DIY Style: How To Make A 1963 Pan Am Inspired Stewardess Hat

If you're anything like me, you've been enjoying ABC's new show, Pan Am, set in 1963. The fashion, hairstyles, music, cars, social mannerisms - everything to me is captivating. During I recent thrift store outing, I found a blue skirt for $5 that looked like it was previously someone's uniform. This sparked my idea to be a Pan Am stewardess for Halloween! Here is a great article on Pan Am's fashion and here is ABC's guide to being a stewardess this Halloween.

I knew I would need to make the hat. I went to several stores asking if they had any blue pillbox hats. I think most people didn't know what I was talking about. Finally I decided that transforming a goofy red felt fez hat was going to be my best option, short of paying ridiculous sums on eBay.

This is an easy project that anyone can do and I spent $7.50 total for the materials! I know mine isn't the right shade of blue, but considering the skirt is dark blue and I already had a navy jacket, I decided to match the hat to what I already owned.  To see my finished costume, {click here}!

Supplies 

Hat form (fez hat $4)
Felt (4 sheets for $1)
Ribbon ($1 spool)
Gold button ($1.50 for 2-pack)
Scissors
Glue
Needle/thread

These kinds of projects make me wish I was a milliner!

Step 1
I measured 2.5 inches from the bottom and cut the hat.  I also removed the yellow tassel.

Step 2
I cut a circle of blue felt and glued it to the top of the hat.

Step 3
I cut a blue felt strip that was 2.75 inches tall and glued the white ribbon to the edge (I pieced two sections together so they would fit around the circumference of the hat).

Step 4
I glued the side strips to the side of the hat, leaving enough overhang to wrap and glue to the inside of the hat (next step).

Step 5
I glued the excess overhanging felt to the inside of the hat, wrapping around the bottom edge and clipping in place until the glue dried.

Step 6
I cut out the flap and handstitched the white ribbon in place.

Step 7
Lastly, I glued the flap to the hat and sewed on the gold button.

If you're stumbling upon my tutorial before Halloween and want to be Pan Am stewardess, it's not too late to make your hat!

As for the stewardess pin, I found pictures on the internet (here [before I found ABC's guide]) and printed them on a color printer.  Then I cut out the image and cut a cardboard backing.  I double-stick taped the pieces together (you can also use glue, but I didn't want the glue to bubble/ripple the paper) and cut off the excess tape.