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How to Make a Pointy Hat

Sally Pointer

After numerous requests, I’ve finally been persuaded to sit down and write out step by step instructions for felting your own pointy hat. The basic technique is the same for any hand felted project, so if you haven’t done any felting before I strongly recommend that you spend a short while browsing the many excellent web sites about felting to get an idea of the processes involved and the variations in technique possible. This page only tells you how I do it, not all the ways you could do it.

You will need:

• Merino wool in your chosen colour. (It is quite possible to use more than one colour of wool in a single hat, and it can be a useful exercise to make each layer a different colour in order to see how the felting works. As the felt becomes more complete you will see fibers of all the other colours in the finished surface, though the top layer will predominate.) Exactly how much you need will vary, but I would suggest you have at least 400g to hand though you may not need all of that. Many other wools work, but I think merino is the easiest to felt, especially if you are a beginner.
• An old sheet or large piece of smooth fabric
• A large square of bubblewrap or a bamboo window blind
• A waterproof layer, a heavy duty bin bag will do - I use an offcut of leathercloth as it lasts several uses
• Soap (washing up liquid works, but ‘real’ soap is even better, an all olive oil traditional soap is best in my opinion)
• Lots of very hot water
• A large clear area to work on - I have to use the kitchen floor
• Plenty of time. I estimate it takes up to two hours to lay out the wool and begin the felting, and it can take a good couple of hours to get the hat to the stage where you can start shrinking and shaping it. Overall, you will be fiddling with the hat for about two days, so it’s a great weekend project with enough spare time to do the housework, shopping etc.

Method:

1. Start by cutting your waterproof layer into a giant sized pointy hat shape. I would say aim for about double the size of your finished hat, but don’t worry about being too precise. Give the brim a bit of a curve.
2. Lay your sheet on the floor over the blind or bubblewrap (these provide a friction surface) and roughly draw round your hat shape onto it with a permanent pen.
3. Divide your wool into two equal piles - one for each side of the hat.
4. Start laying out your first layer of wool. Your wool probably came as a long, silky hank and you will find that by gently pulling one end you can remove fine, broad tufts with a fair amount of regularity. Lay these down across the whole hat shape on the cloth, making sure they overlap a little. Keep this first layer very thin - you should almost be able to see through it.
5. Lay a second layer going in the other direction, again, keep it thin.
6. Do this at least two more times whilst your wool lasts, the first layer will be the outside of the hat, so if you want a different coloured interior make the last two layers in a different shade. The best hats have many many very thin layers. I usually go for 6-9 depending on the hat.
7. When you have all your layers down, pat everything into place with your hands and very carefully sprinkle the whole lot with a very hot solution of soap and water. Place your waterproof layer on top and fold over the stray wool round the sides of the hat - don’t worry about the straggly bits under the brim, you’ll be cutting these off later anyway.
8. Repeat the process as above, but remember that you are working from the inside out this time
9. this is only an issue if you are using more than one colour! Make the last couple of layers very fine and even to give the best surface finish. You may find that you need slightly less wool on this side as you have folded in all the stray edges from the first side.
10. When you are certain there are no thin patches, sprinkle this side with very hot soapy water and flip the edge of the sheet over the work. If you wish, you can lay another piece of bubblewrap on top but I usually don’t.
11. Very very gently, pat and smooth the surface of the cloth to start compressing the fibers. I emphasis gently, as rough handling too soon will give you a lumpy, uneven felt. Work all over the surface of the hat, then do it again with a tiny bit more pressure this time. Keep smoothing and rubbing until you can really knuckle into it, using lots of rubbing motions to encourage the fibers to mesh together. It should take around 20 minutes to get to this stage on an average hat.
12. Carefully turn the work over, leaving the mat or bubblewrap on the floor, and repeat the smoothing and rubbing on the other side. This side will have started felting already due to the pressure of you working on the top, but go over it carefully anyway.
13. Slowly and carefully, peel off the sheet (it often sticks a little) and lay the hat directly on the bubblewrap or mat. Soap your hands well and work directly over the whole hat until you can feel that all the separate layers are moving as one. Do the same with the other side.
14. You are probably ready for a break by now, so carefully fold the hat up in the sheet so that wool touches fabric everywhere. Fold the whole lot up loosely and put it in the washing machine with any odd bits of washing that can take a few wool fibers getting stuck to them (socks perhaps!). Run the quickest, most gentle wash available, around 30 minutes at 40 degrees sounds about right.
15. When the hat comes out it should have shrunk very slightly and you should be able to see any different coloured fibers in all layers. It won’t look much like a hat yet though. Don’t panic!
16. Use a pair of sharp scissors to cut open the ‘seam’ along the brim. The waterproof layer will be all scrumpled up inside and should come out easily.
17. Inspect the hat and stretch apart any lumpy areas that have stuck together. Trim the brim into a smooth, roughly round shape.
18. If you have any holes in the hat, decide whether to disguise them with an appliquéd decoration later, or whether to mend them. The best way to mend small holes is to let the hat dry out and use a felting needle to mesh in a little new wool.
19. Your hat should still be a bit soft and large. Run it through a hotter, longer wash cycle (again, other bits of laundry are fine). If it is truly huge, try a boil wash, but otherwise a normal cycle usually does the trick. You don’t need to wrap it up this time.
20. Your hat should now be about the right size, (if it has shunk too much you can usually bully it into a more appropriate size whilst it is still warm and damp). You need to stretch it into shape and block it whilst it dries. I use a plastic fez shaped hat block made by Hatshapers, which is just right to get the head area right, but you can improvise (yes a traffic cone works!). If the hat is very floppy, mix up some hat stiffener (dilute pva glue or starch works to a point, but the stuff from a hat supplies company is better). Arrange the hat over your block to dry, and when it is barely damp (the next day), take a hot iron to it, always using a cloth to protect the surface. The heat and steam will polish and set your hat in the desired shape.
21. Finally, add a hatband and any decorations and your hat is complete!

Please note: These instructions are necessarily simplistic, the only way to really understand what is happening when you make a hat is to try it for yourself. If anything doesn’t make sense, get in touch and I’ll try to clarify.

I’m planning to do an illustrated version at some point - watch this space for the photo-version! Also, if you do make a hat, why not email me a picture and I'll start a 'Pointy hats around the World page!'

Sally

Thanks to Sally Pointer for permission to reproduce these instructions. More of Sally's pointy hats can be seen on her web site.