Since I recently took the step to register as a member here, I thought I might as well introduce myself to you all and show off the small collection of hats I own at the moment.
As you may see from my location, I'm a Swede, so please excuse any peculiar idiosyncrasies in my writing style.
I haven't worn proper hats for more than a year and a half, and it started with this hat, an Australian leather hat, a "Boundary Rider" made by Coastline Hat Co.:
The dapper young man underneath the brim there is me. The picture quality is questionable due to the picture being taken using a webcam. The other pictures below are also webcam pictures, I'm afraid.
Soon after purchasing the above hat, I started getting an irresistible urge to own a whip. Probably the tannins in the leather affecting my mind... Anyway, I couldn't afford a proper whip, so I bought the materials needed and made one myself instead, and whip plaiting is now one of my many hobbies.
The second hat I purchased was this hat, a black Stetson Wray made from crushable wool felt:
On the wall there, you can see another of my hobbies, collecting swords. No antiques, mind you, just modern production swords of traditional models. Fully functional, mostly. I'm not much for decorative stainless steel wallhangers.
Soon after the purchase of the Stetson, I found and bought two "blues brothers" hats, one black and one dark brown (pictured):
I'm unsure what the model would be called? Stingy brim fedora? Trilby? They're made in China, and the label inside says it's 100% wool. The brim has a metal wire sewn into it, which makes it possible to shape the brim any way you want to. More a curse than a blessing, in my opinion, but the hats were cheap, just about US $10 each, and I couldn't be too picky since I was (and still am) unemployed.
It didn't take too long after I purchased those hats that I happened upon a vintage wide brimmed grey fedora in a flea market. It's made by Henry Cranford & Sons, Oxford Street, London and has a white silk liner and brown leather sweat band which is stamped "Extra Oval". I tried it on and it's a bit tight (me being a 7 1/4, or 57½-58), but I bought it anyway, since it was only about US $25, and it looked to be worth a lot more than that, from the quality of it:
After having worn it a few times, I turned out the sweat band and discovered that the previous owner probably thought it was too large, because there was a strip of cork tucked underneath the sweat band. Common way of adjusting the fit, as I understand. I removed the cork and the hat fit slightly better for me, but it's still on the tight side, resulting in me not wearing the hat very much, which is unfortunate since I like the looks of it. But some day I will buy myself a similar hat which fits me better. I just need to be able to afford it.
When I can afford it, I will also invest in a better pocket watch than the cheap one I am currently using, as well as a good quality fountain pen. The ones I have are OK, but I always have an eye out for a better quality one.
Well, short introduction there. I intend to continue lurking here, and drool over all the nice hats and whatnots the ladies and gentlemen of the forum may post pictures of.
Cheers!
(BTW, if the images don't show up, it might be because my web server is down, which it very rarely is.)
As you may see from my location, I'm a Swede, so please excuse any peculiar idiosyncrasies in my writing style.
I haven't worn proper hats for more than a year and a half, and it started with this hat, an Australian leather hat, a "Boundary Rider" made by Coastline Hat Co.:
The dapper young man underneath the brim there is me. The picture quality is questionable due to the picture being taken using a webcam. The other pictures below are also webcam pictures, I'm afraid.
Soon after purchasing the above hat, I started getting an irresistible urge to own a whip. Probably the tannins in the leather affecting my mind... Anyway, I couldn't afford a proper whip, so I bought the materials needed and made one myself instead, and whip plaiting is now one of my many hobbies.
The second hat I purchased was this hat, a black Stetson Wray made from crushable wool felt:
On the wall there, you can see another of my hobbies, collecting swords. No antiques, mind you, just modern production swords of traditional models. Fully functional, mostly. I'm not much for decorative stainless steel wallhangers.
Soon after the purchase of the Stetson, I found and bought two "blues brothers" hats, one black and one dark brown (pictured):
I'm unsure what the model would be called? Stingy brim fedora? Trilby? They're made in China, and the label inside says it's 100% wool. The brim has a metal wire sewn into it, which makes it possible to shape the brim any way you want to. More a curse than a blessing, in my opinion, but the hats were cheap, just about US $10 each, and I couldn't be too picky since I was (and still am) unemployed.
It didn't take too long after I purchased those hats that I happened upon a vintage wide brimmed grey fedora in a flea market. It's made by Henry Cranford & Sons, Oxford Street, London and has a white silk liner and brown leather sweat band which is stamped "Extra Oval". I tried it on and it's a bit tight (me being a 7 1/4, or 57½-58), but I bought it anyway, since it was only about US $25, and it looked to be worth a lot more than that, from the quality of it:
After having worn it a few times, I turned out the sweat band and discovered that the previous owner probably thought it was too large, because there was a strip of cork tucked underneath the sweat band. Common way of adjusting the fit, as I understand. I removed the cork and the hat fit slightly better for me, but it's still on the tight side, resulting in me not wearing the hat very much, which is unfortunate since I like the looks of it. But some day I will buy myself a similar hat which fits me better. I just need to be able to afford it.
When I can afford it, I will also invest in a better pocket watch than the cheap one I am currently using, as well as a good quality fountain pen. The ones I have are OK, but I always have an eye out for a better quality one.
Well, short introduction there. I intend to continue lurking here, and drool over all the nice hats and whatnots the ladies and gentlemen of the forum may post pictures of.
Cheers!
(BTW, if the images don't show up, it might be because my web server is down, which it very rarely is.)
