Fun Funky Fleece Hat

Shannon at luvinthemommyhood has been doing the most wonderful contest his month: Sewing vs. Knitting. I must admit I am a little  super amount envious of people who can knit. I have tried several times to learn but I think it is like languages, I have a mental block where it is involved. ANYWAY, since I am a sewer I thought I should take a turn in the ring and take on those chunky knits I so adore. Every winter I make these fun funky fleece hats. I get comments on them when ever my kiddos and I wear them out. 

The kids love them because when I wear them it means I am totally up for some fun. 

I love them because they are so easy and look adorable at football games, tailgates, sledding etc. they MAKE pictures :) When I made Finn his first one for William and Mary's homecoming he ended up on the front page of the newspaper AND the home page of the college:

Now thats gotta be good right? But since I try my hardest to be a mom who has a ton of fun with her kids I thought you might like to learn how to make your very own funky fun fleece hat.

What you will need:

2 half yard pieces of corresponding fleece fabric OR 1 whole yard of fleece fabric

A small square of Velcro pieces

Sewing machine

Scissors

Straight pins

The pattern can be found HERE. This pattern is only for the bottom of the hat.

For the top you will cut ONE rectangle on the fold of your fleece. It needs to be as long as the bottom portion and can be as tall as you like (some people have bigger noggin's then others, I'm just sayin' hee hee) Once you have cut out your main and lining pieces you will need to cut out eight long strips of fleece {four of each if you are doing two colors}. Once everything is cut out grab your main hat piece and your small square of velcro. I used the "scratchy" portion as this will be on the outside. Attach the square of velcro on on of the lower tab portions. 

Now repeat this process with the "soft" square of velcro only before you attach it make sure it is on the correct tab, so that when you sew the pieces together it will connect with the other square. 

Now lay your two main piece right sides together. 

Sew all the way around but NOT across the top edge or the straight down sides. Once you have sewn around, line up the straight edge slide pieces and flatten them out. 

Now sew down the raw edge so they are now connected.  Once you have sewn straight down turn everything right side out. 

Now take your rectangle of fleece and your long strips. Separate the strips into two piles of four, folding the strips in half lengthwise. I alternated colors. 

Slide one of the piles so it lays right next to the fold in the hat and the other where the two pieces meet. 

Now sew along the bottom edge. Be gentle it is a lot for your sewing machine to sew through and you don't want to break a needle. I tried to help ease it along by pulling SLIGHTLY on the other side. I began sewing on the folded edge and when I got to the other side I left my needle down, lifted up my foot and swung the fabric so I could now sew up the side. After doing so turn everything right side out. 

Take the bottom portion you made and with right sides facing each other slide it up over the rectangle so that the raw edges line up. Pin it all the way around. You should now have 3 layers of fleece to sew through. 

Sew all the way around the raw edges. Flip everything right side out and topstitch around the edges if you like :) 

I added a little felt flower on the bottom of mine to add a little pizzaz.... I dunno if it worked or not ha!! You could also cut a little slit in the top and slide flower clips or rosettes in and out :) How ever you decided to sport it, it is a warm, hilarious hat I am sure your kids will get a kick out of :) Happy sewing and I hope it doesn't snow too much too soon. Why is it Fall and Spring are so short?