Preparing for the Easter long-weekend means stocking up on chocolate eggs, buying fun Easter decorations and crafting festive Easter bonnets with the kids so they can wow everyone at the annual school Easter hat parade.
The tradition of wearing new clothing, or a new hat, during Easter dates back centuries. A new hat was one way to celebrate the meaning of Easter’s promise of a new beginning.
Wearing a special Easter bonnet was also once associated with attending church on Easter Sunday, but in a more casual society, the tradition of wearing a hat has faded away.
Today, it is mostly schools that carry on the Easter hat tradition. Here are 7 DIY Easter hat ideas that won’t eat up all your time or money.
1. Repurpose an old straw hat
Got an old straw hat gathering dust in the cupboard? Transform it into an Easter wonder with little more than super glue and Easter-themed craft supplies.
Watch: Big W demonstrates how to create a DIY Easter bonnet using craft supplies and a straw hat
2. Easter-bunny party hat
These Easter bunny party hats are super easy to make and require little more than sheets of colourful cardboard, craft glue, string and a dark crayon. Your kids can even invite their buddies over to make an entire colony of rabbits.
3. Confetti crown
This DIY crown is the perfect last-minute Easter hat project to try. Transform a white piece of cardboard into a majestic crown with a bit of crafty cutting, colourful polka dots and pom poms glued to the end of each spike.
4. Papier mache Easter bonnet
Feeling ambitious and want to win the prize for best Easter hat? This papier mache masterpiece – which will probably land you the win – is calling your name.
5. Rabbits in the garden
This project is a clever twist on the regular Easter crown design. To make it, cut out a series of cardboard bunnies. Attach the bunnies to paddle pop sticks and glue the sticks to a wide strip of yellow cardboard.
To make the ‘lawn’, take a wide strip of green cardboard and cut straight lines one side until it is fringed all the way across. Attach both pieces of cardboard together, ensuring that the inner yellow strip is fully concealed by the green piece of cardboard. Secure the edges to create the hat.
TIP: For a fun variation, try cutting out different Easter-themed shapes like eggs, butterflies or flowers.
6. Easter streamer headband
Wrap a headband in ribbon, secure ends with glue. Tie lengths of colourful ribbon to the frame and secure with glue. Allow to dry completely.
There are several ways you can make the decorative rosettes: create flowers from fabric offcuts, make a ribbon flower, attach fake flowers, or create flowers from cardboard and secure them to the headband using string and glue.
7. Fluffy Easter bunny mask
If you’ve only got 30-minutes to make a hat, this project, which uses items you’ve probably already got at home, is for you.
Cut a rabbit-shaped mask out of cardboard. Attach cotton balls to the mask using wood glue (be sure to leave room for pink ears and nose!). Then add the pink ears, nose and whiskers and you’re done!
8. Create a crown using felt
Kids craft combined with felt is a win-win. Using primary school craft scissors, get the kids to cut the zig-zag for the grass and using a glue stick, stick on colourful pom poms.
9. Carrot top
When it comes to making a statement, go big or go home! Make a giant party hat from a sheet of orange cardboard. Add some shading to make the carrot look more realistic before adding a soft toy rabbit secured to the cone with a strap of elastic – genius!
10. Bunny face updo
This one is super simple. All you need is cardboard, a pompom or cotton bud and pipe cleaners – oh and the ability to get the perfect bun!