Recreating an Edwardian Hat

Here's how to make one. Start by creating a tube: 

1. Cut a rectangle of fabric about as long as your cat.
2. Fold the rectangle, making it slimmer, not shorter, with right sides facing in.
3. Stitch the long end and one short end shut.
4. Flip/push it right side out (if needed, use a blunt tool to help).
5. Sew shut the remaining open end.
6. Don't press the tube. Leave it soft and uncreased.

Vary the tube length and height to make different size flowers. Experiment.

Roll up the tube in a haphazard fashion to resemble a rose. Pinch and stitch the bottom of the flower together (don't miss any layers or it will pop apart/unravel). Create a more natural look by using hidden stitches to pull the "petals" this way and that.

Four mediocre flowers in two fabrics.

Put it all together.

1. Thread your curved needle or fire up the glue gun.
2. Place the cover on the crown and tack it in place. Use several stitches below the line of the hat band, and maybe one through the center top for good measure.
3. Pin and then stitch the hatband around the crown.
4. Once the band is in place, add the flowers to conceal the join.

Ready to be stitched with a curved needle (or glued) to the hat.

Here's the exterior fully covered, with the band and some of the flowers stitched in place.

It's starting to look like something!

Time to work on the interior.

Begin as you did for the exterior. Gather a length of fabric that will overshoot the edge of the brim and pin it in place inside the crown, as well as along the outer edge of the brim.

✂︎ HELPFUL TIP 3 ✂︎ Here's where doing the interior first will really makes things quicker and easier. Much simpler to have the interior brim lined, then simply bring the extra exterior fabric over it, fold under, and stitch it in place in one step. 

Here's my interior lining going in.

Pinned far up inside the crown and also along the edge of the brim.

✂︎ HELPFUL TIP 4 ✂︎ For the interior lining, work down inside the crown, not up near the brim. More of the interior than you'd think will be visible during wear and you (or maybe just I) don't want those seams to show.

I used the curved needle to attach the lining, taking care not to go through the exterior fabric.

✂︎ HELPFUL TIP 5 ✂︎ In the top photo you can see a big mistake. I'd cut away too much of the exterior fabric leaving almost no overlap in some spots. Because of that boneheaded maneuver, it took much longer to create a neat inner edge. Don't do this.

But wait... it gets worse.

These fabrics were quite shreddy, so I used pinking shears, the most disaster-prone of sewing implements, to trim the excess. Here's what happens when you are not absolutely vigilant when using pinking shears. 

I concealed the hole with a tuck and a stitch. But my OCD self was gutted.

After a short break to drown my sorrow, I pressed on.

I realized I could save time and blood by machine stitching the inner edge and hiding the new stitching line on the exterior with decorative trim. 

The top photo below shows the trimmed down and machine-stitched interior fabric, with the turned-under exterior fabric being pinned over it.

The bottom photo shows me using a regular needle to tack the exterior fabric to the interior fabric, as if I were putting up a hem. Very simple.

Had I lined the interior brim first, and not cut the upper fabric too short, this part would have been relatively quick and easy. No matter... I was pleased with the results.

Here's how the interior looked at this point:

Looks good enough to eat, no? Like a giant mushroom.

That naked inner crown really bugged me. Even though I'm probably the only one who'll ever see it, and certainly the only one who'd care, I had to finish it.

Time to make another tea cozy. This one is similar to the poof at the back of my Regency bonnet. 

Here's how to make an interior crown poof:

1. Measure the approximate depth and inner circumference of the crown.
2. Cut a rectangle of lining fabric several inches longer and taller than these dimensions.
3. Hem one long edge.
4. Fold over the other long edge about an inch and stitch to create a channel.
5. Slip any slim ribbon, string, or length of yarn through the channel, leaving a longish tail dangling out on both sides.
6. Fold the rectangle so the short edges meet, with right sides facing in.
7. Sew the short edges together, leaving the channel open and ribbon ends free.
8. Pull tight and knot the ribbon, trim off excess (photo below, left).
9. Flip it right side out (photo below, right).

✂︎ HELPFUL TIP 6 ✂︎ Edwardian hats tend to be huge and sit atop a gigantic hairdo. Smushing the poof down into the crown helps make the crown shallower. This means you can get away with less hair up top.

Here's the completed interior.

I thought it looked pretty good, and next time, doing the inside brim before the outside will save several steps and lots of time.

✂︎ HELPFUL TIP 7 ✂︎ If you're adding embellishments to the crown that need to be stitched all the way through to the interior (something heavy, for example), consider inserting your poof later so it will conceal those stitches.

Next up, trimming the outer brim edge to hide the machine stitching lines. I thought this metallic passementerie added depth and polish. Here, it's pinned in place awaiting hand stitching.

Last up, the final trims. Potential candidates included these and other bits and bobs I had on hand.

I arranged various feathers until I liked how it looked. Working with feathers can be a bit stressful. They never want to stay where and how I put them. I've found it helps to stitch right through the feather's central core, and to attach the feather to the hat at several points along the shaft, where feasible. 

The feathers were slipped behind the flowers and stitched in place.

✂︎ HELPFUL TIP 8 ✂︎ A light, strategic hand with your tacking stitches early on allows you to more easily add embellishments such as feathers, later. It's better to do a bit of reinforcing once every element is placed exactly as you'd like, than to overdo, only to have to undo and redo. 

And finally, the absolutely last bit!

For the finishing touch, I wanted something that would pull it all together, offer a little brightness without excessive contrast, and conceal the stitching holding the feathers. 

As I often do on my custom-cobbled shoes for The Splendid Slipper, I created a decorative bow. This one is made from a length of antique cotton lace, looped and nipped at the center. The beautiful old button was a gift from my friend Lizzie, purchased at an antiques shop on one of our many outings. I was so pleased to put it to good use. 

I attached the bow and popped the hat on my head. I'm tilting down a bit to show off the embellishments. The photo is mirrored, but flipping it made it look as if I were staring off the page.

 And here we are at the tea room. It was a lovely event. I miss my dress-up buddies and look forward to being with them again before too long.

Here's a closer look at my outfit. My all-time favorite parasol (from lovely Erika at La Roux Vintage) and my silk dress are both antique.

Thanks for reading my post. I hope you find the instructions and advice helpful. If you attempt your own cobbled hat, please share your experience!

I welcome you to leave thoughts, suggestions, and questions in the comments. 

Stay safe and stay well, everyone!

 ~ Liza