Make a Colorful Winter Hat Craft with Scratch Art

This winter hat craft is so colorful and fun! The oil pastels look extra vibrant against the black paint. Kids will love to scratch in their designs, making each hat unique. This project allows kids to explore making different lines and repeating patterns.

We love exploring different painting techniques. Take a look at my collection of painting ideas for kids for more fun and creative art projects to try!

If you are looking for more winter project ideas take a look at my collection of beautiful winter art for kids to make!

Create Your Own Winter Hat Craft with Scratch Art

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Supplies

• Printable hat template available here in my shop
• White cardstock    
• Oil pastels   
• Black acrylic paint
• Paintbrushes
• Bamboo skewers or toothpicks
• Pompoms  
• White glue   
• Scissors    

Instructions for your winter hat art project

1. First, print out your winter hat template onto white cardstock. There are 2 hats on 1 page so each child can make 2 or you can cut the paper in half.

This is such a fun craft, kids will want to make more than 1!  

Related: Winter Scrape Painting with Narwhal Printable   

2. Using oil pastels, have kids color in their hats using a variety of colors in any pattern they like. You can do diagonal stripes, horizontal stripes, or a circle pattern, any design will work. I love using oil pastels, they are so bright and vivid and really help to make this project extra colorful. 

You can color in the top part of the hat where the pompom will go or simply leave it white since it will mostly be covered up.

3. I did a lot of experimenting with the black paint on top. Some suggest putting in a drop or 2 of dish soap to the paint to help it scratch off nicely. But actually, I found that it didn’t matter if I used dish soap or not with the brand of paint that I used.

I think the best thing is to do a small quick test with your paint because the paint can differ quite a bit. Add in a drop or 2 of dish soap to see if that makes a difference when you scratch in your design. 

Cut out your hat first before painting. Have kids paint on a thin layer of black paint over their oil pastel design. Let the paint dry completely before moving to the next step.

4. Now the fun part! Using a bamboo skewer (or toothpick) kids can scratch in their designs on their winter hats. It’s so neat to see the colors come through as you are scratching. 

I found that the best tools for scratching are ones with a sharp point such as a bamboo skewer and toothpick. We tried using chopsticks, but the ends were too large and the paint didn’t scratch off nicely. 

5. Once you are finished scratching in your designs, you can take some pompoms and glue them to the top of your hat. We used white glue for this and it worked great. 

I love how colorful this winter hat craft turned out! Scratch art is so fun for kids they will want to make more than one.

>> CLICK HERE TO GET THE PRINTABLE HAT TEMPLATES AND PDF VERSION OF THIS ART PROJECT.

A PDF that is perfect for printing and projecting onto a whiteboard in the classroom for kids to follow along! PDF includes a lesson plan overview, materials needed, step-by-step instructions and photos, and a printable template.

More winter art projects kids will love

Winter Tree Painting with Cotton Balls

Winter Snow Globe Craft with Chalk Pastels

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