Do you ever have a day so busy that the thought of adding even one more task, like doing your hair, might send you into a tailspin? That’s why I consider hats a real lifesaver because they help me leave the house looking sorta put together! A colorful hat and an eye-catching pair of earrings are all that I need for a look that’s both easy and chic. A hand-painted hat adds a lot more to an outfit than anything you’ll find off the rack, so I thought I’d share my tips for painting affordable and easy-to-find trucker hats that will help you elevate your look with ease! Keep reading to learn how you can create hand-painted sunflower hats in a few easy steps.
How to Make Hand Painted Sunflower Hats
When I paint on fabric, I typically use natural DIY Clay based paint as my base colors and I use acrylic paint for the top layers. The trick is to use a textile medium. Not all fabric painters use this so don’t stress if you don’t have it on hand! But I like the extra flexibility it adds to the paint, especially when I’m painting thick layers with DIY Paint because it allows for the paint to become more pliable after it dries to a harder paint finish. Fabric moves quite a bit when we wear it, even on a hat, so it is a good idea to put a little dab of textile medium into your paint. The textile medium I used for these hand-painted sunflower hats is from Delta Creative Ceramcoat and you can find this (and many other brands) in most hobby or fabric stores. This product is very easy to use! The makers do recommend washing your fabric first without fabric softener. When hand painting these sunflower hats, that step isn’t as necessary because the hat is unlikely to be washed as often as, say, a denim jacket. To get started, add 2 parts of the textile medium to one part paint, mix well, and start painting!
If you’re new to painting on fabric or you’re not quite certain about what you want to design, I recommend chalking it out first. Please don’t overthink this part! This step is just to set up the overall composition, making sure your main shapes are centered and placed where you want them. My chalk graph often looks kinda like chicken scratch at first but it does a good job of directing me where to go once that paintbrush is in motion.
Now the fun begins! I’ve decided to paint some bright, colorful sunflowers! Sunflowers are my favorite and definitely have proven to be a favorite among my customers! I’m using DIY Paint in Queen Bee and Liquid Sunshine for the sunflowers. My brush is the Assistant from The Turquoise Iris line, which is a flat brush that’s perfect for laying or “blocking” in the main shape of the flowers. Be sure to keep your hand loose and don’t be too perfect, remember, flowers are not perfect circles so relax and allow that brush to do its job!
Go ahead and add some lines and leaf shapes in some darker hues to give the impression of the stems and greenery. I normally use darker colors first, using lighter colors as I add highlights. I love to use paint knives to give the flowers movement and more of an abstract appearance. For these hand-painted sunflower hats, I chose a thin pointy pallet knife and used the shape of the tool to give the shape of the petals.
I always like pops of unexpected colors added into my artwork and painted hats are no different. For this project, I opted to add a color called Flourished, from the DIY Paint Bohemian Brights collection to the middle of the flowers. It turned out so pretty! Yes, it’s bright but, because it’s transparent, the color doesn’t draw all the focus.
What will YOU do to put your own spin on your hand-painted sunflower hats? I love drippy flowers, so I opted to let my flower petals run and drip a little in a few places just for added interest and definitely one of a kind look!
Hand-Painted Sunflower Hats Supply List
Fabric hat
Paint for your base or background
Fabric/Textile medium
Paintbrushes
This is a fun project that will transform the hats in your closet from basic to beautiful, adding style and color to your wardrobe in just a few simple steps. Whether you make them for yourself or gift one to every member of your family, these hand-painted sunflower hats are the perfect way to make a fashion statement on a budget because they use just a few supplies.
Kelly Wiler is an Ohio artist that has been creating and practicing art since she was a young girl inspired by her art teacher. Kelly teaches many different styles of paint classes and workshops, she specializes in the Intuitive Art process as a way to push her students to new levels of awareness in their own artistic journey. She lives with her husband Jeff and their daughter Cassidy. View Kelly’s Full Bio
