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DIY New Years Party Hat Tutorial

Looking for a fun party hat for New Years?!?! Try making your own party hat with this step by step pom pom party hat tutorial! These are super fun to make and sure to make a cute statement as well!
For more New Years DIY's and Craft ideas, visit KelseyBang.com
Active Time20 minutes
Total Time2 hours
Yield: 10 Party Hats
Author: Kelsey Bang

Materials

  • 10 Party Hats
  • 1/2 Yard Felt (I like to buy felt at Joann by the yard, but it can also be bought in paper sized sheets at any craft store.)
  • 1-5 Yarns (I recommend getting 1-2 sparkly yarn, 1 thick yarn, 1 thin and a 2 velvet yarns. For pom poms (which is what the yarn is for) it's nice to have a few different textures and colors of yarn)
  • 1 Pack Foam Stars (Lots of options for embellishments! Gems, sequin, buttons, foam shapes, etc.)
  • Hot Glue Gun
  • Glue Sticks
  • Scissors (Any will work but would recommend fabric scissors. Helps big time with the pom pom and felt cutting.)
  • Sewing Pins

Instructions

Start Off By Making A Pom Pom

  • Pick out 1-5 different yarns. I recommend using chunky yarn to add some meat to these pom poms. You can use one color, or a few different ones. I also like yarn with some sparkle too!
  • Once you got your yarn colors picked out, find the end of each string and group them together so you have all the ends of each of your yarn in your hand. Have your left palm facing toward you with your thumb up. Place your yarn down on your fingers with the ends opposite of your thumb. Start wrapping all the yarn around your hand using your thumb to keep the yarn in place. You will want to wrap around the yarn till it gets pretty thick.
    For chunky yarn, if I were using just one yarn I would wrap it around my hand about 40 times. If I were using 4-5 yarns, I would wrap it around 20 times. For these sized pom poms I used 3 fingers to wrap around.
  • Once you have wrapped your yarn enough, cut the yarn. Then you are going to pull the yarn ball off your fingers leaving it as if it was still wrapped around your fingers and set it on the table. With a corresponding yarn color, pick one and cut about a 12 inch section. Take that section and place it flat on the table. Put your yarn ball on top of it with the openings on each side of the strings. Tie that string in the middle of your yarn ball pulling tight and tie it in a knot.
  • Now is the fun part! Take your scissors and cut all the loops from your yarn ball. This makes the fun pom pom ball shape! Trim up any long yarn pieces hanging so you get a ball shape. Taaa dahhh you have your pom pom!

Cut Out Felt

  • Plug in the glue gun so it starts to heat up. Put the glue gun on some cardboard or a plate for any excess glue that may drip out of the glue gun.
  • Take one party hat apart to be a pattern. Lay the party hat flat on the felt and pin the party hat to the felt.
  • Cut around the party hat leaving an extra 1/4 inch around each edge. It's nice to have a little wiggle room with the felt.
  • Take out the pins and party hat pattern from the felt. At the top where the point is, cut a small part off the tip so it's a straight edge.

Glue Felt To Party Hat

  • Grab a party hat, cut out felt and head to the glue gun. In the middle, put some glue for the party hat to attach too. When attaching the party hat, make sure it's the front smooth part of the party hat. This will help the seams of the party hat to aline with the felt side edges. When putting the party hat down on the glue, start with the lining up the top of the hat to the felt and work your way to the bottom.
  • Once the hat is attached to the felt, start hot glueing the rest of the felt around the hat.
  • Where the felt overlaps on the party hat, glue the seam down so everything is secure.
  • Any excess felt on the bottom of the party hat, cut off.
  • Take your glue gun and place in between the party hat and felt. Add glue around where needed. If needed, pinch the bottom of the party hat and felt where just glued with finger tips to secure it all. Be careful to not burn fingers.

Add Embellishments To The Party Hat

  • Hot glue foam stars, jewels, buttons, sequin, whatever you want to the hat. Leave a little room at the top point where the pom pom will go.
  • Once done adding embellishments, add a dime sized amount of hot glue on the point of the party hat.
  • Grab a pom pom and place on the glue on top of the hat. Use fingers to press the sides of the pom pom to the glue. Be careful to not burn fingers. I like to pinch around all the sides of the pom pom to secure it to the glue. If it feels wobbly, add more hot glue underneath the pom pom.
  • Now you are done! Put on that party hat and enjoy! If you are making more party hats, repeat the steps over again :) Happy New Year!!