Pin and machine-stitch two segments with right sides together along one long edge. Repeat to join all segments.
Vegetable print fabric gives this reversible gardening hat a groovy twist.
What you’ll need
• 30-cm (12-in) width of vegetable print fabric
• 30-cm (12-in) width of contrasting fabric for lining
• 40-cm (16-in) square of stiff interfacing
• Thin cardboard for template
• Water-soluble fabric marker or tailor’s chalk
• Sewing thread to match fabrics
• Sewing machine and basic sewing supplies
• Small button (optional)
1 Enlarge the template shape by 200 percent on a photocopier, then transfer the shape onto thin cardboard and cut it out. Note the template doesn’t include seam allowances; you need to add 6-mm (1/4-in) seam allowances around the outside when you cut out the pieces.
2 Use a water-soluble fabric marker or tailor’s chalk to trace around the template onto the fabric: Trace six shapes onto the vegetable print fabric and six shapes onto the lining fabric and cut them out, leaving a 6-mm (1/4-in) seam allowance all around outside the traced line.
3 Working with the lining fabric segments, pin two segments with right sides together along one long edge. Machine-stitch together, stopping about 1 cm (1/3 in) from the point. Clip the curves of the seam, then open the two segments out and finger-press the seam allowance open. Take another segment and pin and stitch it, right sides together, to one side of this piece, repeating the clipping and finger-pressing.
4 When you have stitched all six pieces of the lining fabric together, join the two unstitched edges together and pin, stitch, clip, and finger-press the final seam. You will now have a wrong-side-out hat lining.
5 From the stiff interfacing, cut a circle with a diameter of 35 cm (14 in). Draw another circle, with a diameter of 20 cm (8 in) in the center of this circle, and cut it out. A simple way to do this is to fold the interfacing in quarters, then measure 17.5 cm (7 in) along the sides from the center point and draw the curve, then cut through all layers. Measure 10 cm (4 in) along the sides and draw the curve for the inner circle, then cut it out. You should have a ring of interfacing about 8 cm (3 1/4 in) wide. Lay the hat lining wrong side up on a flat surface so that the brim is spread out and the crown is sitting up, then lay the interfacing ring over the lining and pin them together around the outer edge. If you need to adjust the interfacing slightly to fit the lining, cut the ring into four equal segments and spread them 2–3 mm (about 1/8 in) apart or overlap them as required. Baste the interfacing to the lining fabric.
6 Repeat step 3 with the vegetable print fabric to make an outer hat. Turn this outer hat right side out and slip it inside the lining so the right sides are together. Pin the two pieces together around the outer edge, matching the seams.
7 Stitch a 6-mm (1/4-in) seam around the outer edge of the hat brim, leaving one of the segments unstitched for turning. Trim the seam allowance and clip the curved seams. Turn the hat right side out through the open segment and press the seam around the edge of the brim. Turn under the raw edges of the unstitched segment and pin them together. Remove any basting that is still visible on the lining side.
8 Thread the sewing machine with thread that matches the outer fabric and put thread that matches the lining fabric in the bobbin. Topstitch 2–3 mm (about 1/8 in) inside the outer edge of the hat brim. (This will also close the unstitched segment.) Work another row of topstitching about 1 cm (1/3 in) inside the previous row, and repeat this six or seven times until you reach the part of the hat where it starts to curve up.
9 Ensure that all the points of the segments are pushed inside the crown of the hat and work a few small stitches through both the outer fabric and lining to secure the two pieces together. You could add a small button if you like.
Pin and machine-stitch two segments with right sides together along one long edge. Repeat to join all segments.
Fold the interfacing in quarters, measure along the sides from the center point, and draw an arc between the two points.
Topstitch through all layers of fabric and interfacing around the brim edge, spacing rows of stitching about 1 cm (1/3 in) apart.
TIP
If your fabric has a small all-over print or is plain, you can save time by tracing and cutting the shapes from doubled fabric. If you have a large vegetable motif or a directional pattern (such as stripes), it’s better to trace each shape separately on the right side of the fabric so that you can control the position of the vegetable motifs or the direction of the stripes.
