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[Rmccamey]

I'm not sure of my season but, as much as I like chocolate brown hats, they suit neither my complexion nor wardrobe.

I am “summer” too, a grizzled one. I wear blues, sometimes combined with certain grays. I thought camel / beige felt would contrast nicely my jackets and shirts, but if the color is too warm, then my face might look ridiculously red.

Perhaps a cold tone hatband is the solution. If it’s cold and still fits with the felt, it just proves the felt is vivid.

- Juhani

 

[belfastboy]

I am “summer” too, a grizzled one. I wear blues, sometimes combined with certain grays. I thought camel / beige felt would contrast nicely my jackets and shirts, but if the color is too warm, then my face might look ridiculously red.

Perhaps a cold tone hatband is the solution. If it’s cold and still fits with the felt, it just proves the felt is vivid.

- Juhani

Just to throw a spanner into the works.....I also think that the clothing is far more impactful in terms of colour/tone than the hat so I don't sweat it. As a 'summer' I don't look great in things with yellow tones so a Camel or Whisky felt should not look good on me. I have 1 Camel and 2 Whisky hats, love to wear them and with a darker brown leather jacket I think they look great....and in my world that is about the only thing that matters.

 

[Nolagurl1956]

I’ll take a short stab at it. On occasion some manufacturers have indicated “hand blocked” on the size tag or maybe on the sweatband imprint.

but also there can be some discrepancy in mind over terminology. A hat could be “hand blocked” but not “hand creased” or vice versa I assume when Hat manufacturers used the term hand blocked the were indicating the felt was manually pulled over the block by hand and not pressed by machines on a line. A block could be shaped anywhere from an open crown which was then hand creased to blocks that had certain pinch shapes on it already.

 

[Nolagurl1956]

Hi, thanks for your reply. So "hand blocked" only applies to felt hats? I purchased a straw hat and the seller said it was hand blocked. I love the hat and didn't really care if it was hand blocked or not then started wondering about the term.

 

[belfastboy]

Hi, thanks for your reply. So "hand blocked" only applies to felt hats? I purchased a straw hat and the seller said it was hand blocked. I love the hat and didn't really care if it was hand blocked or not then started wondering about the term.

No, I have been looking into the making (blocking/creasing) of Panama hats. Hatters with experience have told me that 'hand creasing" of a Panama is an inferior way to crease a Panama straw. You need a block that has the fedora crease carved into it so the straw is formed onto the block with the crease already present that gives you the well defined edges. Now one could make an argument that this could still be considered "hand blocked" but I think in terms of straw hats it is somewhat a meaningless term.

 

[Antinomy]

Hi all! I have a qustion about luring, anybody can help me to find full information about this procces? Dose it help me to solve the problem with the burned places on dark hats after pouncing?

Thank you!

 

[belfastboy]

Hi all! I have a qustion about luring, anybody can help me to find full information about this procces? Dose it help me to solve the problem with the burned places on dark hats after pouncing?

Thank you!

How did you burn it? Have you taken out large swathes of felt? If you have inordinately removed chunks of felt the luring will not 'fix' it. Luring is normally used to restore the lustre to the felt by replacing the oils removed in the hat process. It also is some help in evening out the dye if you take the felt too close to the shellac core during the pounce. My biggest hurdle was getting past having too much oil on the cloth.
I worked around that by squirting the coconut oil onto my hand and spreading it over the palm so there was a thin layer on my hand not a pool or puddle. I then dabbed my cloth onto the hand making sure the cloth was picking up the oil evenly over an area about 3" square. Then I apply to the hat making sure to applying it evenly and not going over the same area twice before moving on around the hat. My luring cloth is a soft all cotton Tshirt material bundled up into a ball that fits into my hand. I secure the cloth ball with elastic so it continues to resemble a ball. Then as most things in life, dive in and learn by trial and error.

 

[Antinomy]

How did you burn it? Have you taken out large swathes of felt? If you have inordinately removed chunks of felt the luring will not 'fix' it. Luring is normally used to restore the lustre to the felt by replacing the oils removed in the hat process. It also is some help in evening out the dye if you take the felt too close to the shellac core during the pounce. My biggest hurdle was getting past having too much oil on the cloth.
I worked around that by squirting the coconut oil onto my hand and spreading it over the palm so there was a thin layer on my hand not a pool or puddle. I then dabbed my cloth onto the hand making sure the cloth was picking up the oil evenly over an area about 3" square. Then I apply to the hat making sure to applying it evenly and not going over the same area twice before moving on around the hat. My luring cloth is a soft all cotton Tshirt material bundled up into a ball that fits into my hand. I secure the cloth ball with elastic so it continues to resemble a ball. Then as most things in life, dive in and learn by trial and error.

