Witch Hat Decor: How to Display a Quilted Witch Hat From Samhain to Yule
Searches for witch hat decor have almost quadrupled in the last three months, and the reason is simple: the hat changed. A cheap black cone from a costume shop is a thing you wear once. A quilted wide-brim hat with a moon phase band, a raven, or a Yule fire printed across the crown is an object you hang on the wall in September and take down at Twelfth Night, and put on when the mood takes you in between.
This guide covers how to display quilted witch hats so they read as decor rather than as a hat someone forgot to put away, and which designs carry which part of the season.
Why the quilted hat works as decor
Three things. It holds its shape, so it does not slump on a hook the way a felt cone does. It has a flat, wide brim, which gives it a face like a plate or a sign when hung. And it is printed, so the design is the decoration; the hat is just the shape it arrives on. The witch hats are all quilted, wide-brimmed and printed edge to edge for this reason.
Five ways to display one
Quilted hats made to hang
On a single hook, brim to the wall
The simplest and the best. Hang the hat by the inside of the crown on a hook so the brim sits flat against the wall and the crown points out into the room. The printed brim becomes a circular piece of wall art with a cone in the middle. Eye height or slightly above.
On a hat stand or a mannequin head
Reads as a hat, which is fine if you also wear it. Good on a hall table or a dresser. Less good on a shelf where it competes with everything else.
Stacked
Two or three hats nested, the largest at the bottom, on a chair, a trunk or the floor beside the fire. Works because the brims fan out and show three designs at once. Only with hats from the same family, all celestial or all forest.
On the tree
A witch hat on top of a black Christmas tree is the tree topper that half the internet is looking for and nobody sells. A quilted one sits securely on the top spire. Pick a Yule or a moon design; our guide to decorating a black Christmas tree covers the rest of the tree.
On the altar
Set on its crown with the brim up, a wide hat becomes a shallow bowl. Some people keep one on the Samhain or Yule altar to hold offerings, cards or written intentions. It is not traditional in any historical sense, and it does not need to be.
Which design for which stretch of the season
September to Halloween
Ravens, pumpkin moons, a Samhain harvest design, anything with a bat. The Halloween wall decor guide treats a hung hat as a sign, which is the right way to think about it.
Samhain and November
Hecate keys and crossroads, the Morrigan with her tree, scrying mirrors, the harvest moon. Darker, less orange. This is the hat's best month; the room has emptied of pumpkins and the hat is the one object that still says the season. Our Samhain altar guide pairs well with a Hecate design.
Yule and December
The Yule fire and evergreen design, the wolf moon, anything with snow or a winter owl. A moon phase band with silver works right through. Put the Halloween hats away on 1 November and bring these out; the hook stays where it is.
Styling around the hat
Give it room
A hung hat is roughly the size of a large round sign and wants the same clearance: nothing within a hand's width of the brim. Two hats on one wall should be at least a brim apart.
Light it from the side
The quilting shows under raking light. A lamp to one side rather than a ceiling light overhead brings out the texture and the shadow under the brim.
Match the metal
Most of the designs use a silver or gold moon phase band. Match it to the frames and candlesticks nearby. The gothic frames and the hat share a wall well.
More than one hat
Once you own two the question of grouping arises. Hats from the same family, all moon phase or all forest animal, hang together on one wall a brim apart and read as a series. Hats from different families are better in different rooms: the raven in the hall, the Yule fire by the tree, the scrying mirror over the altar. A row of three across a wide wall works if the middle hat is the boldest and the two outer ones are quieter, which is the same rule as hanging three signs. Five or more and you have a shop; that is fine if you meant it.
Wearing it
You can, obviously. Quilted hats sit better than felt because the crown has structure, and the brim shades properly, which matters more at a November bonfire than at a party. The wide brim also frames a face in photographs in a way the cheap cone never did, which is a large part of why the quilted hat has replaced it. Most people wear theirs to a Samhain gathering or a solstice bonfire, then hang it back up. Our piece on dressing with the Wheel of the Year treats the hat as the one piece of witch wardrobe that crosses fully into the home.
Care
A quilted printed hat is a textile, and it wants textile care rather than costume-shop neglect. Dust with a soft brush. Spot clean; do not machine wash a quilted printed hat. Store by nesting hats inside each other, largest at the bottom, with tissue in the crowns so they keep their shape. Keep them out of direct sun through the summer or the print will fade unevenly.
One hat for the hook
Frequently Asked Questions About Witch Hat Decor
How do you hang a witch hat on the wall?
Hook it by the inside of the crown so the brim lies flat against the wall and the crown points outward. The printed brim then reads as a round piece of wall art. Hang at eye height or slightly above with a hand's width of clear wall around it.
Can a witch hat be a Christmas tree topper?
Yes. A quilted wide-brim hat sits securely on the top spire of most trees and suits a black or dark green tree. Choose a Yule, moon phase or winter design rather than a Halloween one.
Which witch hat designs work after Halloween?
Moon phases, Hecate keys, the Morrigan, scrying mirrors, wolf moons, winter owls and the Yule fire design. Put away pumpkins, bats and anything orange on 1 November.
How do you store quilted witch hats?
Nest them inside one another, largest at the bottom, with tissue in each crown, and keep them out of sunlight. Dust with a soft brush and spot clean only.
The witch hat was always the most recognisable shape in the whole seasonal vocabulary. Quilted and printed, it finally has something to say beyond the costume, and a wall to say it on.
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