Unlike many of the last few years, this year’s Halloween hats were created months ago. While I was in Florida with my brother last winter, I got a call from home informing me about an upcoming Egyptian-themed costume party. It had been suggested that Timmy could wear an Egyptian skirt (which is really more like a kilt) and that Kelly could wear a toga. To say Timmy was put off by the idea is a colossal understatement, nor was Kelly keen on the idea of wearing a bed sheet, especially since most of hers are covered with cute little penguins or similar patterns. I told them not to worry. When I got back from Florida, we’d get creative. As a kid I was obsessed with Egyptian art for a time, so this could be fun. On the other hand, returning shortly before the party meant I’d have an insanely tight deadline.
After my return we threw around a few ideas, including Horus, the falcon-headed god; Anubis, the jackal-headed god; and Sobeck, the alligator headed god before settling on Thoth, the über-cool ibis-headed god. For Kelly I decided to make the red-and-white Unified Egyptian crown.
The hats were assembled with sheet craft foam, acrylic paint and, as my burned fingers could prove, loads of hot glue. The ibis hat came together without much trouble. The problems began while working on Kelly’s hat with less than a day to go—in the middle of a huge snowstorm. I discovered that I barely had any white sheet foam! A trip across town to Hobby Lobby was all but impossible. In my best “Red Green” reuse mode, I rummaged around the basement to find a big foam drawer liner that was somewhat like the sheet craft foam. As I started using it, I became quickly aware of the inferiority of the material. The “normal” sheets are very predictable, just the right thickness for bending, and don’t melt when hit with hot glue. The drawer liner, however, started to melt under heat and ripped pretty easily. With no other choice, I did my best. The inside white of the crown was not anywhere near what I wanted it to be. Due to the inferiority of the foam, it turned out sort of ribbed, which was just wrong. I did have a blast making the little cobra and vulture head out of the foam, though.
In typical Halloween hat fashion, I finished with barely an hour to spare. At the party there were oodles of homeschoolers, all with incredibly cool costumes, including another red and white crown. One of the kids had made it with duct duct tape, and it was amazing.
To see Halloween Hats from past years, check this: https://blog.bohanart.com/2014/10/halloween-bird-hats-2/ and https://blog.bohanart.com/2016/08/hummerhat/.
Laurie Livingston
LOVE your work! Thank you for the structural information. So helpful!
What will you do when the kids want full cos-play?
Matt
Thanks! Now the kids are in college, so it has been about 4 years since I’ve made a hat out of foam.