You’re gonna quack up when you see these duck hats!

We’re celebrating! It’s sunny, the air smells nice, and there’s a hint of warmth in the world. In November, Mom packed all of our stuff into a storage pod, popped us in the car, and drove us from California to Pennsylvania. She told us it was time for a new adventure, a time to go bold, to be big. In honor of all that, we’re making ducky hats!  

Buy your supplies

Buy your ducky first since you’ll pick you felt and feather colors based on the ducky. Can’t find a ducky? Any fun novelty item works–even a satin bow!

Second, buy a variety pack of needles. It will keep you from getting an impossible-to-thread needle with too small of an eye.

Lastly, get the Marabou feather boas/trim vary. 14-15 gram boas lack fluffiness and look like a wet cat (no offense to cats). 20-25 gram boas are lovely! That said, you can make either work.

 

Make the hat base

Thread your needle, by pulling a long tail of thread through the eye, and tying a knot at the two ends.  This will give you a double strand of thread. 

 

Next, cut two circles of felt. The size depends on the size of your head. The space between our ears is 2.5 inches, so we cut our circles 1.5 inches.

Now, sandwich the cotton balls between the felt circles and stitch along the edges.  You can do a simple running stitch or an overcast stitch. Don’t worry! The stitches can be ugly if you’re just learning. No one sees this part, and mistakes are essential to the experience. 

Attach the ribbon ties

Cut a length of ribbon. A little dog like us needs 36 inches. A bigger dog would need more. You can glue it or slip stitch the center of the ribbon to the felt.   

Add the feathers

Wind the feathers around the felt base. There’s not much distance to wind, so you will only use a few inches of the boa.

Secure the feathers to the base. Stick the needle up from the underside of the hat base, through the feathers, then back down through the base. Feathers are forgiving so your stitches don’t have to be perfect. Feathers can be annoying because they get caught in the thread, but don’t give up! The ducky hat will be worth it. 

Add the ducky

Squeeze on a generous glob of glue. We use e-6000 transparent since this glue dries to a rubbery state. That flexibility is why the ducky’s rubber surface stays secured to the feather and felt base.

You’re done!

The artist in you won! You just made the world a better place. Share with us a picture of your handsome self in your creation on Instagram at #DoggieD.I.Y. And Tag us @LolaandPooch.  Tell us what you want to make!

xoxo

Woofie & BeaR