Toddler Sun Hat

A few weeks ago I shared a photo of a toddler hat for Dylan in progress.  I was making it in preparation for the trip we took to the beach this past week.  He has, and does a great job of wearing, a very stylish hand-me-down khaki hat.  I joke it's his "signature look" as we've been plopping it on his head each time we leave the house since the spring.  The original intent was to protect his nearly bald head from sun and to shade his eyes.  He's grown accustomed to it and will wear it well.  It doesn't have a strap though and I was worried we might spend a bit of time chasing it down after a good coastal breeze.

However luck would have it, by the time I was looking in the stores, all the hats were gone as part of seasonal sales.  And darn if I didn't catch that I can do this bug again.  So, I did.  I made a template using his khaki hat.  Since it is slightly big on him I knew this meant the new hat would work for a while.  I'm hoping he can still wear both hats next summer.  Then I followed wonderfully detailed instructions on the fabrication.co.nz blog.  The only change I made (minus using my own template) was to add the straps.  I made those by folding and ironing strips of the fabric into 8-1/2 inch long, 3/4 inch wide strips.  I sewed up the long sides and finished end.  Then added 1-1/2 inches of velcro on each and sewed the straps between the crown and brim.

I confess, it has it's flaws, but I really am pleased with how it turned out and it was made with a lot of love.  You can't place a price tag on that.  :)

Supplies: fabrics from Jo-Ann; stiff interfacing (for the brim); Coats & Clark threads.