Saturday, April 11, 2009

Brown Paper Bag Bonnet

It is hard to imagine this was made from a paper bag...


...but here is how to do it: Just trace a large dinner plate and a saucer or bowl that is smaller, on to one layer of a large, heavy brown paper bag.


Then, put the saucer inside the large circle and cut the circle out.


Put short pieces of masking tape inside the small circle of brown paper, leaving the sticky side facing the outside of the circle, like this. Masking tape is a paper-like tape that works best on brown paper.


Cut a long strip, about an inch or two deep, and attach i to the tape on the round circle, and cut it where it meets the end.

Put more tape inside the strip and attach the large circle--the one that has the hole in it. Do all the taping and attaching from the inside so that it will not show on the finished product. At this stage, you can either leave it brown and rustic looking and add appropriate trims, such as raffia straw, or you can...



Paint it with folk-art or any other craft paint (which sometimes is only about 33c a bottle) and cut a strip of fabric for a ribbon. Then cut another strip, fold it in half and role it up like a rose and attach with a large safety pin on the inside. Add stickers, and outline the edges with glitter glue. This makes a great centerpiece for a table.
This hat actually fits the head of a two year old. If you want to make an adult size one, just use your largest pizza pan, or bowl, and then try a cereal or soup bowl for the crown.

18 comments:

Clare said...

Wonderful!!

Mary said...

That certainly is pretty!

Lisa said...

These are lovely!

Anonymous said...

I love it.

I do have a request. In the past you had tabs on the left side of you blog and they were diffrent post that you had in the past. But recently they are not there any more. I would like to be able to go back and look for some things. I would really apreciate it if you could bring the back.

I love your blog and have gotten great ideas and encouragement from your post

Aelwyn said...

I love this craft!

Anonymous said...

AMAZING!

Have a wonderful Easter day!

Kate said...

I remember making these in Girl Scouts....decades ago! We wore them to our Father-Daughter Banquet.

What Fun---

Kate.

Anonymous said...

That is the most prettiest thing I ever seen so far, and how crafty too..Thanks for sharing

Lydia said...

Kate--I thought I made it up myself:-) I guess nothing in the world is really "original." There are other ways to make a bonnet using just a circle and a ribbon to tie under he chin, and these are charming too. It is much easier and faster. If you type in crafts and paper bonnets, you might see a lot of other ideas. I had an idea for a birds nest with blue robins eggs from paper bag material but just did not have time to get it up.

Hope everyone had a peaceful Resurrection Day. It is interesting that Christ rose on the third day from the crucifiction, and that was the first day of the week, our Sunday. It ushered in the Christian religion.

Lydia said...

Anonymous, I took down the visible subject area on the sidebar, thinking I would like to condense it into just a few things: crafts and sewing, homemaking, decorating, inspiration, politics (feminism, education, etc). As it was, it was about 20 or 30 categories and took up a lot of space. You can still find what you need by typing in the google search area on the Homeliving page--it is all still there. It is a time consuming to change the category titles, and that is why I don't have them up yet, but you can still get what you need. Many of the posts did not have labels on them anyway, and that is another thing I want to work on.

I will be writing a little series of inpirational books, but for the most part they will be fresh material, and not taken from the blog. If I take anything from the blog I will write a new article to replace it.
I don't know who started the rumor that I was not going to be blogging anymore. I am not quitting.

Please remind me if there is an article you want and I'll write on topics that are suggested.

Anonymous said...

This is pretty amazing! I would never guess this was made from a brown paper bag. I have to admit I'm not sure I could come up with such a pretty one myself; great job!

Sharon said...

This is so cute! I am going to make one. Thank you and God Bless! Sharon

Sharon said...

I love this idea and will have to make one. Thank you!

Sharon said...

Hi I love to read you blog. I love this idea and I am going to make one. Thanks. Sharon

Gail said...

Dear Lady Lydia,

I hope this e-mail finds you well. I ran across your web site while searching for James Tissot images, and got completely distracted from my original task. This is my third attempt at contacting you, because your words have touched me deeply.

I want to thank you for taking time to reaffirm modern femininity, manners, letter writing and dress. So many things get lost in the hustle and bustle of "Keeping Up With the Jonses" and so many of us lose track of what it is to be a woman.

When you kindly reminded me that we were made in God's image, and what that means, it almost brought tears to my eyes. Beauty is so important to humanity. And the difference in the beauty between men and women is very important. You are right, we lost that in the last century.

My family has been into living history all of my life. I have a good business making custom clothes for re-inactors. My mother says that if she wants to find me at an encampment she just looks for the most beautiful woman there, but I am no more than average in modern clothes. Well-fitting clothes and beautiful fabrics can make the most average woman into a creature of stunning beauty, grace and confidence.

I hope that my generation will come to realize that women cannot 'do it all.' We cannot be mothers, wives, workers, housekeepers, cooks, entertainers, drivers, friends and socialites. At least not all at once. I watch my friends drive themselves to exhaustion trying to work 3 jobs, raise a family and pay all the bills while their husbands (if they are married) come home & play video games. And they still can't afford child care. Every day has the same number of hours, and it's important to remember that.

Years ago, my mother found FlyLady.net and we both started living our lives according to that lovely lady's advice. We are much happier for it. Dressing well, and in a way that pleases us is so important. Having a clean, pretty home rests the soul at the end of the day. Taking time for ourselves, to renew our spirit blesses everyone in our lives. Saying kind words to ourselves and others makes everyone happier.

Of course, I'm telling you things you already know.
Thank you for the reminder that it's OK to be a woman, and that it's OK to want to look and act like a woman. That there are things in life that are more important than the newest whats-it.

I hope you are enjoying this lovely spring.
Sincerely,
Gail Kellogg Hope

You may be interested in looking at my blog:
http://artbeautyandwell-orderedchaos.blogspot.com/
and my company's web site www.oakhillclothiers.com. (I'm not trying to sell you anything, but I think you would enjoy looking at the gallery).
I often adapt historic clothes to modern dress, and as I work for myself I don't feel the need to please mainstream America. I wear what makes me feel good, and modern clothes, for the most part, do not.
I have been reading your blog and enjoying it as much as your web site.
Have a wonderful evening,
Gail.

Domestically Inclined said...

Absolutely lovely as well as economical!

Bobbi Jo Nichols said...

Lady Lidia,
The paper hat is so pretty. I am going to make one for in my craft room.
I love your blog. Hugs, Bobbi Jo

Terry said...

Oh my what a pretty paper project !
Thank you for sharing .
It is so simple even I can do it !
Yipee .I love things made from plain ole paper .
Blessings to you .