How to Make a Fascinator Hat for Under $10

All you need to know on how to make a Fascinator hat for an upcoming Kentucky Derby Party or the next Royal wedding!

So, how many of you watched the Royal Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle?! I didn’t get up extra early to watch, but you can bet I tuned in once I was awake! I loved seeing all of the fairytale details – The simple, elegant dress! The floral arch at the chapel and all of the lovely signs of spring! The horse-drawn carriage, taking the newlyweds to the castle! The hats and fascinators!

In case you don’t know, a fascinator is a small, flamboyant hat or hairpiece, usually featuring feathers that flutter and move with the wearer fascinatingly – hence, the name.  After doing a bit of research, I learned that fascinators can run anywhere from a $200-$thousands-plus! What?! I’m here to tell you, if you want to sport a fascinator for the next Royal Wedding or Derby Party, or maybe just for fun, you can make a DIY fascinator in one afternoon to match any outfit or occasion. Let me show you how to make a fascinator hat!

Recommended: PARTY PROPS AND DIYS

How to Make a Fascinator Hat for Cheap

Materials

I didn’t use all of these items, but I wasn’t sure WHAT I was going to use, so I gathered it all! I ended up using the following:

• Scrap fabric
• Small paper plate
• Tulle
• Deco-mesh
• Ribbon
• An alligator hair clip
• A needle and thread
• A hot glue gun
• A large flower

Optional Items

• Feathers
• A Button, Brooch, Cameo, butterfly embellishment, or other kinds of focal points
• A hair comb or hair barrette

What to do

Create the Hat Base

Cut out the inner circle of your paper plate, then cut a slit from the outer edge of the disc into the center. You wear a fascinator towards the back of the head. If you want to wear your hat towards the front of your head, cut out an oblong piece of cardboard.

Overlap the cut ends of the cardboard circle so that you get a small cardboard mound. Check for size, adjust if necessary, then glue the ends together.

Add the Pink Fascinator Hat Lining

Cut out two circles of fabric, with one being about .5″ wider than hat base, and the other being .25″ less than the hat base.

Carefully hot glue the larger circle of fabric to the TOP of the hat base by gluing the edge onto the underside of the cardboard, pulling taut as you go. I found it easiest to notch the outer edge first.

Glue the smaller circle to the underside of the hat base around the fabric edge, pulling taut, and trim any excess fabric that falls over the side of the base. This will have the smaller circle pulling away from the underside of the base.

Add a clip

You will need to attach something underneath your fascinator that will allow you to keep it clipped into your hair. A hot-glued alligator clip, hairpin or barrette attached to the underside will do the trick! Alligator clips are those clips that your hairstylist uses to keep your hair pinned up. You can find them at a craft store or a beauty supply store.

Add Deco-mesh

Cut a 12″ cross-section of the mesh from the roll. All I had was a larger roll, but if you are lucky enough to have a ribbon sized roll, you’ll want your piece to be about 6″ long. Create a bow out of your deco-mesh and ensure that the loops of the bow are the same length as the tails. Pull it tight and secure the center knot with ribbon.

Hot glue the bow to the hat, looking in the mirror for the proper placement.

Cut through the loop ends and fray the edges.

Add ribbon stems to fill in any gaps. For this hat, I tied 4 or 5 pieces of ribbon into bows then cut through the loops before gluing them into place.

Add Embellishments

Attach your flower with hot glue and arrange the deco mesh pieces around it. This is also the time you would add any other embellishments you might like.

Clip the fascinator on your head, put on your best dress and prepare to fascinate!

See, that was easy, right? Okay, so you probably can’t wear it to a Royal Wedding because, well, it’s frowned upon to crash one of those, but you can certainly wear it to your next Derby Party (by the way, if you’re throwing one of those, you’d better get started on that decorating)!

So, get yourself to the craft store and make your fascinator! And if you bump into Harry and Meghan, tell them I say hi!

RELATED: Kentucky Derby Party 

SUGGESTED: How to Make a Floral Clutch Bag for Spring in 10 Minutes or Less

*This post contains affiliate links for your convenience

Penny Mesh Hat Fascinator with Mesh Ribbons and Black Feathers
Women’s Organza Church Kentucky Derby 
 3 Tier Layer 2 Tone Headband Fascinator
SK Hat shop Big Kentucky Derby Feather Hat

I’d really appreciate if you’d pin this DIY Fascinator tutorial and share it with others! Thanks!