How to Make a Santa Hat

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Craft a quick Santa hat at home

Co-authored by Katarzyna Kapuścińska

Last Updated: December 14, 2024 References

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Sewing a Fabric Hat

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Making a Paper Hat

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Creating a Mini Headband Hat

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Video

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Q&A

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Tips

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Things You'll Need

Making your own Santa hat is easy and it will be a lot better in quality than the ones sold by the dollar store. The most traditional hat is made out of velvet or faux fur, but you can make simpler ones out of paper. You can even make a mini Santa hat headband.

DIY Santa Hat Tutorial

To make a quick Santa hat, cut out a semicircle on a red piece of paper. Staple one end to the other to create a cone shape. Use a hot glue gun to attach cotton balls around the base of the hat and at the top.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Sewing a Fabric Hat

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1
Measure your head and divide its circumference by 2. Take a measuring tape and wrap it around your head where you want the hat to sit. Take the measuring tape off, note your measurement, then divide it by 2.^{[1]
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- For example, if your head circumference is 22 inches (56 cm), your new measurement is 11 inches (28 cm).
- If you do not have a measuring tape, wrap a piece of string around your head, then hold it against a ruler.
2
Draw a triangle on a sheet of paper based on your new measurement. The base of the triangle should be half of your head circumference. The height of the triangle should be whatever height you want the hat to be.^{[2]
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- Drape a measuring tape across the top of your head. Decide where you want the tip of the hat to hang and then use that measurement for the height.
- For an adult hat, make it about 14 inches (36 cm) tall. For a child's hat, make it about 13 inches (33 cm) tall. However, it also depends on a person's height. ^{[3]
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3
Draw a curve along the bottom edge of the triangle. Tie a pencil to a piece of string. Hold the end of the string at the tip of the triangle, then place the pencil at the bottom left corner of the triangle. Holding the string taut, swing the pencil towards the bottom right corner of the triangle, creating an arch.^{[4]
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- You can also use a pen or marker instead of a pencil. If you have a compass, you can use that, too.
- The curve needs to start at 1 corner and finish at the other. You want to end up with a triangle with a curved bottom.
- You can draw the curve by hand instead. It will not be as neat or precise, but it will do.
4
Cut your pattern out and trace it onto a piece of folded fabric. Fold a sheet of red fabric in half with the wrong side facing out. Place the pattern on top of the fabric, with 1 of the triangle's diagonal edges along the fold. Trace the triangle with a tailor's chalk or pen.^{[5]
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- Great fabrics to use include: faux fur, velvet, fleece, flannel, and felt.
- Make sure you are cutting along the curved line so that the triangle has a curved bottom edge and not a straight edge.
Because 1 of the diagonal edges is already along the fold, you only need to add seam allowances to the bottom curved edge and the other diagonal edge. This is important. If you do not add seam allowances, the hat will turn out too small.^{[6]
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6
Sew the edge using a straight stitch and a ¹⁄₂ in (1.3 cm) seam allowance. Start at the bottom of the triangle and finish at the top. Match the thread color to the fabric as closely as possible. If you need to, use sewing pins to hold the triangle together, but remember to take them out when you are done.
- It will be faster to do this on a sewing machine, but you can do it by hand. If you are using a sewing machine, backstitch when you start and finish sewing so that the stitches do not come undone.
- If you don't know how to sew, glue the seam together using hot glue or fabric glue.^{[7]
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7
Cut a strip of white faux fur for the trim. Cut a strip of white fuzzy fabric 1 inch (2.5 cm) longer than your head circumference. You need to make the strip twice as wide as you want the trim to be, plus ¹⁄₂ inch (1.3 cm) for the seam allowance. For example, if you want it to be 2 inches (5.1 cm) wide, cut it 4 ¹⁄₂ inches (11 cm) wide.^{[8]
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- White fur is the most popular, but you can use white felt or fleece as well.
- If you aren't sewing the hat, make the strip the same width that you want the trim to be. For example, if you want it to be 2 inches (5.1 cm) wide, then cut it 2 inches (5.1 cm) wide.
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Sew the ends of the fur with a straight stitch and a ¹⁄₂ in (1.3 cm) seam. Fold the fur trim in half with the wrong sides facing out. Make sure that the narrow edges match up, then sew across them using a straight stitch and a ¹⁄₂ in (1.3 cm) seam allowance. Use white thread for this.
- Again, you can do this by hand or on a sewing machine. If you are using a sewing machine, remember to back stitch.
- Because of how short the ends of the fur trim are, you shouldn't have to use sewing pins. If you need to use them, however, remember to pull them out when you are done.
9
Slide the trim over the bottom of the hat and sew it in place. Turn the hat right-side-out, but keep the fur turned inside-out. Slide the trim over the bottom of the hat, then sew along the bottom edge using a ¹⁄₂ in (1.3 cm) seam allowance. Use white or red thread and a straight stitch.^{[9]
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- If you don't know how to sew, turn the trim right-side-out and slide it over the bottom edge of the trim. Glue it down with hot glue or fabric glue.^{[10]
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- Make sure that the side seam on the fur trim matches up with the side seam on the hat.
10
Fold the fur trim down, then fold and sew the raw edge into the hat. Keep the hat turned right-side-out. Pull the fur trim down to reveal the right side. Fold the trim in half by tucking the bottom raw edge into the hat. Sew the bottom raw edge to the inside seam. You can also glue it to the inside of the hat instead.^{[11]
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- Skip this step if you glued the fur trim down.
- You can sew the fur by hand or on a sewing machine with a straight stitch. If you are using a sewing machine, remember to backstitch.
11
Sew or glue a pompom to the tip. Buy a large pompom from the kids crafting section of a craft store. Secure it to the tip of your hat with hot glue or fabric glue; you can also sew it to the tip of the hat by hand.^{[12]
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- If you can't find any pompoms, you can use a white cotton ball instead.
12
Make a fur pompom for a fancier hat. Use a glass to trace a 3 in (7.6 cm) circle on a piece of white fur, then cut the circle out. Hand sew a straight or running stitch around the edges of the circle. Pull on the thread to gather the edges of the fabric and form a ball. Knot the thread, then sew or glue the ball to the hat.^{[13]
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- You should either sew/glue a pompom or make a fur ball. Do not do both.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Making a Paper Hat

