Mario (and Luigi!) Hats

I do sell these on etsy.  Click here to order!

So we had a birthday party to go to today.  When I had asked the birthday boy what he had wanted for a gift, he told me Mario and Luigi.  Of course I had to oblige!  

I had found this tutorial on Pinterest and thought I would give it a try, making both Mario and Luigi hats.

My little man trying on his hat.  I just had to make him one too!

First, I downloaded the pattern.  I had noticed that the poster said the pattern was for age 5 to 6 and these were for a slightly older crowd, so I enlarged the pattern a half an inch on each side.  The easiest way to do this is to tape two pencils together and trace the edge with one pencil while the other marks about half an inch away.  So I traced all of the pattern pieces.  At this point I noticed that the pieces "Front Left" and "Front Right" were the same except for facing the opposite way, as were "Back Left" and "Back Right".  Noticing this, I only traced the lefts, cutting out extra pieces for the rights. 

If I make these hats again, I think I will extend the flat edges down two to three inches.  They fit the kids but they were having a hard time keeping them on their heads while playing.  

 At the edges, extend the lines out to make both points connect.

I also traced the circle for the "M" in this manner but left the "M" the same.  For the Luigi hats I created an L the same size as the M (not pictured, sorry!)

Next I cut the pieces out.  On the circle and M, I cut out the circle and the M from the same piece to save on paper. 

Next, lay out your pattern pieces on your fabric.  I used red and green fleece.  I really like the way they turned out, very whimsical. 

Cut out your pieces.  I like to cut chunks out and then refine them while watching a tv show.

 Here are my hat pieces laid out.  I made 6 total hats.  3 Mario and 3 Luigi.

 Next step is to stitch the letters onto the circles.  The original tutorial had cut the M out of the white.  I wanted the M to stand out more so I put the M on top.  I was also worried that the circle would stretch out of shape.   I chose a small blanket stitch for mine.  If you have a more basic machine, a tight zig zag would look nice as well.

Now sewing the circle onto the front middle hat piece.  The original poster had sewn theirs on after creating the hat, but I think it is much easier to do it before.  

Next I laid the pattern pieces out with the middles together.  This helped me when piercing them together.  Note that I have two of each piece.  One for the outside and one for the liner.  When I started sewing, I sewed the front middle to the front left.  Then I sewed the back middle to the back left.  Then I took the front middle and sewed the front right to it.  I sewed the back middle to the back right.  Now I had two half hats (4 if you count the liners).  Now I matched up the middle points and pinned the edges to sew the two halves together.

 Match the visor to where it needs to be on the front.  Pin and sew into place.  A couple of notes here.  First, I used plastic canvas for my brim weight.  I sewed through it easily (I hadn't cut it the correct length at first) and I know that it will hold up in the wash as well as in play. 

 Before sewing it, I checked to make sure it was centered.  I suggest this step strongly because my first hat had a crooked brim.

 Next, I pinned and sewed the hat liner to the hat.  I made sure that all of the seams matched up so it looked crisp.  Some of the seams did not match up and that is okay.  When working with fleece, it is very agreeable.  I stretched some to where they did match up and no one was the wiser.

 

Sew all the way around, making sure to leave an opening to turn it right side out.  I left my opening on the back of the hat.  Thinking back, I think next time I may leave an opening in one of the liner pieces to have it be even less visible.

 Turn your hat right side out.  Here is where I added some poly fill to create the bulk for the front.  I didn't do as elaborate as the original poster did with the glue, just threw it in and pushed it to where it needs to be. Now pin in the opening closed and ladder stitch closed.  If you do not know how to do a ladder stitch, look it up.  It is worth noticing to keep your stitching invisible.  Another tip for stitching closed: when done, create a knot and then push your needle back through the knot.  Now keep pushing your needle through the inside and push out farther on the other side.  Now trim your thread.  This keeps the tail of the thread inside the project and hidden.

These hats were fairly simple to make once I understood the pattern.  I think that they turned out very cute and look very close to the 'real' hats in the game.  I may even make them a little larger for Halloween next year.  Would be simple to make the rest of the Mario or Luigi costume.