I love making party hats. I usually make my own because it is surprisingly hard to find party hats in normal colors. If I do happen to find them in the colors I like then I still spruce them up with my own fringe or flowers. Sometimes though I do prefer them plain like this one I put on Roman. I did a post on this a few years ago (here + here) but it is high time for an update.

Materials:
Downloadable Hat Template Click here to download.
Heavy Paper (like poster board or cardstock)
Crepe Paper (or you can also use tissue paper for the big flowers)
Ribbon
Pencil
String (or wire)
Scissors
X-acto Knife
Stapler

Basic Party Hat Instructions
Step 1: Download hat pdf right here. Print, then cut out the template. Take the hat template and trace it onto the heavy paper.
Step 2: Cut out the traced party hat.
Step 3: Put the tab into the slot.
Step 4: On each side of the hat make criss crossed cuts with your x-acto knife.
Step 5: Push the ribbon through each hole (I use my x-acto to do this) and tie a knot to hold it.

That is how to make a basic hat. For more of the details see below.

Once you have your hat then it’s time for the fun part: Embellishment! The fringe and ball are very easy to make, it is basically a version of the streamers (more detailed instructions over here. Here is how to do it.

Embellishment Instructions
Step 1. Cut a 1″ piece of Crepe paper.
Step 2. Cut evenly spaced fringe on each side of the 1″ piece.
Step 3. Ruffle and scrunch with your fingers then unroll the fringe.
Step 4. Take the fringe doubling or tripling it up and then staple it to the edge of your hat. (You can bend the fringe to cover the staple.)
Step 5. To make the fringey ball on top, take a section of fringe and roll it up. Then secure it tightly with string in the middle, leaving long tails of string.
Step 6. Separate each side of the fringe and poof it up until it is a little ball.
Step 7. Put the string through the hole at the top of the hat and secure the tails with a piece of tape on the inside.
Step 8. Et voila! You have a party hat!

There are other ways I decorate the hats. But they are all more or less versions of the two techniques above. I like to decorate each one differently.

They take a little bit of time to make but afterward you can keep them and bust them out for any party to make it extra festive. Happy Partying! (ps: I think this is pretty straightforward but I’ll try to answer any questions in the comments below.)