How To Decrease The Brim Of A Summer Hat

Cut the brim of the hat to desired width.

With underside of the hat facing up, pin the raw edge of the folded 7/8 inch (or wider) bias tape onto the edge of the brim all around the hat, except for 6 " sewing gap to connect the two ends together. (Note:  How to make a bias tape will be discussed in another post)

Use a free arm sewing machine (Sewing machine with a narrow working area to sew long sleeves cuff on), and sew the bias tape around the underside of the brim.  Do not sew the ends of the bias tape onto the brim but leave three to four inches free each end of the bias tape.

 

Sew the ends of the bias tape together making sure that it fits the brim of the hat well.  Turn the hat right side up and  pull the bias tape tight over the brim and sew it onto the brim of the hat using a zigzag stitch.

Tada!  This is how the finished hat look!  I added a band and a bow with embellishments.  I will discuss how to make the band and how to attach it to the hat on my other post.

After I tried the refashioned hat, I don't feel like Speedy Gonzales anymore lol!  This is the joy of refashioning ...that you get everything your way!  If you have not tried refashioning, you may want to.  It is exciting to turn something unwanted into something you love!

The Hat, Speedy Gonzales and I

Speedy Gonzales and I have something in common:  We both look even shorter and tinier wearing a wide brimmed hat!

It is very hard to find fashion items that fits well and look appropriate for one's size.  One example of this fact is hat.   Most summer hats are made for tall ladies, which is why the hat's brims are too wide for a short or petite woman.  When I try one on, I look like Speedy Gonzales lol!  Speedy Gonzales is cute but I don't want to look cute.  I want the hat to be appropriate for my size!  The solution is to refashion the hat.  My next post would be how to decrease the brim of a hat and how to refashion it so that it looks a totally different hat.

The Refashioned Hat as shown in photo below: