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Looking for a grab and go style that is easy and cooler on the head than a wig? This is it! This DIY wig hat is the perfect summer hair do. For more wig or topper posts see my Wig Revival page.
I have been playing around with ways to wear a hair topper in the summer and keep my head cool. This so not easy. My favorite summer topper for wearing to the beach or bike riding with a hat is the Noriko’s Milan Topper in the color Creamy Blonde.
The hair on the Milan topper can take a beating and after you’ve worn it for a while it looks like human hair. The shine goes away pretty quickly and the shape stays together even though you have a hat over it. The only problem is it has a lot of hair and your head can get really hot under a hat.
Enter the wig hat!
I looked around on Amazon and I found the nicest baseball hat wig for a whopping $20! It is synthetic hair, 20 inches long with long roots and light ends or bayalage. the best part is there is almost no wig shine.
There are wefts sewn into the edge of the hat and it is nice and thick. I will need to thin it out and layer it for it to look right for me.
Then I had the thought “why don’t I just make my own wig hat”. I had a bunch of human hair wefts leftover from my adding wefts to a wig post. So I sewed them all back together and stitched them into a hat.
Now I have a DIY wig hat that is closer to my own hair and I can style it and wear it however I want. Of course, if DIYing is too much for you can buy the one I bought at the link provided.
Sew or Glue the Hat Together:
After I have the wefts sewn together, I was trying to decide whether or not I wanted to hot glue the wefts in like some of the videos that are out there or stitch the wefts into the hat.
I know from experience that using hot glue on outdoor wreaths can be a bad idea. After they sit in the sun too long the hot glue will eventually let go and possibly get hot enough to melt.
Because I ride my bike in the hot sun for hours, I decided to go with stitching the wefts in. I would hate for the glue to melt onto my bio hair.
If it’s easier for you to hot glue the wefts them in tot he hat then, by all means, do it. Use strong glue sticks and make sure they are made for fabric so it will bond to the hat fabric well.
Since the glue will be on the inside of the wefts it may be ok to use. I have seen others use it so try and see. I just want to be able to use the hair in another hat if needed or color it if it fades out. By sewing it, I can just cut the stitches and change it out.
The ideal way would be to use velcro to hold the hair to the hat. That way I can remove the hair and wash it or color it if it fades and it won’t ruin the hat. Or change to another hat if needed.
I have some on order and will add that to the tutorial when I try it out. Here’s how I made it…
How to Make a DIY Wig Hat
Supplies:
- Baseball Cap or other Type of Hat ( preferably not netted or see-through)
- Human or Synthetic Hair Wefts- 3 strands 16-18 inches wide, depending on the size of the hat
- Needle
- Polyester Thread
- Hot Glue Gun with Fabric Glue Sticks (if using)
The extensions in this tutorial are 120 grams of Brazilian Remy 18 inch straight wefts in color 18/613, This hair comes as a set of clip in hair extensions. I removed the clips and sewed them together to make the string of wefts. You may be able to find wefts instead of clip-in extensions online or at a beauty supply store. As of now, clip-in extensions were the only Brazilian Human Hair I could find online.
Instructions:
Measure the circumference of the hat by pinning a tape measure from the temple.
You want to measure over the hole in the back and back up the other side to the temple. Cut the wefts to the size of the hat.
My hat was a standard women’s baseball cap and measured 16 inches around. Make sure you measure your own hat in case it has a larger circumference.
Sew or glue the three strands of wefts together. (I chose to sew mine).
Start stitching/glueing one end of the wefts to the the temple of the hat. Make sure your have the hair inside the edge of the cap far enough so you will not see the stitching on the wefts.
Stitch or glue the wefts around the top of the hole or adjusting area in the back of the hat.
TIP: I stitched the hair above and around the hole on the back of the hat so that the wefts show through the hole and not my bio hair. My bio hair is dark so that would look strange with my dark bio hair showing inside the hole and then blonde underneath. You want the wefts to show not your own thin bio hair.
Finish by stitching/glueing the end of the weft to the other temple of the hat. I added a few extra stitches to hold the fabric edge of the hat steady where the wefts are attached and they won’t weight it down or turn the hat inside out.
Comb, curl and smooth the hair and wear!
I am super excited about how this turned out! I can’t wait to throw it on this summer when I am on the go!
I was able to get the wefts and my hair bunched together to make a ponytail in the back and pulled through the hole in the back with the adjuster underneath like I would wear my hair normally in a hat! I love it and I know you will too!
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I sometimes wear a topper and feel so much prettier with it on. Thanks for sharing these type of posts!
Love the idea that you can still wear this in a ponytail; that’s exclusively how I wear my hair in the summer 🙂
I am so happy with how this hat turned out and yes you can pull it up in pony like you normally would.
Kim
Thank you so much for sharing, Kim! This is perfect for the hot Summers here in Vegas.
Super easy and a relaxed style.
Can anyone tell me if there is a way to use a lace front wig to create a hat with hair? I can no longer wear my wigs due to migraines but was hoping I could repurpose and make a braid on a soft headband to wear under hats when I feel the need? Please help?!😘
Hi Kelly you can cut the top off of the wig but keep the back wefts in tack and sew them into a soft headband. I would try it with an old wig first to see how it works. It might work better if you buy wefts of hair (the kind used in extensions) and sew them into a headband. Get creative with what will work for your situation. They also sell headband wigs. Try searching on Amazon. It may be easier to try that instead of making your own.