Thanks a lot! Usually when i pounced the black hats, use the sandpaper with the low grid some places on the hat starting to be more lighten

 

[belfastboy]

Thanks a lot! Usually when i pounced the black hats, use the sandpaper with the low grid some places on the hat starting to be more lighten

I start out with 800 grit and move to 1000 and finish with 1200. When using all sandpapers esp the 800 I use a very light hand. As my woodworker neighbour says...."light hand and let the sandpaper do the work not you"

 

[Antinomy]

I start out with 800 grit and move to 1000 and finish with 1200. When using all sandpapers esp the 800 I use a very light hand. As my woodworker neighbour says...."light hand and let the sandpaper do the work not you"

So i'll try to follow your advice) thank you
And the last question - do you use the liqud coco oil or solid?

 

[belfastboy]

So i'll try to follow your advice) thank you
And the last question - do you use the liqud coco oil or solid?

I started out with the organic food grade solid and melted it but have since switched to the liquid in a hand pump. It is 'fractionated' which I think means it is unscented. The solid food grade made the hat smell of coconuts for a while afterwards. Cheap on Amazon.

 

[Blare]

I started out with the organic food grade solid and melted it but have since switched to the liquid in a hand pump. It is 'fractionated' which I think means it is unscented. The solid food grade made the hat smell of coconuts for a while afterwards. Cheap on Amazon.

Fractionated means they separate some of the different types of fatty acids. In this case the remaining oils are liquid at room temperature. I’m sure this process strips out any remaining remnants of the coconut leaving it pretty much scent free.

 

[humanshoes]

Hi all! I have a qustion about luring, anybody can help me to find full information about this procces? Dose it help me to solve the problem with the burned places on dark hats after pouncing?

Thank you!

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/phoenix-hat-company.93410/page-8
About 2/3 down this page are a few pics of how I lure my hats. I heat the coconut oil (maybe a quarter teaspoon of the solid or 4-5 drops if I'm using liquid oil) in a small pan to just below the smoking point. Keep in mind that, during this process, the pad is hot to the touch and the hat is on a spinner to help ensure an even distribution of the oil into the felt. Also, keep in mind that if you've sanded down into the shellac core of the body then luring won't completely mitigate that. The good news is for me is that the only time I ever get to make a hat for myself is if I've screwed up someone else's.

 

[belfastboy]

Fractionated means they separate some of the different types of fatty acids. In this case the remaining oils are liquid at room temperature. I’m sure this process strips out any remaining remnants of the coconut leaving it pretty much scent free.

Thank you.

 

[belfastboy]

Fractionated means they separate some of the different types of fatty acids. In this case the remaining oils are liquid at room temperature. I’m sure this process strips out any remaining remnants of the coconut leaving it pretty much scent free.

Having the scent of coconut on my hats so that when I wore them I was always hungry and jonesing for a sweet. Same when I remove odours from clothing by spraying with vinegar......I then walk around looking for fish and chip shops.

 

[Dotneck]

Since you are on the subject of felts....I acquired a 60's Dobbs that is sun faded on one side. I looks like it sat in direct sunlight for years...one side is faded the other is not. The hatband even has a shadow of from the trolly cord. How you you fix the fading?

 

[Dotneck]

Hatters with experience have told me that 'hand creasing" of a Panama is an inferior way to crease a Panama straw. You need a block that has the fedora crease carved into it so the straw is formed onto the block with the crease already present that gives you the well defined edges.

Who can do that kind of work? I've got a candidate...

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Since you are on the subject of felts....I acquired a 60's Dobbs that is sun faded on one side. I looks like it sat in direct sunlight for years...one side is faded the other is not. The hatband even has a shadow of from the trolly cord. How you you fix the fading?

You can live with the fading or you can try dyeing the felt a darker color. Dyeing is tricky and often doesn’t produce the best results. I still have a dark green nutria felt that had some issues so Rick @humanshoes of the Phoenix Hat Co. Has tried to dye black for me. It hasn’t worked out right yet but I still have hope that someday it will.

 

[belfastboy]

Who can do that kind of work? I've got a candidate...

A candidate to crease the straw blanks or to make the blocks?

 

[belfastboy]

Since you are on the subject of felts....I acquired a 60's Dobbs that is sun faded on one side. I looks like it sat in direct sunlight for years...one side is faded the other is not. The hatband even has a shadow of from the trolly cord. How you you fix the fading?

The smart ass in me wants to advise to just keep your head turned so that they only see one side of the hat at a time.....they won't notice the difference.....maybe? What colour is the hat...light or dark coloured felt? I have had minimal success with repairing or mitigating sun fade. You may try luring in a dark felt giving extra attention to the faded area. I would be more hesitant to do this on a light coloured felt as the risk is blotchiness/uneven colour. I have tried numerous times to dye felts with very mixed results. With acid dyes the risk is that the felt takes up the dye evenly so the darker area of the felt stays darker even after the dye job than the faded area. I have tried Vat dyes which are supposed to replace the existing dye with the new but that ended up uneven as well. The best success was using a dark brown acid dye with a hint of black and it turned out by far the best but still had a slightly mottled colouration in direct sunlight.