Steampunk Hat Made From Recycled Materials

11 Materials
$10
3 Hours
Easy

I am steampunk mad at the moment and love creating steampunk decor and giving them a mixed media makeover. I recently made a steampunk lamp which turned out beautifully, but I did not have room for both projects. So once complete I combined the two projects to have a steampunk mixed media lamp in the end.

Prepare the surface


To make the top of the hat you will need some sort of bucket. There is no reason this could not be made using corrugated cardboard. To start I cut up some cardstock and stuck it to the surface using mod Podge. This will form a base for all the layers and a good surface for the embellishments.

Adding texture


You can use your imagination on this step. I used a few different stencils to add some texture. Put the stencil over the bucket and add some texture paste over the stencil using a spatula. Remove the stencil and wash it straight away. You can repeat this step using all the stencils.

Add layers


If you don't have stencils you can use items you find around your home. Here are a few examples of items that I used. Links to the items are included on my website post.





  • Mesh from a vegetable sacks
  • Corrugated cardboard
  • Christmas beads
  • paper packaging
  • Braid trim tape
  • Burlap fabric
  • Nut &
  • bolts
  • beads
  • old keys
  • broken jewellery

They are no right or wrong ways to glue them on to the hat. And doing a mixed media makeover it does not even need to be tidy. Just randomly cover the hat with bits and bobs

I buy bulk charms to do my mixed media projects it works out so much cheaper. There are too many items that I used to decorate this hat to name them all. 

But I have added images before the hat was painted, zoom in to see what I used.

If you see something you like and need more info feel free to comment and I will answer your question. All the clear charms, I made using resin moulds.

Making the brim


Draw a large circle on to some cardboard. The brim should be at least 5 cm wider than the hat. I traced around the bucket then added another circle 5 cm larger.

Divide your cardboard into a pizza shape using a pencil. Using a craft cut all the way through the inner slices and score the outside lines. This will allow the cardboard to bend without breaking.

Cover the brim


I had some offcuts of fake leather which I used to cover the brim. Using some mod podge or suitable glue attach the leather to the circle. Next, cut slits in the leather and fold it over the cardboard overlapping them like the images provided.

Glue them as you go along.

Decorate the brim


You can decorate the brim in the same way you decorated the hat.

I used tacky glue, then folded the pizza slices inside the bucket and taped them down while it dried. In hindsight using a hot glue gun would have been better and much faster.

Paint the hat


Paint the hat black using Gesso, making sure to cover everything. You don't want to see anything but black.

I used metallic copper wax paste to highlight the elements. To apply the wax you dip the tip of your finger into the wax and run it over the surface of the embellishments. You are not aiming to cover everything, mainly all the raised areas.

To tone down some of the black you can use a soft brush and the tiniest amount of copper wax paste and gently add a light cover in some areas. I have circled an example in the image. This idea is still to have some black to make the copper wax stand out.

The wax paste will need at least 12 hours to cure. After 12 hours you can add 2 coats of spray acrylic. This will stop the wax from going dull over time and make the colours really stand out. When I was spraying the hat on a lazy Susan I got the idea to use it as my stand.

Make a stand


I recycled some old cupboard drawer pulls from my stash and used them as legs. I then painted the stand and highlighted it with the copper wax. You can decorate the hat by adding some steampunk goggles and a feather.


Steampunk lamp
Steampunk hat


And that is my steampunk hat completed. This projects did not cost me much because I used many recycled materials. I also used very small quantities of ideas I already had at home so it is hard to cost this project. So your cost will depend on what items you have at home.

A more detailed tutorial and more images of this project can be found on my website listed below. 

Temporary Halloween mirror. You can create this mirror using and exciting mirror and after Halloween everything can be removed. This was you can change the decor depending on the occasion.

Halloween glasses


These wine glasses can be made for Halloween or any occasion, you just change the images. This technique can be temporary or can be sealed to last.

Resources for this project:
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Unique Creations By Anita
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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Frequently asked questions
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  2 questions
  • Itsmemic Itsmemic on Sep 06, 2020

    love your stuff Im a big steampunk crazy woman ! Why do you use gesso instead of black spray paint? Just wondering...

  • Wendy Wendy on Sep 06, 2020

    Love steam punk and really enjoy your posts. I have the copper paste and it’s hardening. Have you ever had that problem? Thanks.

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  • Michelle J Michelle J on Sep 07, 2021

    I love this - I have so many old tools and bits and bobs and now I want this hat. I love it and will be trying this very soon. Thank you for your great ideas!

  • Leslie Leslie on Sep 08, 2021

    Hi Anita, Another project that starts out OMG what now and then I remember how beautiful your other creations are. Brava on this one. Steampunk can very easily look cheap and yours is far from it. BEAUTIFUL!! Thank you for sharing this new project.

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