Hats enough to share!

{Fleece Hat Tutorial Posted Below}

I'm making hats, hats, and more hats! As soon as they're finished, they're going to be packed up and sent off to the good people of Sew for Kids; the organization that sews together for the children of the Pine Ridge Reservation. And why not? I had a lot of fleece fabric scraps just sitting in my bin and I hear winters get dang cold in South Dakota! Sew for Kids posts a monthly project focus and October is dedicated to warm outerwear. Their site has lots of ideas, including free patterns and tutorials, to motivate sewers to help their cause. However, store bought donations are eagerly accepted as well!

I first heard about the above mentioned organization through the charitable blog, Hopeful Threads. This month, Hopeful Threads is dedicating their efforts in support of mothers and babies of the Pine Ridge Reservation through the Diaper Bag and Breasfeeding Program. Basically, this means: Attention sewers (or shoppers, remember you don't have to be crafty to help out) baby items needed! So, in addition to the children's hats I'm tucking away some burp cloths within the box to send off. If you're more talented and clever than I, they are in need of diaper bags, blankets, sleep sacks and many more items that you can read about here:  Hopeful Threads: October monthly project announcement.

I had a lot of fun making these hats. They're a quick project and they don't use very much material. I tried quite a few methods and sizes and here is what I ended up liking best.

Tutorial

1. Determine hat sizes. Here are the measurements I chose for the following ages:
Size by age- Head circumference x  Hat Height in inches.
Newborn - 14" x 6"
6 month old -  16" x7"
12 month old - 18" x 7"
18 month old - 20" x 8.5"
Two years and up- 22" x 10"

2. Cut your fabric. *It is very important to cut pieces out with the stretch going lengthwise!*

• All sizes, cut 7 strips of fleece 5" x 1 1/2" (For the pom pom; adding this is optional.)

• Then, cut two rectangles head circumference + 2" x the above hat height. So...

        Newborn size: Cut two rectangles 8" x 6" (the stretch should be along the 8" side...)
        6 month size: Cut two rectangles 9" x 7"
       12 month size: Cut two rectangles 10" x 7"
       18 month size: Cut two rectangles 11" x 9"
        2+ years size: Cut two rectangles 12" x 11"

• Cut two more rectangles the same width and either 4 or 6 inches tall depending on size of hat...

       Newborn size: Cut two rectangles 8" x 4" (again, the stretch should be along the longer side...)
       6 month size: Cut two rectangles 9" x 4"
      12 month size: Cut two rectangles 10" x 6"
      18 month size: Cut two rectangles 11" x 6"
      2+ years size: Cut two rectangles 12" x 6"

3. Create the pom pom
Lay the 7 strips of fleece on top of each other and sew across the middle.

Cut the layers of each end into fourths.

Grab pieces from the edges and start tying them across the front. You only need to do this a few times, just so the pile starts to fill out in a pom pom fashion. Set aside.

4. Sew the hat
*For the newborn and six month sizes, I like to use a quarter inch seam allowance. For the bigger sizes, I use a half inch seam allowance.

• Sew three sides of the big rectangles together with a zig zag stitch and a half inch seam allowance. I like to sew my seams twice so that they are extra strong as these are for kids after all! This is to form the hat.

• Sew the side seams of the second rectangles together. This is to form the hat band.

 Now, fold the band in half with the seams lined up in the inside. The seams should be open flat.

Feed the hat, still inside out, through the hat band so that the three raw edges align. Sew again with a zig zag stitch and a half inch seam.

5. Finishing touches
Trim the had corners. Flip the hat right side out and fold up the hat band.

Now shape the hat by folding both corners of the hat in towards the center and hand sewing them into place. Attach pom pom to the top of the hat. Tack the hat band in place along the side seams.