It has been so hot and sunny this summer and I’ve wanted to soak up all the sun, but I realized my baby needed a sunhat, so I decided to whip one up. This sunhat comes in two sizes 3-6 months and 6-12 month size. I made the 3-6 month size. Make sure to download the free PDF with the pattern before getting started.
Materials
- 1/3 yard Main fabric
- 1/4 yard lining fabric (also used for the ruffle)
- 2 feet 1/2 inch ribbon (for the hat tie)
- enough fusible interfacing for the brim (approx 1 square foot) The type of interfacing you use depends on how stiff you want the brim to be I used a flexible interfacing
- matching thread
- the PDF below
Getting started
The first step is to lay out your fabric. I ended up altering the pattern a little, so it looks different from the PDF pattern, but the end result will be the same. You will want to take your fabric and fold it in half twice so your main fabric measures 12″ by 11″ and your lining fabric measures 9″ by 11″ Make sure the brim is lined up on the side with two folds. I used the sun pattern fabric for my main fabric and the solid yellow for my lining.
Constructing the cap
The first step is to pin and sew up one side of two cap pieces, right sides together. Do this again with your other two pieces, you’ll end up with two half circle pieces. make sure to cut notches in the seam allowance and press the seam allowances apart
Pin and sew the two half circle pieces together, then notch the seam allowance and press with seam allowances apart
Repeat with lining
Constructing the Brim
Our next step is to construct the brim. Start with ironing the interfacing to the wrong side of one of your brim pieces, then pin and sew the outside of the brim.
After you have sewn the brim, cut lots of notches in the seam allowance, turn it inside out and press it flat. The more notches you have, the easier it will be to get the brim to be a flat circle
Constructing the Ruffle
Your ruffle should be a 3″x44″ long strip of fabric. Start off by making a circle by sewing the short ends together. Next fold and iron your circle in half lengthwise, so your ruffle is 1 1/2″ thick.
Now it’s time to make your ruffle scrunched so it actually looks like a ruffle. To do this, you will need to baste your fabric. Use a 1/4″ seam for this and make sure to leave a long thread on both sides. After you have basted your fabric take the top thread and gently pull to start making your fabric bunch up. Focus on making the ruffle the same circumference as the inside of the brim, then move the bunches around until it looks even
Putting it all together
Now that the ruffle, cap and brim have been constructed, it’s time to sew it all together. First pin and sew the ruffle onto the brim
Then sew the main fabric cap to the brim. The right side of the cap should be facing the ruffle side of the brim
Next, attach the ribbon ties to your sunhat. Fold the cap in half and pin 12″ of ribbon to each side
This next part is a bit tricky. You are adding the lining to the hat and hiding all of the seams on the inside. To do this, tuck the hat with the brim into the lining, with right sides together. The long part of your ribbon tie and your brim should be tucked inside the hat and you will see the seams of both the lining and main cap piece. Sew along the edge of the brim, leaving an approx. 2 inch gap open
Using your gap you just left in the last step, turn your hat right side out. Once your hat is right side out, hand sew the gap closed using a ladder stitch (see my post Hand Stitching: 5 common types of stitches for directions on how to do this) and your sunhat is complete!!
