Better Deal - Optimo or VS

[wgiceman]

Hello, All.
I finally got the opportunity to visit Optimo Hats in Chicago. I highly recommend them. Naturally, I found several hats that I would love to have. But I also have to be wise in the use of my dollars. I have noticed that several FL members speak very favorably of the VS hats. How do the hats from these two establishments compare in terms of quality and price? I realize that this is a broad question, but I would appreciate any feedback or discussion.

 

[winter_joe]

Depends on what you would prefer and price as well optimo for a complete custom is what 500 or 600 dollars now?? Not that they are bad or anything I have a custom from them and it's fantastic! But they tend to do modern low crown customs and that ain't my cup of tea. As for art Fawcett it vintage silhouettes I love it I have there customs and a legacy felt custom in the works with right now and I can say that both are great quality hats! Optimos is a little softer but im not sure if there standard felt custom is all beaver. Arts is all beaver dress weight that's a little crown stuff at first but softens up nicely, and he has an all beaver light weight felt and that's just nice and soft but will hold a crease well. Plus if your looking for affordability he has a Joey line and another low cost felt line as well can't remember the name, both are fantastic Felts and he will make it any way you like or you can't let him take the reigns and make the hat for you!

 

[Short Balding Guy]

Better Deal question: I do not own an Optimo hat yet. I do own some VS fedoras crafted by the artisan Art Fawcett. I do not measure my hat purchases using the term "better deal." They are wearable art that I purchase from artisans. Purchasing at a lower price is primary in defining a deal for most consumers. Low price and then questioning quality and utility, whilst mangaing the mathematics of incremental price, provides buyers remorse in my experience. I do not suffer from buyers remorse.

As to quality, hopefully forum members who own fedoras from both of these artisans may comment. I buy art, including hats, that I am passionate about, not for investment nor "good deal" status. It is difficult to compare art and artists as their completed products are not easily compared, even if exact offerings are found. Specifically the hat components offered by these artisans are not exact matches. The best example may be of felt - they are from different sources.

This is certainly just my opinion. I can see that this may touch some real emotions for those who are passionate either direction.

I love wearing my hats and I do see them as luxury goods not necessities. Best deal criteria does not have impact on selection for me. The standard disclaimer is a market price outside of my station in life.

A hat wearing fellow , not collector is what I like to be known as. Best, Eric -

 

[g.durand]

I have an Optimo that I bought on the aftermarket, and three VS hats in dress weight beaver felt, plus I have a VS lightweight on order. I'm not sure what the felt is in the Optimo I have, whether it's beaver or rabbit or a blend, but it is like no other felt I've handled. Substantial and durable, but easily shaped, almost buttery soft. Art's Century dress weight beaver felt is almost an equal. As far as styling, both will make what you want, but for the money Art's work is a good as Optimo's. A starter Optimo will run about $675 the last time I looked. Art's beaver felt hats start at $385. His sweat bands are better in my opinion and his ribbon work is unique. I tend to like Art's designs better, since he builds hats more along the lines of the vintage hats I'm interested in. If you look around the different threads here you'll see many more VS hats than any other custom made hat, which I think speaks volumes about the value-for-the-money question.

 

[1961MJS]

Hi

Your call, a $1000 hat that you feel is worth $1000 is better than a $400 hat that you think is worth $200, but a $1000 hat that you think is worth $400 is not as nice as $400 hat that you think is worth $400.....

Just my $1000 (right).

 

[Blackthorn]

NObody makes a hat better than Art, and he's not as expensive as Optimo. Nuff said.

 

[Rogera]

Dang Blackthorn you just stole my thunder!

Ok I'll just do this
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++1

 

[GamaH]

I have a few Optimos, and I'm very pleased with them. Certainly worth the price tag, imo.

 

[Tomasso]

I think that both hatters make fine hats but your chances of getting exactly what you want are much greater when you can visit Optimo and try on dozens upon dozens of hats in various styles and colors to better inform you decision. There's a value to this but whether it makes up for the price differance is up to the individual. It certainly does for me but YMMV.

 

[jlee562]

Both are well made hats. Each offers something the other does not. Optimo has heathered felts, for example. Art has great lightweight felts. Art also does all manners of ribbon.

Art's hats are indeed lower in price (certainly not lower in quality!), but I don't feel like I paid "too much" for my Optimo. It's like comparing a Mercedes to a BMW. You can't go wrong with either.

 

[gtdean48]

Better deal question is about cost to value ratio....IMO, with both hatters you get what you pay for. Optimo has a brick & mortar presence that has to be covered in a hat's cost. Vintage Silhouette does not. Optimo has lots of shapes where Art does old style mainly. They get felt bodies from different sources. Sounds like a standard answer = It depends!

