Nurse Hat DIY

In my last outfit roundup post I mentioned making a DIY nurse hat. This was partly to compensate for my not getting the Physical Drop Nurse OP set, and partly because I realised that it’s the only thing I really need to make nurse-themed outfits (and potentially an arm band). So a few Google searches later, I decided that I should be able to make it with what I already had.

What You’ll Need

For this particular one I used:

• White felt
• Red felt
• White and red threads
• Measuring tape
• Cutting scissors
• Needle
• Pins
• A pencil
  

How to Make It

Full disclaimer: I followed this tutorial by The Spruce Crafts. Theirs is a bit more elaborate for a much fancier finish. However, out of laziness and because my needs didn’t call for anything quite so nice, I adapted it to cut out some steps. If you want yours to be nicer than mine, I recommend checking out their version, it’s still simple, just involves more sewing than I did.

I started out by measuring out an 11"x19" rectangle, which I then cut out. Then I cut two 5"x7" rectangles out of the lower corners. Essentially, you’re looking to end up with a chonky T-shape.

Because my white felt is really stiff, I could skip all the ironing and double-layering. Instead, I went straight to the folding part, which I held together with some pins, whilst I worked on the other parts.

I then proceeded to cutting out the red cross out of the other felt I had. What I should’ve done is made a pattern/template, considering how I have a lifetime supply of square paper, but that would’ve been too smart and involved doing things in advance. So instead I proceeded to wing it, working on my lap for maximum discomfort and maximum laziness, until I ended up with a cross I was not 100% mad at. I pinned it to the cap and then sewed it on by hand, which relaxed me enough to carry on.

Just as per the original instruction, I sewed a little pleat into the vertical part of that T-shape, then pinned and sewed the sides to it to create the cap.

And voila! Just as the tutorial I followed estimated, it took me probably about two hours, because I sewed things by hand and had several attempts at that damn cross before I got it ok enough. It doesn’t look magnificent, but for the possibly one-off occasion of my doing a nurse-themed coord, this is perfectly enough. Of course, if you foresee yourself wearing nurse-themed outfits more often, I definitely encourage you to put a bit more care and attention both to the materials and the process. For everyone else looking for a lazy version - this was mine and that is the end result. Now I guess I need to put that nurse coord together…