This week, I had the privilege of making Robin Hood Hats for eleven men. Merry men, of course. My son, his math teacher and 9 of his classmates decided a few weeks ago to perform the song “Men in Tights” from the movie “Robin Hood: Men in Tights” for the middle school talent show. They were a very committed group, giving up recesses to practice every day. And they delivered. Their performance was spot-on, as indicated by the screaming girls in the bleachers.
With a little over a week to go before the show, Tucker came to me and said “Hey Mom, do you think you could make us Robin Hood hats?” Having an artsy, crafty reputation to uphold, I immediately said yes. Then I spent the next couple of nights lying awake, trying to come up with a pattern that would do their bravery and boldness justice. After a few failed muslin mock-ups, I awoke one morning with an ah-ha moment, went to the sewing room and it came together as smoothly as if I actually had a pattern. Of course, now I do.
I know most of you have absolutely no reason to make a Robin Hood hat in the middle of April, but file this one away for Halloween or on the off chance someone in your house will want one to wear to the new Robin Hood movie that’s coming out next month.
I used felt for the hats, the kind you can buy by the yard. It was made for adult-sized heads, although their head sizes did vary a little, but all seemed to work. It would need to be scaled down for a small child.
Cut this shape, with the short, straight edge on the right on the fold. You can download a PDF of the pattern here.
Stitch, right sides together, along this edge:
Flatten the back point with the seam centered, as shown.
Stitch a curved line through all layers, about 2 1/2 inches from the point and tapering at each side. I made a cardboard template to stitch next to so that all the hats would be the same.
Cut the excess corner away above the stitching line. Turn the hat right side out.
Fold up the brim on the back of the hat 2 inches. Press with steam iron.
Fold the remaining brim up, tapering toward the front and ending about 1/2 inch on each side of the seam at the front.
Here’s the hat army, waiting for feathers.
I hot-glued the feather in place. Here’s a view from the back.
This is a paparazzi shot from the show.
I knew him before he was famous.
The boys cut their own tunics and arm bands like pros. And Mr. Massey, their math teacher, actually went out and found green tights. It was an amazing performance and an experience I doubt any of them will soon forget. My heart swelled a little when the boys changed after they were done and all came back still wearing their hats!
Nick
/ April 17, 2010Thanks so much for making these. I’m still wearing mine as I type this.
craftystaci
/ April 17, 2010It was my pleasure Nick!
Codi
/ April 21, 2010I love them Mom. I think Tucker should wear that outfit for Halloween!
Randi
/ May 5, 2010Those are so great – thanks for sharing the pattern. That would be a fun addition to the dress-up box.
craftystaci
/ May 12, 2010Thanks Randi! I was thinking it might work for Peter Pan too – double duty in the dress-up box!
KJ@letsgoflyakite
/ September 12, 2010Found you via CraftGossip. This is brilliant. I collect posts on robin hood related gear, so I really love this. Peace, love and tinkerdust.
craftystaci
/ September 12, 2010I’m glad you found your way here. Since you’re a collector, I’ll bet you have some pretty impressive stuff!
KarmicAngel
/ October 10, 2010Thanks so much for this pattern, CraftyStaci! I used it and my son (8) and I sewed them by hand, and they look fabulous! We’re going to be Green Arrow and his son Connor Hawke for Halloween, and this was the last element of our costumes. Plus, my son was thrilled to be able to say ‘he made it himself’ and has been wearing the hat all day.
Thanks again!
CraftyStaci
/ October 15, 2010I love the fact that you let him make his own hat! Those sound like great costumes – I’m a big superhero fan. I’m glad I could help!
Monica Rawhouser
/ October 27, 2010Thanks for the tutorial. It took me less than an hour and turned out almost as nice as yours. You saved my bacon!
mr
CraftyStaci
/ October 27, 2010I’m glad to hear it, Monica!
Lorena Jones
/ December 3, 2010Thank you Thank you! I loved the story behind the hats! The thank you is because it’s the eleventh hour before our play Camelot opens and I need to make hats for the guys. Your pattern is easy to follow and the finished product looks great. The minions and I will be hard at work for the next two hours. Again Thank you!
CraftyStaci
/ March 30, 2011How did I miss this? I’m glad the pattern was useful Lorena and I hope they turned out great!
yehoudith
/ March 15, 2011great.
just perfect.
beautiful, simple, fits my imaginary idea of hunter.
the tutorial is very good explained.
thanks a lot!
CraftyStaci
/ March 16, 2011Thanks for visiting…I hope you find a good use for the hat!
Andrea
/ March 29, 2011Thank you so much for sharing. I found you with a google search. My daughter is having a Tinkerbell party for her 4th in April and I wanted to have something for the boys. I don’t think they will appreciate wings and tutus!
CraftyStaci
/ March 30, 2011My daughter is a big Tinkerbell fan too! You’re right, the hats might have a better chance with the boys though!
Missy K.
/ June 15, 2011Wow. this is great. They look superb. I just found your website from Craft Gossip. I love your tutes. Do you have a pdf of this pattern like you do for some of your other tutes? Did I miss it. I only see the image of your pattern piece.
Thanks.
