'Faux Vintage' Mini Hat Pins (Vintage Look-A-Likes)

Posted by Melba on May 18, 2012

Making handmade pins is an “on-hand” project aimed at using up those bits, pieces and lone beads you already have in your craft and sewing stash. I had everything I needed already, so the cost of all my mini hat pins was free!

These cuties inspired by vintage hat pins are made using corsage pins or T-pins and buttons or beads! Pictured are a few I made to inspire you.

Vintage is all the rage now, but I've long wanted my own set of old-fashioned hat pins. I just haven’t yet scoured the antique shops to find them. But with all the blogging and pinning I've seen with decorative straight pins, my mind turned to making my own look-a-likes to grace my pin cushion.

You can use vintage (or vintage look) materials or new-fangled plastics to create your own set of lovelies that are as unique as real hat pins. Use beads, buttons and lace from your mother’s or grandmother’s stash to make a memory craft (crafts using materials or items made by your family members that you would like to see every day) for your sisters, daughters, granddaughters or other family members. Almost everyone has a place this small memory can be pinned – in a pin cushion, in the top of a photo frame or even in a hat. (If placing in a hat, be careful not to get stuck!)

I also have a tutorial on a cookie cutter pincushion that uses steel wool as the stuffing material. You can also use the instructions to make the tea-cup pin cushion pictured.

Wouldn’t a few pins and a pincushion make a nice Mother’s Day or anytime unique gift for that special friend?

Here is a photo tutorial.

Photo 1: Assemble materials. Dig in your stash for any stray beads and buttons. This is a great project to use "onlies" and beads from broken jewelry (vintage or modern).

Photo 2: I only had a few corsage pins on-hand so I added a lace bow to the top of a T-pin to be able to use these. These also worked really great for the shank-backed buttons I used, as it gives you a place to securely glue the button so it doesn't slide around. Paint the "T" of the T-pins to match your lace or the back of the button in order to make it less visible (optional). Insert a T-pin into the middle of a 2 inch piece of lace. Skip this step with the corsage pins.

Photo 3: Tie a knot in the lace. Skip this step with the corsage pins.

Photo 4: Apply a dab of E6000 glue to the top of the pin with a toothpick and thread on beads or buttons. Push it securely against the top of the pin. Wipe off excess glue and hold it for a few seconds to give the glue time to set. Add a dab of glue to the pin before adding each bead. I used three beads on most pins, but if you have small beads you may want to try five. Since the E6000 is not immediately going to set hard as a rock, you have plenty of time to change your mind about the bead arrangement. Stick your pins in a pin cushion to allow them time to dry. You may want to push them all the way in the cushion to hold the beads in place. It will take about 12 hours for the glue to set permanently. And that's it - your very own imitation, faux-vintage hat pins are ready for display and gifting!

Thank you for reading my post. I hope you enjoyed it and will visit my photo tutorial. If you have any questions or something is not clear, please let me know so that I can improve the tutorial.

Please take a moment to leave a comment - really, please do – I’d love to hear from you.

Thanks again.
buggalcrafts a.k.a. melba

Materials: - 2-inch Corsage pins or T-pins - Seed beads or small beads - Shank-backed buttons - Lace - Scissors - E6000 glue - Paint to match lace & buttons - Toothpicks - Pin cushion