Cloning a Fedora

[UnclePete]

I am wondering if a custom hat maker will clone another’s model for a customer.
I found a design that is so attractive to me but do not want to wait an extended
period of time to get. Don’t want to step on any toes.

 

[BobHufford]

Not sure why not. Just don't put a matchstick in the had band.

 

[Tukwila]

Are you talking about a custom hatter cloning another custom hatter's model?

There aren't a lot of unique, new ideas in fedoras out there. If you search far, deep and wide you'll see characteristics of hats in vintage, modern and custom all over the spectrum.

You might contact a hatter directly that you'd like to use in the commissioning of a hat and talk to them about what you want.

When I order a hat it's usually based on something I've seen in about 3, 4 or 5 different hats. I have a plethora of vintage hats, but have trouble finding certain models that hatters make clones of all time, like Stetson Playboy, Knox 100, etc.

I'm the same way with recipes when I cook. I rarely just follow the book, but take information from 3 to 5 or 6 other recipes to get ideas about what I might like best.

If you're new to hats, I would caution you about going the custom route right off the bat as you will find your tastes change over the course of your first year or two. It sure has for me, and I've seen it with others here as well.

Check the threads here for information on Vintage Silhouettes, NW Hat Company, Gannon, Alley Kat, Penman, Black Sheep Hat Works, Esther Weiss in Belgium... run a search on Instagram for even more... Tatton Baird, Wellema, Brass Rooster, This Is Folklore/John Fish, Herbert Johnson in England, The Fat Hatter/Shintaro in Japan, etc, etc, etc.

All the best in your hunt!

 

[jlee562]

Hmm....so, this is not asking for a reproduction of a vintage hat, but rather you'd like Maker X to build a hat that Maker Y made?

If the hat in question had a lot of bells and whistles and was truly a unique creation of Maker Y, I think you should stick with the original maker and enjoy your wait time. I think makers deserve to be compensated for their design ideas (my day job as a florist influences my opinion here).

 

[AbbaDatDeHat]

Not sure why not. Just don't put a matchstick in the had band.

Oh no! Here we go!

 

[Tukwila]

And there are some hatters that offer special touches that no one else offers. Black Sheep Hat Works has their Pinnacle Edge which is a version of the now extinct practice of felting the edge of the brim... aka Cavanagh Edge, Custom Edge, Mode Edge, Guild Edge, etc. You can't get it done anywhere else.

Lately, I change up my orders with crown ribbon width and style and the brim treatment... but stick mostly to an open crown of 5-3/4" - 6" and a brim width of 2-5/8" - 2-3/4". Then you can change up the crease from center dent, c-crown, myriad styles of diamond creases, open crown, etc. You can have a sloping rake from front to back... or not. Dozens of variations that can really change how a hat looks.

My first hat from Art at Vintage Silhouettes I asked him to make the bow keep look like one that Michael Gannon did. I regret that now. I wish I would have let Art put in a highlight like HE DOES BEST, and that he made fairly famous.

I have customs from Art, NW Hats, Penman, Gannon and soon to be Black Sheep. I tend to allow them to let their style come through. Anyone who knows custom hats will know who made my hats just by looking at them.

You can spot a VS hat by the way the crown ribbon is made, for example (highlight, or not).

 

[deadlyhandsome]

And there are some hatters that offer special touches that no one else offers. Black Sheep Hat Works has their Pinnacle Edge which is a version of the now extinct practice of felting the edge of the brim... aka Cavanagh Edge, Custom Edge, Mode Edge, Guild Edge, etc. You can't get it done anywhere else.

Lately, I change up my orders with crown ribbon width and style and the brim treatment... but stick mostly to an open crown of 5-3/4" - 6" and a brim width of 2-5/8" - 2-3/4". Then you can change up the crease from center dent, c-crown, myriad styles of diamond creases, open crown, etc. You can have a sloping rake from front to back... or not. Dozens of variations that can really change how a hat looks.

My first hat from Art at Vintage Silhouettes I asked him to make the bow keep look like one that Michael Gannon did. I regret that now. I wish I would have let Art put in a highlight like HE DOES BEST, and that he made fairly famous.

I have customs from Art, NW Hats, Penman, Gannon and soon to be Black Sheep. I tend to allow them to let their style come through. Anyone who knows custom hats will know who made my hats just by looking at them.

You can spot a VS hat by the way the crown ribbon is made, for example (highlight, or not).

How about Tumwater’s bow work? I can spot them instantly:

http://tumwaterhat.com/index.html

I wouldn’t order a Tumwater without the triple bow, but I also don’t have an issue with having that style of bow made by another hatter. There is so little that is truly original so I feel free to mix and match as I see fit.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[belfastboy]

I have fedoras from 8 different custom hatters. Some styles I picked from the offerings on their respective websites but just as often I will send a picture of a hat from a movie, from here on the Lounge, a vintage advert, or even from another hatter's website. My perspective is that as long as a particular feature is not trademarked any and all is fair game. In today's hat market there is nothing present that has not been offered before. The history of hats is a long one.

 

[UnclePete]

Just need two

 

[UnclePete]

more post to pm

 

[TheOldFashioned]

Not sure why not. Just don't put a matchstick in the had band.

I've been toying with the idea of using five match sticks on my beater Dobbs, arranging them them in a single-finger salute. It'll be a faux-Foq***, a.k.a. The F.U. Foq***.

 

[UnclePete]

I like that!

 

[Tukwila]

more post to pm

I sent you a PM. You should be able to respond.

 

[GHT]

I am wondering if a custom hat maker will clone another’s model for a customer.
I found a design that is so attractive to me but do not want to wait an extended
period of time to get. Don’t want to step on any toes.

A couple or so years back, I needed a hat to complete a wedding outfit. The wedding had an Hawaiian theme, my choice of outfit was a light blue linen suit. The hat that I was after was a matching (in colour) Stratoliner. Couldn't find it anywhere on Stetsons catalogue, the colour, not the hat. Step forward Esther Weis, she mailed me a range of swatches, from which I made my choice. A few weeks later the perfect Strat clone arrived from Belgium. Cloned to perfection, apart from the little stratoliner plane that's on the original, well she didn't want to be accused of plagiarism, did she?