Is it really possible to put a giant Santa hat on a grain bin? Of course it is!
We love decorating for the season, and each year we try to find something new, something fun, and one more thing that will make visitors smile as they drive by or pull in.
This year, our big holiday addition came in a way we never quite expected. After years of joking about it, we finally found a way to put a giant Santa hat on top of our grain bin sign. It’s one of those ideas that began with a simple conversation years ago – one that usually ended with us saying, “It would look amazing, but where in the world would we ever find a Santa hat big enough?”
As it turns out, sometimes you just have to get a little creative. And this year, creativity finally won!
Putting A Giant Santa Hat On A Grain Bin
December is always a busy month at the farm, but this year it feels even more exciting. Not only are we preparing the property for a full season of Christmas parties at the event center and party barn, we are also hosting a special Christmas market on Saturday, December 13th for the local Cambridge area co-op called From Scratch. It’s the first time we’ve hosted their holiday market at the farm, and we want everything to feel warm, festive, welcoming, and full of Christmas spirit.
The decorations around the farm are a big part of that. We have always loved adding unique piece. More importantly, things that show a bit of our personality and share our memories with visitors.
One of our favorite pieces each year is the giant wooden Santa that came from my childhood. It’s been around for decades – in fact for over 6 of them! And every year when he comes out of storage, it feels like welcoming back an old friend.
The kids who visit love him, adults point at him with a smile, and he brings just the right amount of nostalgia to the farm. See our article: The Giant Santa Finally Comes Home To The Farm!
But even with all of our decorations, we are always looking for a little more. Something new, something unexpected, something fun. The farm is a big space, after all, and a few extra touches here and there can make all the difference. And that’s where the conversation about the giant Santa hat started.
The Grain Bin Sign – A Perfect Spot For A Giant Santa Hat!
Our grain bin sign overlooks the pond area of the farm, just across the street from the event center. At 20 feet tall, it’s one of the first things people see when they pull in. And it practically begs to be decorated for the holidays. The side of the bin is 19 feet in circumference around the middle, and because of its size, it offers an incredible opportunity for something large, eye-catching, and fun.
For years, we would laugh about how great it would look with a giant Santa hat on top. “Imagine how many people would stop for pictures,” we’d say. “Imagine how it would look lit up at night.” Every season we would picture it, talk about it, and then eventually decide that finding a hat big enough just wasn’t realistic.
After all, where do you even begin searching for a Santa hat big enough to cover part of a 20-foot-tall grain bin?
We figured it was one of those ideas that would stay an idea forever—fun to think about but too hard to make happen. That is, until this year.
The Search For A Big Santa Hat
Sometimes the best solutions show up when you aren’t even looking for them. Earlier this fall, while we were planning out decorations and thinking about ways to make the farm stand out for the upcoming events, we ended up stumbling across something online that immediately caught our attention – a giant Santa hat made to cover a small car or a golf cart.
It wasn’t made for grain bins. It wasn’t even close. But the dimensions immediately sparked curiosity. The hat was 18 feet in circumference—only one foot smaller than the width of our grain bin in the middle. And because the bin tapers as it goes up, that single foot difference suddenly became a benefit instead of a problem.
Even if it wasn’t made for a farm building, the idea was too good not to try. We ordered the hat and waited, hoping it would be large enough to drape over the tapered upper section of the bin. Affiliate Link: Oversized Santa Hat
When the box finally showed up, we opened it like two kids on Christmas morning. And sure enough – it was huge. Not quite grain-bin huge, but golf-cart-covered-in-red-felt huge. And more importantly, it looked like it just might work.
Getting The Hat To The Top Of The Bin
Finding a giant hat was the first challenge. Getting it onto the bin was the second. The grain bin has a built-in ladder, but climbing it with a floppy, oversized Santa hat is not exactly easy. We also grabbed an extension ladder to help guide and drape the hat over the top as evenly as possible. It took some patience and a lot of adjusting to get it to sit just right.
At one point, the wind tried to turn the hat into a sail, and there was a brief moment where we questioned our design skills entirely. But once we maneuvered it into place, the shape of the hat settled perfectly around the tapered section of the bin.
It looked like it was made for it. To secure it, we used a few galvanized roofing screws at the very top to tie the straps from the hat to. Just enough to hold it in place through winter winds, but not enough to damage the structure or the hat itself.
Having A Little Fun
Seeing that massive red hat sitting proudly on top of the grain bin instantly became one of our favorite moments of the season. It looks cheerful, whimsical, and downright fun. It’s the kind of decoration that makes people smile the moment they see it.
You can’t help but look twice. And the best part is that it ties perfectly into everything we’ve been preparing for the holiday season. With upcoming Christmas parties filling the event center and courtyards, and with the local From Scratch co-op bringing their holiday market here on December 13th, the farm now feels even more festive and ready for visitors.
It adds personality. It adds charm. And it adds a little more childhood magic to the entire property!
Already Planning The Next Addition
Now that the hat is up, it hasn’t taken long for another idea to start forming. As soon as we stood back and admired the giant hat on the grain bin, the next thought came out almost instantly: “We need a giant Santa face for the front of the bin.”
Once you see that hat sitting up there, it feels natural to imagine the rest of Santa right below it. A big friendly face, maybe even a beard that reaches partway down the bin. Something that makes the whole structure look like one massive, jolly, farm-sized Christmas decoration.
So the planning has already begun. Sketches, ideas, possible materials, and how to attach everything safely without damaging the bin or the artwork. But for this year, we’re thrilled. The hat alone has brought something completely new to the farm, and we can’t wait for visitors to see it when they arrive.
Who knows… maybe one day the grain bin will have the full suit, boots. And even a giant bag of toys sitting beside it! At this point, anything seems possible. Happy Gardening – And Merry Christmas! Jim & Mary.
Old World Garden Farms
Jim and Mary Competti have been writing gardening, DIY and recipe articles and books for over 15 years from their 46 acre Ohio farm. The two are frequent speakers on all things gardening and love to travel in their spare time.
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