CraftyStaci
/ June 15, 2011That is an excellent point! This was one of my first tutorials, before I really got the whole PDF-thing. I just added it to the post, right above the photo of it. Thank you for mentioning it!
Shannon
/ June 22, 2011Thank you!!! This is perfect! My 4.5 yr old is currently obsessed with Sleeping Beauty and wanted a hat like Prince Phillip in the Disney movie (basically a red Robin Hood hat). I think I’ll do one in red and one in green to cover to pre-existing request for a Robin Hood/Peter Pan hat!! He had every faith that I could make one. I wasn’t so sure millenry was in my skill-set, but after seeing this tutorial, I’m no longer worried! Thanks for helping me grant his wish!
CraftyStaci
/ June 22, 2011Oh, you just made my day Shannon! I love the thought of little boys running around with this hat. I know it’s been used for Robin Hood and Peter Pan, but Prince Phillip is a new one! I hope your little guy loves it!
laurie
/ June 24, 2011thanks so much!!! this is extremely perfect for a green arrow costume i’m making for a superhero-themed party ^__^ you made my day!! i was in a real trouble figuring out how to make the hat, but this one is totally perfect!! thanks!!!
CraftyStaci
/ June 25, 2011Glad I could help Laurie!
emily
/ June 26, 2011This is a terrific tutorial! I’m doing Robin Hood as a musical (an original one written by Rene Pfister) and was dreading dealing with the hats!
Thank you!
CraftyStaci
/ June 26, 2011The nice thing about the felt is that it has a velcro effect with hair…ours even stayed on through a flip! Hopefully they’ll work out well for your play!
Angelika
/ July 19, 2011This is fantastic! An absolutely perfect accessory for my bardic get-up for my larping group, thanks for sharing
CraftyStaci
/ July 22, 2011Glad it was helpful Angelika – and I learned a new word…now I know what larping is!
GroovFlowr
/ August 26, 2011Great instructions, thank you! But the story makes it – just great!
CraftyStaci
/ August 27, 2011The funny thing is, well over a year later and he STILL has that hat (and the rest of the outfit) proudly displayed in his bedroom!
Scifugitive
/ August 27, 2011I am having a hard time with this one, but I am a newbie. I can’t figure out where the “back” is you mentioned, and I think I cut the point off my hat. It still is just two sides, like a couple of felt wings.
CraftyStaci
/ August 27, 2011Ok, look at the third photo down, the side view of the hat with the red stitching along the top. The back I’m referring to would be the upper right corner in that photo. You flatten that corner so the fold at the back and the seam at the top meet. That’s the part that will sit at the back crown of your head when you’re finished. Does that clear it up at all?
Shiree
/ March 12, 2012I made smaller versions for my one and two year old with two craft sheets of felt, so i purposely started out with two “wings” like you ended up with. On the back of the hat, about halfway up, make a small snip in the fabric the width of your seam allowance. when you are sewing the pieces right sides together, start at the point and sew to the snip. then turn the hat right side out and sew the rest of the way so that your top seam faces the inside of the hat and the bottom/back seam faces the outside of the hat. this way when you fold the brim, you will have no exposed seams.
i don’t know what to do about cutting the point off though :-/
CraftyStaci
/ March 13, 2012Very clever Shiree – thanks for sharing that!
Jennifer
/ September 3, 2011Thanks for your pattern. It turned out great. I was making a Robin Hood costume for my 8 year old for book week. Incidentally, I had to have 3 tries at the hat before I got the right size, so now my 5 year old and I have one too!!!
CraftyStaci
/ September 3, 2011That’s just because Robin Hood can’t be without his Merry Men!
sarah
/ September 16, 2011Thank you. I used this pattern and black felt last autumn to make Prince Charming’s Hat for Cinderella, This year I’m back to find it again and make 2 hats for Maid Marion’s Merry men. Both times its costumes for a fancy dress pram race pub crawl . Only in England would 100+ people fund raise for an air ambulance by dressing up and dragging a wheeled trolley round 5 pubs while getting drunk.
CraftyStaci
/ September 17, 2011I’m glad the pattern has been useful for you Sarah. And hey, at least they’re using their drunkenness for a good cause!
Margus
/ September 27, 2011Thank you for this tutorial!!!
CraftyStaci
/ September 27, 2011You’re very welcome!
breanna
/ September 28, 2011what a wonderful project! I’ve linked to you here: http://dollarstoremom.com/2011/09/make-a-robin-hood-hat/
CraftyStaci
/ September 30, 2011Thanks for the link Breanna!
LaChelle
/ October 24, 2011Just wanted to say hi and let you know that I LOVE this! I used this tutorial last year when my 3yo wanted to be Prince Phillip for Halloween. It was so perfect. And this year I used it as a jumping-off point for a Pinocchio costume hat. Thanks for sharing
CraftyStaci
/ October 25, 2011Pinocchio? I love it!
Felicia
/ October 28, 2011Hi, there! Just completed my Robin Hood costume thanks to your easy hat pattern. Thanks for sharing! Looks great and it was so easy!
