One of the things I like about vintage hats, I forgot to mention, is that they appear in styles that either you forgot about, or diid not expect, that look good. So they jar your idea of styles. The only problem with doing all custom hats, unless you have a visionary hatmaker, is that when you just echo your own thoughts and perfect your own thoughts in the specifications for a custom hat, you easily could get into a sameness and a rut about the kind of hat you're wearing. I do look to vintage hats to show successful styles of the past that might look good, which I did not imagine or couldn't specify to a hatmaker. If left to my own devices, all hats that I would custom-make would gravitate toward the same thing.
That makes sense. I ordered the custom by sending a photo and measurements of one of my own hats. It has great lines but is made of cheap wool felt. I had bought it originally because I simply loved the way it looked. I asked the hatter to make a version of it in a different color and, of course, with better felt. Rather than getting something completely new, I just upgraded and expanded what I already had. So I did exactly what you are talking about.