Okay, so I decided I needed a new hat, something for everyday wear, but with a bit of an MMA vibe. Couldn’t find anything quite right online or in stores – everything looked kinda generic or way overpriced.
Getting Started
First things first, I needed a base hat. I dug through my closet and found an old plain black baseball cap. It was still in good shape, just boring. Perfect canvas. Then, I spent some time just thinking about what I wanted. Did I want specific logos? Fighter names? Just a general feel? I decided to keep it simple, maybe one or two cool patches.
I went online and started searching for MMA-themed patches. Found a couple that looked decent – one with a stylized glove graphic and another smaller one with a vague sort of martial arts symbol. Ordered those.
Putting It Together
Waiting for stuff to arrive is always the worst part. Anyway, the patches finally showed up a few days later. Laid them out on the hat to figure out positioning. This took longer than I thought. Tried the glove on the front, then the side. Put the smaller symbol on the back near the strap.
- Figuring out placement: Pinned the patches temporarily to see how they looked from different angles. Moved them around a bunch.
- Attachment – Attempt 1 (Sewing): I thought sewing would be the most durable option. Grabbed a needle and some thick thread. Man, trying to push that needle through the thick front part of the cap was tough. My fingers were sore pretty quickly. Didn’t look as neat as I wanted either, my stitches were all over the place.
- Attachment – Attempt 2 (Glue): Got frustrated with sewing. Decided to try fabric glue for the second, smaller patch on the back. This was way faster. Put down some newspaper, applied the glue carefully to the back of the patch, and pressed it firmly onto the hat. Had to hold it for a bit. Wiped away a tiny bit of excess glue that squeezed out.
Finishing Touches and Result
For the main front patch, I ended up using a combination. I tacked the corners down with a few stitches just for extra security, then used glue around the edges underneath to keep it flat and clean-looking. Seemed like a good compromise.
I let the whole thing sit overnight for the glue to fully cure. Didn’t do anything else fancy like distressing it, wanted to keep it fairly clean.
So, the next day, I checked it out. The patches seemed stuck on there really well. Tried the hat on. Yeah, felt pretty good. It’s definitely unique, and it’s got that subtle MMA look I was going for without screaming anything specific. Way better than the plain cap it started as, and definitely feels more ‘me’ than anything I saw in the shops. Happy with how this little project turned out.
