Spring Hats

By

Marianna O'Boyle
 

 "Colors of Spring"

Making doll hats is my favorite pastime.  I have recently started making hats for the 16" fashion dolls, such as Gene®, Sydney®, Tyler®, etc.  I prefer straw hats as they can be easily spray painted any color.  The hats in the pictures shown are made from natural straw "sinamay".  It is my favorite style to work with.  The hats are all spray painted with Krylon® semi-gloss paint.  They dry in a matter of minutes and can be decorated within a half hour.  But while they are still wet, the hats can be formed into different shapes for different styles.

Local craft stores like Michaels and A. C. Moore carry a wide variety of mini-flowers and ribbons for embellishing. I use a glue gun to attach all decorations.

Seeing the finished product is always rewarding. Each hat is different in its own way.   My hats are not for sale.  I give them to friends for special occasions or include them in swaps.

Additional tips by Lisa Lawrence:  The 4" size sinamay hat is the one that will fit the 15" fashion girls.  While Marianne uses a glue gun, I usually just use Arlene's® Floral Glue. (I'm too lazy to get my glue gun out!) I use Krylon indoor/outdoor spray paint in semi-flat, although sometimes I use a semi-gloss or gloss. I've tried painting with a paint brush, using the small bottles of craft paint.  It didn't work... the coverage was lousy and very uneven.  When the spraypaint is dry on the hats, I coat them with Krylon Matte Finish Sealer (shown is Plaid® sealer) in order to protect the doll's head from any paint that might rub off on her, paying special attention to the inside! The ribbons shown below are 3/8" wide, although I've used wider ones, depending on the look I'm going for. The sinamay hat is the one on the bottom row left.  I've also shown a straw hat next to it.  Above is a white synthetic straw hat and a doily hat.  (All of these are 4" in diameter - you measure the complete brim in determining size, NOT just the area where the doll head goes.) Be sure to spray paint the undersides of the hats too (maybe in a different color if you want!)  When painting either type of straw hat, you'll need to do several light coats. You'll have to spray the  straw hats from various angles in order to paint all the nooks and crannies.  Otherwise, when you're done, you'll see bits of white or natural showing through.  Check each hat individually to make sure you've covered it completely.  It works best to do very light coats on the sinamay hats also, otherwise the paint tends to glob up between the holes and dry that way.