DIY Mini Fez and TARDIS Hair Clip

In the words of Matt Smith’s Doctor: “It’s a fez. I wear a fez now. Fezzes are cool.” Personally, I agree. Not only is the character of the Doctor obsessed with the odd accessory, but it seems that behind the scenes, Matt Smith himself has gotten a little attached to the point that he and Steven Moffat had to destroy it to keep Matt from insisting on wearing it any longer. Even Doctor Who Adventures adopted the sentiment, running Top 5 lists with the top item being awarded the Golden Fez. Seeing how this hat has become quite the symbol of Whovian pride, I figured it was time to create a chic miniature one.

You’ll need:

Step one: Once you’ve decided which fez to make and gathered the supplies, take your cardboard and cut about an 8″ x 3.5″ strip.

Step two: Roll the cardboard at an angle to make a slight cone shape and hot glue the seam. You can then use this opportunity  to trim off the excess cardboard that sticks out from rolling.

Step three: Next cut a strip of fabric that is about a centimetre longer and wider than your cardboard (I’m doing the TARDIS first, but this applies to the classic fez as well). Wrap it around your cardboard, using hot glue sparingly to hold it in place. The part that overlaps is going to be the back of your fez. Fold the excess fabric over the edges of your fez and hot glue into place.

Step four: Next, trace the skinnier side of your fez (the top) onto the cardboard. Cut out the smaller circle, and cover that in fabric as well. Before attaching it to your fez, take your string and a needle and thread it through the centre of your cap. Knot off the end of the thread on the inside and hot glue it in place. On the other end of the thread, tie a knot about 1 inch from the end and fray the remaining.

Step five: Okay, now it gets tricky. The cover you just made in step four is going to be pushed to the top of the fez through the bottom. (This seems to be the easiest way, but you can also push it in from the top, gluing as you go.) Stick your glue gun into the fez to glue from the inside so it doesn’t show. You can also use a short dowel rod, or Popsicle stick if your glue gun won’t fit. So now you should have something that looks kinda like this (yours will have a tassel already attached):

Step six: Add an alligator clip to the bottom of your fez.

And your classic red fez is done! If you’re working on a TARDIS fez, here are additional instructions:

(TARDIS only) Step seven: I used the classic TARDIS blue coloured fabric to make a TARDIS shape cut-out, added detail in Sharpie, and glued it down. You can add as much or as little detail to your TARDIS shape as you wish. I also added a small roll of blue to the top acting as the light at the top of the police box, and I drew space shapes onto the body with my Sharpie.

As for how to wear them, I liked mine cocked a little to the side but it’s your choice! Just wear it proud, because fezzes are cool!