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1
Draw an 20 in (51 cm) wide semicircle on a sheet of red paper. Place a ruler along the bottom edge of your paper. Tie a pencil to a piece of string, then hold the end of the string against the paper at the 10 in (25 cm) mark. Hold the string taut and use the pencil to draw an arc from the 1 in (2.5 cm) mark to the 20 in (51 cm) mark.^{[14]
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- You can make a smaller hat by making it 18 inches (46 cm) wide instead.
If you see any pencil marks, use an eraser to get rid of them. If you want to make a fancier felt hat, use the semicircle you just cut out to trace and cut another semicircle out of red felt.^{[15]
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3
Overlap the straight edges of the semicircle to make a cone. How much you overlap the straight edges depends on how big you need the hat to be. The more you overlap, the smaller the hat will turn out.^{[16]
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- Test the hat against your head to see if it is the right size. Tighten or loosen the hat as needed.
4
Staple or glue the hat shut. Once you are happy with the fit, take the hat off. Use a stapler to staple the seam of the hat down. You will need 1 staple near the top of the hat and 1 staple near the bottom. For a nicer finish, you can use glue or even a strip of double-sided tape.^{[17]
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- You can use tacky glue, white school glue, or a glue stick, but you will need to pin the hat together while the glue dries. This can take anywhere from 15 to 20 minutes to a few hours.
5
Glue cotton balls around the bottom edge of the hat. Tacky glue or white school glue will work just fine for this, but you can use a hot glue gun too. Glue the cotton balls close together so that you don't see any gaps.^{[18]
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- Don't use white pompoms; they won't give you the right look.
- If you can't find cotton balls, cut a strip out of white felt, and use that instead.
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Glue a white cotton ball or a white pompom to the top of the hat. Place a large drop of hot glue, tacky glue, or white school glue on top of your hat. Next, press a white pompom or a cotton ball into the glue. Wait for the glue to dry before wearing the hat.^{[19]
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- Hot glue will set within minutes. Tacky glue or white school glue will take a few hours.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Creating a Mini Headband Hat

