The Easter hat parade is a rite of passage - but Aussies say there's a 'right' amount to spend on it

It's that time of year again, when already harried and over-stretched parents of preschool and school-age children have to find time in their already busy schedule to make an Easter hat for their child's parade.

If, like me, your children are close together in age, you might even find yourself making two or even three.

But in this age of social media and one-upmanship of parents, simply stapling a bit of cardboard together and whacking a few stickers on is hardly going to cut it, leading children to turn up in more and more elaborate headgear.

But when is it too much?

READ MORE: TV news presenter stuns with gross parenting admission

An exclusive Nine.com.au poll of our readers asked, "How much should parents spend on a hat for the Easter hat parade?"

Surprisingly, if you have ever been to a hat parade, most of those who responded to the survey claimed less is more.

The majority of the 513 responders, or 39 per cent, said no more than $4.99 was the correct amount to spend.

READ MORE: Why Easter egg chocolate prices are sky-high this year

This was followed by 34 per cent, who said between $5 and $9.99 was a fair amount.

The next most popular price bracket was $10–$19.99, which was the response of 21 per cent of respondents.

Five per cent of people surveyed said $20–$20.99 was a reasonable spend, while just 1 per cent of respondents thought it was OK to spend $30–$49.99.

No one agreed with spending more than $50.

When my children were young, I was keen for them to enjoy the high of taking part in an Easter hat parade and maybe take home a prize.

Sick of parents trying to outdo each other, my children's school came up with a way to try to even the playing fields – each hat had to use an ice-cream container as the base.

That year, we had to make two hats, and I was determined to think outside the square.

For my son, we created an Easter Island hat, complete with a volcano, and for my daughter, a butterfly cage.

There was not an egg or a chick or a bunny in sight and I was quite pleased with our efforts until the parade, when they both looked miserable because their hats didn't look like everyone else's.

The ice-cream container base also failed to stop some parents – who my son refers to as 'the extras' – who still managed to come up with very large and elaborate hats.

Speaking of 'extras', you cannot go past former The Block contestants Ronnie and Georgia.

The couple took to their Instagram Story this week to celebrate back-to-back wins in their child's Easter hat parade.

"Woo hoo! That's Best Easter Hat two years running... and yes, we're absolutely counting! Bring on the hat-trick next year!" they wrote alongside a series of photos of their daughter sporting an elaborate hat that featured a bonnet of fresh flowers and eggs, but with the addition of a huge cross towering above her head.

They also shared an image of last year's winning design – an enormous Creme egg design.

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