Quick tip on Reversible Bucket Hat

Have you tried the Reversible Bucket Hat from Oliver + S's "Little Things to Sew"? I love it that it comes with many sizes.  I've made 3 sizes in all - Large, Medium and Small.

Why 3 hats when I only have 2 girls you may asked? Well, the Small that I made was a tad tight on my 2 year old so I decided that it would fit Dora the doll better.

And, off I went to sew up 2 more.  My girls insisted to have the same pink fabric so in the end, I had 3 hats in the same shades but different sizes!

This being the 2nd time sewing up the hat, I decided to do something different which I think helps to speed up the process and make the hat easier to sew.

Interfacing

The pattern call for interfacing only the the Brim of Fabric B but I find it to be too weak and the hat didn't stand up well. Maybe it's the fabric that I chose is more light weight so if you are like me, you can use  medium interfacing and interface on the top, sides and brim of Fabric B. It makes the hat sturdier. Didn't interface the Fabric A as I'm afraid it will be too stiff.

My modification

When sewing the side panel of Fabric A together, leave a 2" gap in one of the side seams. For the other side seams, follow the instruction to stitch the whole side seams.  Then pin the side panel to the crown and sew.  You will need to clip the curves of the side panel in order to fit to the crown. Do the same for Fabric B but don't leave any gap in the seams.

After you have sewn the side panel to the crown, sew the brims as per instruction. Like the side panel, you will need to pin a lot and clip the curves on the brim to get them to fit.  First pin the side seams and notches and then later add 2 more pins between the 2 pins.

The next step, I did differently from the book. I put the 2 hats of Fabric A and B, Right Side facing, into each other, align the seams.

Sew up the full brim with 0.25" seams allowance. Clip the curves and turn the hat Right side out through the gap in the side panel.

Use pins to press the edge before pressing it with iron. Then, topstitch to make the edge neat.  Stitch the gap close with whipstitch. I did a few rounds of stitches around the brim so that it will have more body.

See, this is much easier than the recommended method to hand stitch the external cap to the brim. Or maybe it's just me that don't like to hand stitch since my workman ship is not so neat. In any case, the instruction by Oliver + S is really clear and I love to try more of the projects in the book soon!

KCWC Day 2/3

I know it's a Kids Clothes Sewing but a hat is also consider clothing sewing? No? 

My little girl is in need of a hat to cover her little head as she got thin hair and I'm worried the effect of the scorching sun will burnt her scalp.  I need one that provide enough coverage for even her ears. 

So, I went to search through my (growing) sewing books and found the Reversible bucket hat pattern from oliver + s.  I bought the book "little things to sew" some time back and didn't have time to sew anything from it yet. I would love to sew the tutu skirt, penguin bag pack and  red riding hood some days too.

Anyway, measure her head circumference and sew up the Size S.  The instruction is very clear with illustration.  I'll be doing one more for the older one soon since it's so cute!  I've used cotton from my stash for this small project.  Pink with polka dots and fuchsia with polka dots on the reverse side.

 Since I only managed to finish this late at night, Dora will do the modeling for me! Nice size : )

For this round of KCWC, I'm taking it easy cause I'm really tied up at my full time work. The past week was crazy with me staying late at work. But I do plan to do some more kids sewing for KCWC, even though it will be much lesser than the 7 pieces of clothing I did last year. 

Next up, hopefully, I will be able to sew up some swim suits! Stay tune