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1
Draw a semicircle on a sheet of red felt and cut it out. The semicircle needs to be twice as wide as you want your final hat to be. Something around 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 cm) would be ideal; this will give you a cute hat that's about 3 to 4 inches (7.6 to 10.2 cm) tall.^{[20]
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- Alternatively, use a bowl or plate to trace a full circle. Cut the circle out, then cut the circle in half.
- Use red sparkly felt for a fancier touch!
2
Overlap the straight edges of the semicircle to make a cone. How much you overlap the edges by does not really matter as long as it is a cone shape. This hat will be too small to fit over your head like a normal hat anyway; you will be placing it on top of a headband instead!^{[21]
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- If you are using glittery felt, make sure that the glittery side is facing out.
3
Hot glue the seams down. Once you are happy with the shape of your cone, pull the edge away and draw a line of hot glue down it. Quickly press the edge back against the cone, and hold it there until the glue sets. This should only take a few minutes.^{[22]
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- You can also use tacky glue or fabric glue, but you'll have to pin the felt until the glue sets. Fabric glue will take about 15 to 20 minutes while tacky glue will take several hours.
4
Trace the base of the cone onto red felt, then cut the circle out. Place your cone on top of a sheet of matching red felt. Trace around the base of the cone using a marker, then cut the circle out. You will use this for the bottom of the cone so that you can adhere it to the headband.^{[23]
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- Cut just inside the lines that you drew, otherwise the circle will end up too big.
5
Cut 2 slits into the red felt circle for the headband. Measure the width of your headband first. Next, cut a vertical slit into the left side of your felt circle, about ¹⁄₂ inch (1.3 cm) from the edge. Cut another matching slit on the right side of the circle, also ¹⁄₂ inch (1.3 cm) from the edge.^{[24]
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- Adding slits to the circle will allow you to slide it around on the headband and change its position. It is better than just gluing it on.
6
Glue the circle to the bottom of the cone. You can do this with hot glue, tacky glue, or fabric glue. Place the glue around the edges of the felt circle, then press them against the inside edges of the cone. You will have a slide seam along the inside edge, which is fine.^{[25]
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- If you are using hot glue, work 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5.1 cm) at a time, or the glue will set too fast.
- If you are using fabric glue or tacky glue, pin the felt while it dries.
- If some of the circle sticks out from under the edge of the cone, trim it off.
7
Cut a strip of white faux fur for the brim of your hat. Wrap a measuring tape around the base of your cone to get the circumference, then cut a strip of white fur according to that measurement. Make the fur strip about ¹⁄₂ to 1 inch (1.3 to 2.5 cm) wide.^{[26]
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- You can find white fur in the kids' crafting section of a craft store. If the fur is too long, cut it shorter with scissors.
- If you can't find white fur, you can use white felt instead.
8
Glue the white fur strip to the bottom edge of your cone. You can do this with hot glue, fabric glue, or tacky glue. If you are using hot glue, squeeze the glue out 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5.1 cm) at a time before pressing the fur into it. If you squeeze too much glue out at once, it will set before you finish adding the fur.^{[27]
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- Again, if you use tacky glue or fabric glue, you will need to pin the fur until it sets.
9
Glue a pompom to the top of the hat. Buy a pack of small white pompoms from the kids' crafting section of a craft store. Glue the pompom to the tip of the hat, then let the glue set. Hot glue will work the best for this, but you can use fabric glue too.^{[28]
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- Tacky glue is not recommended because it takes too long to dry and the pompom may slide around as it dries. You won't have this issue with fabric glue because it is so thick and dries fast.
- If you can't find pompoms, try a cotton ball instead.
Push the end of the headband into the left slit, then keep pushing it until it comes out of the right slit. Slide the hat around on the headband into your desired position. You can make it sit right on top of the headband or at a slight angle.^{[29]
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Community Q&A

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Question

Can I make a Christmas hat with glazed paper and cotton?

Community Answer

Yes, you may! Make a cone out of the paper, then add the cotton to the top for a Santa hat.

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Tips

Turn it into an elf hat by using green felt or fleece instead of red, and red felt or fleece instead of faux fur.

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Your Santa hat does not have to be red and white.

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