August 2019 – It appears this pattern is no longer available for free download.
This is the first Oliver + S pattern I have tried out and I love it! It is well written, easy to understand and makes a great finished product that is true to size. It’s funny that I say true to size, I actually had to make the size 3 – 5 years, even though Roman is only 15 months. That is because his head measured up for the 3 – 5 years size. That boy has one big fat head! The health nurse tells me it means he has a big brain, but I think she’s just trying to make me feel better.
I was cruising Sophie’s beautiful blog, roubidou when I came across the pattern. (It has come to my attention that this pattern is no longer available as a free download.) I deviated from the pattern a little bit and skipped the hand stitching, just carefully machine stitching the last piece into place. I also added eyelets so that I could add ties to the hat, but still keep it reversible.
This was another stash busting project too…gotta love a project that doesn’t cost you anything. For the inside of the hat, I used an old business shirt of hubby’s and for the outside, I used scraps leftover from making Roman’s fitted cot sheets, stamping the bikes onto the fabric. I think next time I would use fabrics that are a little more heavyweight, as the hat is a little bit floppy, but nothing terrible.
For the stamping, I used some VersaCraft ink. You can pick up these ink pads for a couple of dollars and the ink can be set permanently with the iron. I got 2 impressions from each inking of the stamp, so tried to make a bit of a pattern, with a row of black bikes and a row of faded bikes. I’m really happy with the result.
Monica says
Awesome! I’m in love with the penny-farthing print… I think it has come up looking fantastic. Where did you get the stamp from?
Liam also has a big head… takes after his father. Neither of them can wear standard hats. Big brains!
Kim says
Love the stamped bicycles, so cute! Thank you so much for the link, I will be making some of these!! Found you through Craftgawker 🙂
thingsforboys says
@Monica – thanks, the stamp is from ebay.
@Kim – would love to see how your hats turn out…they’re fun to make!
IdaDown says
Looks gorgeous. I also found you through craftgawker. Can’t wait to try it.
Anonymous says
oh thank you! i bought “little things to sew” and was all set to get started on these hats today. as it turns out, pattern set #2 is missing. getting to work now! -zada sorrell
Erin Rankin says
I love that stamped fabric – great idea!
Kathryn says
Oh I LOVE the idea of the stamped images! I didn’t even think of using the Versa ink pots like that! Super dooper!! x
Stork1 says
I love this hat and can’t wait to make one! I have been looking for a nice bucket hat pattern that doesn’t look funny and this one is really cute!!
Beautiful idea with the stamps and the ties!
Thanks for sharing!
Darlene
http://www.stork1.blogspot.com
Caila says
Where did you find that AMAZING stamp?! I love this hat! And I love stamping fabric, too, especially when I can’t find exactly what I’m looking for in the shops. Thanks for the beautiful pictures!
thingsforboys says
Caila, I bought the stamp on ebay. It’s one of those clear rubber ones you stick onto an acrylic block.
kids clothing says
Teaching children to wear a hat is one way to help protect them from harsh elements. Choosing the right size hat for your child will ensure that she will want to wear the hat to protect her head, eyes, and ears from the sun, wind and cold so everyone can get a good night’s rest.
Julie says
Oh I loooove this!! Just found you through KCWC. I really like that hat shape and I love that you stamped your own fabric. I never even considered doing this. Love it!
Also, a tip for a less floppy hat- you can use fusible interfacing on your lightweight fabric so that you don’t have to use a heavier weight fabric and still get a less floppy result. I’m going to go look for that stamp pad!
Anonymous says
Thankyou thankyou thankyou, just what I have been looking for. I am a grandma and cant wait to try it!
Anonymous says
I have made 2 hats, one for my grandson and one for my granddaughter. They look so professional, thanks again. Sharon
thingsforboys says
That’s great Sharon! 😀
Anonymous says
Hi this looks fantastic and Im keen to make it. Just wanted clarification on the PFD printout. Mine came out the printer 1 1/2′ square. HOpe that’s ok and doesn’t make the overall size too small does it. The measurement is just to make sure all the pages (hence pattern pieces) are the same size??? Or does it need scaling up somehow? If so any suggestions on how. Thanks
thingsforboys says
The measurement is to make sure the pattern pieces are the correct size, so needs to be accurate. Make sure you don’t have ‘shrink to fit’ or ‘resize’ or something like that checked in the printing properties. It needs to be printed at 100%/full size. HTH
Anonymous says
hi there,
i am having problems downloading the pattern. are u able to email it to me please please, my godson’s mum is struggling to find her son a hat so i want to suprise her with one of these for christmas. they are just perfect!!! tammyjo.williamson@hotmail.com thank you thank you
Linda says
Your link to Oliver+S Bucket Hat – Free Pattern and Review -Things for Boys did not work for me. Is there some other way I can access this pattern? Thank you, Linda
Jennifer Lemmon says
i couldnt access a free pattern for theOliver + S bucket hat .
Please send me a different link or an email of the pdf please
Abby Rudakov says
Hi Jennifer, unfortunately the pattern is no longer available as a free download. You can buy the pattern here: https://oliverands.com/shop/oliver-s-reversible-bucket-hat-sewing-pattern.html
Lar says
I’m having a problem trying to get the crown to match up equally when I put it together with the sides. Seems to be a bunch of fabric at the end. Sizing is correctly. Cutting and stitching width is right. Not sure why this is happening. Any ideas?
abby says
You really need to clip into the seam allowances. Pin at quarters (front, back and sides) then clip the SA every 1cm and that should help.
Nadine Ordaz says
Hello!! Love the hat! How did you place the eyelits for straps to keep the hat reversible? Not sure how to do that..
Thank you
Nadine Ordaz
abby says
Hi Nadine, I put the eyelets through the each side of the hat. Then I threaded a thin strip of fabric (stitched together along the length like a bias strip) through each hole and tied knots in both ends. That way you just pull the strip to the other end when you turn the hat through to the other side. Hope that makes sense. Abby
Rhonda McClellan says
Is this hat pattern still available for free, it doesn’t seem to be anymore.
The bucket hat
Abby Rudakov says
Sadly, it appears this pattern is no longer free.