 

[TomS]

Both are good, but I prefer Art. Just my .02.

 

[BR Gordon]

I have both Optimo and VS hats. Although the Optimo hats are beautiful, I'll purchase any new hats from Art. I believe that the price to quality falls heavily in Art's favor.

My experience with less expensive hats is the same. Although they may be cheaper, the ratio still is in Art's favor.

 

[The Wiser Hatter]

Art is about passion. I have be lucky enough to work with Art the past year on his website. An meet him in person at Mike Moore's Bucharoo hatters last year.
Art will go out of his way to make a hat that just one person wants in the way that they want it. Right now Art is learning how to make Milan hat's the way they use to make them with fine straw that he spent time finding info on where and how to get it. This was not an easy task and he could have continued doing it the easy way but he is passionate about getting things right. Just look thru his thread at all the hats he has made for everyone over the years. His ribbon work is just amazing. Al the other hatters try but it is Art's passion to do things right that shows thru in his work. Just call him up and talk to him and you will see why his customers love buying a hat from Art.

 

[bowlerman]

This is quite a fun thread to read. It is likely that I will never own an Optimo, but I do have one incredible VS.

Tangentially, the discussion brings up an interesting point, however, that has been a source of frustration for me for several years. In short, I truly do wish I had an opportunity to go to a shop and try on lots of different styles, colors, dimensions, etc., and maybe even have a professional calculate my true head size and shape. I would expect to be surprised in various ways.

Living in Sioux Falls, there is nothing around for hundreds of miles, and I have spent countless hours making educated guesses and self-measuring, and going from there, along with buying hats at antique shops and eBay just to mess around with, or just to see if a style is to my liking. TFL has been absolutely instrumental in all of this!

I have become a bit of a collector...(!) but my aim has always been to be more like Eric, as he said "a hat wearer" and I often wish I had just 2-3 PERFECT hats that I could wear in and add my own character to during my lifetime.

Frankly, I believe one of the primary reasons I have almost 100 hats (pales in comparison to many here) is that I've made lots of mistakes, both in custom and in vintage. Of course now that I have so many hats, I simply consider myself "versatile." For instance I have had some specific ideas about what I want in a hat, and usually they aren't readily available in vintage, and I've discovered through trial and error, that all custom hatters have their own unique repertoire of strengths.

Like Eric, I would never mind paying an artist their asking price for a hat if I had the money with which to do it (Optimo), but on the other hand, I probably could already own a couple of Optimos that I know for certain are perfect for my head and my sometimes "off the beaten path" style if I hadn't spent five years accumulating "trial and error" lids. In fact, originally I believe I would have preferred this, but a five year savings plan for a hat is also not a reasonable avenue of finance in my household. I gotta keep my allowance going out at a constant trickle, or it will disappear!

BTW, buy some of my hats in the Classifieds so I can finance another custom! :eusa_doh:

 

[Mulceber]

I own hats by both, and you can't go wrong with either. I do think they each have some advantages: you won't find a better hat maker than Art for the price, and his hats are definitely the best bang for your buck. He's also a joy to work with (not that Optimo isn't) and is extremely passionate about what he does. That said, Optimo can do some things that VS can't, like their no-dye silverbelly, their long hair/meleusine felts, and the like.

winter_joe - Optimo doesn't advertize their tall crowns very much, I suspect because they don't think they sell as well, but they're very much capable of making tall-crowned hats. The crown they use for the Cagney is an excellent crown for a 30's style hat and is pretty straight as well (it only looks tapered in the picture of the Cagney on the website due to the type of crease they put in it)

 

[kaosharper1]

Better deal question is about cost to value ratio....IMO, with both hatters you get what you pay for. Optimo has a brick & mortar presence that has to be covered in a hat's cost. Vintage Silhouette does not. Optimo has lots of shapes where Art does old style mainly. They get felt bodies from different sources. Sounds like a standard answer = It depends!

I have an Optimo and several VS and I find the quality to be similar. But Art will make just about anything you want. His standard styles tend to the early 20th Century but if you want a Rorsache hat copied from Watchman with its stingy brim and low crown or any other style, he'll do it. I've just shown him pictures and he copies it.

 

[Geldoc]

Well said, Bowlerman. I can imagine LOTS of us relating to your experience and sentiments about hats.

 

[emigran]

I just ordered my first custom from Art.. he is a joy to work with and can't wait to see it...

 

[Tomasso]

I find the quality to be similar. But Art will make just about anything you want.

Won't pretty much any hatter, including Optimo, make you what whatever you want?