat. I used a lid from my Coffee Mate Canister like this one. It was 5 1/4″. I don’t want you to stress over the size of the circles because the beauty of this project is, the more homemade the hat looks, the cuter it is. I just wanted to give you the sizes for reference.

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comNext, you need a rectangle. Mine was 18″ long x 14″ high. I wanted my hat a little on the tall side so 14″ sounded good to me. To see how wide I needed it, I  measured around the lid of the Coffee Mate Canister and added about an inch.

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comStart stitching at the measurement of your inner circle. Just stitch up the back with a rough stitch.  When you are done, you will have a tube. Don’t worry about it being perfect! Seriously, if it is a little off, it will look fine when you are done.

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comNext, slide the brim, glitter side up, over the tube and stitch it around the bottom. It will not be perfect and that is ok! I promise!

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comContinue stitching until the entire brim is attached to the tube. I did a very ugly stitch by starting on the inside of the tube and pushing the needle through the brim. Then, I brought the needle back to the inside of the tube and repeated the stitch. Repeat until the brim is attached.

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comNext, fit the circle you cut from the brim into the top of the hat and stitch it into place. If you messed up the circle when you cut it out it is not a big deal. Just cut another one with the scraps.

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comSince we don’t want the hat to be a slouch on top of your tree, we need to add some support. I used a piece of poster board I had on hand. It was 18″ long and about 13 1/3″ high. Cut yours to fit on  inside of your hat. It needs to be tight and you don’t want any poster board to hang out of the bottom of the hat.

 

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comOnce you get it nice and tight, duct tape it in place. You are not taping the poster board to the hat, you are just taping the poster board to the poster board so it will act as a form to make the hat stand nice and straight.

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comNext, attach the second brim to the bottom of the hat glitter side down. We want both sides to be sparkly and to have a  nice finished look. Sew the edge of the inside hole to the tube first. It is just like you did before.

Then, sew the edges of the brims together. When I got to the end, I pulled the thread a little so it would have a wavy look.

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comAs you can see here, my hat is not perfect but that is OK because look how much character it has.

Snowman Hat Tree Topper thebearfootbaker.comHot glue a piece of ribbon and add a little holly and you are all done. So much better than one from the store because this is way more fun and a lot less expensive. Add some snow or decorate it the way you want.

If you don’t want to make a snowman hat tree topper, you can make a smaller version for ornaments.

Happy Creating,

Lisa