Sharon
/ October 29, 2011Thanks for this wonderful tutorial! It worked for us, and I’ve NEVER sewn anything on a sewing machine before! My 7 year old son is going to be Robin Hood for Halloween, and now that he has his hat, he is so proud of his costume, I’m not sure we’ll be able to get him to take it off for bed. My husband likes the hat so much, he’s asked us to make another, so he can be Little John when they go out trick-or-treating. Wow! If sewing can be THIS easy, maybe I can actually do other projects.
Thanks again! You made our Halloween spectacular!
Sharon
/ October 30, 2011By the way, one suggestion…. As a first-time sewer, I didn’t understand when I made the first test hat (on scrap fabric) that I was supposed to use one piece of fabric, folded over where the pattern says fold. **Yes, I know how dumb that probably makes me sound.**
To make it “idiot-proof,” you might want to explain that when you cut, you want to use a single piece of fabric, folded into two layers, right sides together, which are folded over where the pattern says “fold”.
Amy So
/ November 1, 2011Hi! Just wanted to say thanks for the pattern. I used it for a Halloween Robin Hood costume this year and it turned out perfectly. Thanks for the help you gave to this complete stranger from the Internet! (You can see the results on my blog today if you are interested!)
CraftyStaci
/ November 3, 2011Thanks for sharing all your Halloween adventures! And Sharon, thanks for the suggestion. I think it’s time for a post on some of the commonly used sewing terms for you brand-new sewers out there!
Gill Peatman
/ November 12, 2011Being from Nottingham UK, the home of Robin Hood of course I would be interested in this! well done. Loving all your tutorials btw Thanks
CraftyStaci
/ November 14, 2011Thanks so much Gill!
Tiago
/ February 7, 2012Thanks from Brazil, its Carnaval time here!
CraftyStaci
/ February 8, 2012Oh, wow…maybe I should deliver one in person!
Deanna
/ February 9, 2012I made a prince phillip hat for my son using this tutorial. It took me about 15 minutes and less than $5! Thank you!
CraftyStaci
/ February 10, 2012You’re very welcome Deanna – I’m glad it was helpful!
RachelLin
/ February 23, 2012Hi! The tutorial looks great, but I have a question about the measurements. How did you determine the length of the hat (meaning the horizontal measurement in your image of the pattern)? I am making this hat for my 5 year old nephew, whose head measures 49cm around. Would that measurement on the pattern then just be 24.5cm? Or do I add extra for the front brim? Thanks so much!
CraftyStaci
/ February 26, 2012Hi Rachel! You’d want to add extra. I’m estimating here, but I want to say it was about 3 inches per side beyond my son’s head measurement. My advice would be to go a little larger than you think because you can always make it smaller, but once it’s cut you can’t go bigger. If you find it’s too big, just increase the size of the seams until it fits. That’s one thing I love about felt! Good luck!
Stephanie
/ March 13, 2012Thanks! I’m making the costumes for our lastest high school production and when I searched for a Robin Hood hat pattern, your link was the first to come up. This is going to save me so much time!
CraftyStaci
/ March 13, 2012Glad it was helpful Stephanie!
Susan
/ April 12, 2012Well, it’s April of 2012, and what do you know? I need a Robin Hood hat for this Saturday. =)
Can’t thank you enough for posting this. I had 3 failed paper pattern attempts and I just checked the web and here you were!! YAY!!
CraftyStaci
/ April 12, 2012Someone else needs a Robin Hood hat in April? That’s hilarious Susan! I’m glad you found it here!
Susan
/ April 19, 2012If you follow the link http://www.myimmortals.com/Crafty_Stacy_hat.jpg, you can see me and my hubby as Little Red Riding Hood and the Woodsman at out Church Follies. We did a Fractured Fairy Tales act. I made your Robin Hood style hat in a gold and rust heavy weight damask. It came out just perfectly!
CraftyStaci
/ April 22, 2012Oh my gosh Susan – I love it! Thanks so much for sharing the photo. I’m a little jealous of that feather!
Angela
/ April 29, 2012Thank you so much for posting this! I scaled it down and made a child’s version and it worked great. It was simple to make and turned out so professional looking! Really, thank you…this tutorial was easy to follow, and SUCH a help! I never would have figured out those pattern shapes by myself!
CraftyStaci
/ April 30, 2012It was my pleasure Angela! To this day, this is still one of my favorite projects!
Anna
/ May 26, 2012Hi Crafty Staci! I made this hat as a treat for my 3-year old GIRL! I thought it was interesting she saw the Disney Robin Hood movie and wanted to be Robin Hood, not Maid Marian. She keeps correcting me when I say her real name, or even “her” or “she.” “I’m not a girl, I’m Robin Hood.” She’s (I mean he’s cracking me up). I made this pattern with 2 sheets of 12″ felt from the art section of my local grocery store. The sheets work great too for a small head, you just have to put two of the cut-outs together and sew down the right hand side as well for the back (see 3rd pic down). Thanks a lot for these simple instructions!
CraftyStaci
/ May 27, 2012Good for her…I mean him! For several months when he was about 3 or 4, my son insisted we call him “Hot Wheels Leading the Way.” The whole thing. Thanks for the tip on using felt sheets!