French Hats and makers.

[moehawk]

Here is the Mossant that I was supposed to have received. Also a hat purchased originally from Plassard. It arrived in 4 days (once shipped) from France, which is pretty darn quick.

A few shots in sun and shade

The inside

The tags and stamps

The overwelt brim is 2 1/4", the crown is 5 1/4".108g. The felt is amazing, as I suspected it would be, with a wonderfully soft hand. No moth damage. The leather is in really good condition, and other than just a bit of the tip stamp rubbed off there is very little overall wear.
Here's a shot with a crease and a mug in it.

I'm guessing mid to late 50's. As always, opinions confirming or refuting this are always welcome.

Powered by happy thoughts

 

[Daniele Tanto]

I have a large collection of homburg or "diplomatique" as these hats are called in France, the French ones are in majority, perhaps matched by Borsalino
And they are also my favorite ones. There are various reasons for my choice, but discussing them here is misleading

I have examples of the best known brands: Mossant, Tirard, Flechet and also of lesser known brands: J&B, Thibet, Ecuyer & Thomas, but none represented for Morreton

Morreton "Elysèe" size is 60 cm. and it fit perfectly

Fantastic black light weight felt with a velvety finish, malleable as you like

Sold in one of the fashion streets of Paris, it is also of excellent quality, according to the denomination "Elysée"


The measures are as follows. brim at six centimeters, the open crown is 14 cm. and the ribbon that matches the felt color is 4 cm.

I really like its shape with the pinches and the profile you get

Finally I completed my survey on the French "Diplomatique"

 

[Dlaniger]

Sools de Luxe fedora in sand/grey. Very hard to make out the exact colour. Again no label inside the hat. This hat is a very early one, probably thirties. Brim with overwelt edge with four rows of stitching sits at 6,5cm and the very tall crown is creased now with the (deep) pinch at 11,5cm (to match their advertising poster). Wide ribbon on this one. Unlined with just a cloth patch inside the crown. Very soft hat with a lovely hand to the felt. Daniele thinks that either Mossant or Fléchet could be the maker. As Gérard Sools was a high end retailer it would have been the makers' top of the line.

[/QUOTE
Very interesting History. Good looking hat. Thanks.

 

[steur]

Here is the Mossant that I was supposed to have received. Also a hat purchased originally from Plassard. It arrived in 4 days (once shipped) from France, which is pretty darn quick.

A few shots in sun and shade

The inside

The tags and stamps

The overwelt brim is 2 1/4", the crown is 5 1/4".108g. The felt is amazing, as I suspected it would be, with a wonderfully soft hand. No moth damage. The leather is in really good condition, and other than just a bit of the tip stamp rubbed off there is very little overall wear.
Here's a shot with a crease and a mug in it.

I'm guessing mid to late 50's. As always, opinions confirming or refuting this are always welcome.

Powered by happy thoughts

How did I miss this? Great catch, John. Hard to say anything about the age: Mossant didn't seem to change much over the decades.

 

[steur]

I have a large collection of homburg or "diplomatique" as these hats are called in France, the French ones are in majority, perhaps matched by Borsalino
And they are also my favorite ones. There are various reasons for my choice, but discussing them here is misleading

I have examples of the best known brands: Mossant, Tirard, Flechet and also of lesser known brands: J&B, Thibet, Ecuyer & Thomas, but none represented for Morreton

Morreton "Elysèe" size is 60 cm. and it fit perfectly

Fantastic black light weight felt with a velvety finish, malleable as you like

Sold in one of the fashion streets of Paris, it is also of excellent quality, according to the denomination "Elysée"


The measures are as follows. brim at six centimeters, the open crown is 14 cm. and the ribbon that matches the felt color is 4 cm.

I really like its shape with the pinches and the profile you get

Finally I completed my survey on the French "Diplomatique"

Another one I have missed for some reason (there's no justice). Superb looking hat, Daniele. Morreton is a brand I rarely see and usually the ones I do come across are not their best ones. This one looks to be in pristine condition though.

 

[moehawk]

How did I miss this? Great catch, John. Hard to say anything about the age: Mossant didn't seem to change much over the decades.

Thanks Stefan!
I agree about the difficulty of dating a Mossant, French hats in general aren't easy to date. I went mostly by the dimensions and the sweatband logo, which is similar to another Mossant I have that I believe to be of a similar age if not a little older. But still just speculation.

 

[M Hatman]

French cardboard counter card, circa 1940 or so......

 

[steur]

French cardboard counter card, circa 1940 or so......
View attachment 228057 View attachment 228058 View attachment 228059

Interesting item, Mark. I have to admit it's the first time I've ever heard of the brand.

 

[M Hatman]

Interesting item, Mark. I have to admit it's the first time I've ever heard of the brand.

I had not heard of it either, though what I know about the European brands you can put in a thimble!!
As for the counter card, I completely forgot I had it (and have no idea where I got it)!!! I found it (along with many ads and things I forgot) when I was cleaning up my Library......
Yes, I have much more to post.....

 

[Joseph Evans]

Hey folks,
I've got a vintage French hat and a handful of questions about it. It's a Chapeau de France hat that I bought for a steal at a garage sale of sorts in Palavas-Les-Flots. My first question is how old do you suppose this hat is? Second question, would it be advisable to stretch this hat a half size? I can wear it as is, but it's awful tight and uncomfortable after awhile.

IMG_4371

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4371

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4372

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4373

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4374

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

 

[moehawk]

Hey folks,
I've got a vintage French hat and a handful of questions about it. It's a Chapeau de France hat that I bought for a steal at a garage sale of sorts in Palavas-Les-Flots. My first question is how old do you suppose this hat is? Second question, would it be advisable to stretch this hat a half size? I can wear it as is, but it's awful tight and uncomfortable after awhile.

IMG_4371

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4371

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4372

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4373

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4374

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

Cool find!
French hats are notoriously hard to date because the French hatters seem to have been in no hurry to adopt new innovations and techniques, but going just by the dimensions and shape I'd venture a guess of late 50's to mid 60's.A half-size stretch shouldn't be a problem if the leather is in good condition.
I really like the look of the crown tip patch. Very traditional.

 

[steur]

Hey folks,
I've got a vintage French hat and a handful of questions about it. It's a Chapeau de France hat that I bought for a steal at a garage sale of sorts in Palavas-Les-Flots. My first question is how old do you suppose this hat is? Second question, would it be advisable to stretch this hat a half size? I can wear it as is, but it's awful tight and uncomfortable after awhile.

IMG_4371

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4371

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4372

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4373

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

IMG_4374

• Joseph Evans
• Apr 27, 2020

Cool find!
French hats are notoriously hard to date because the French hatters seem to have been in no hurry to adopt new innovations and techniques, but going just by the dimensions and shape I'd venture a guess of late 50's to mid 60's.A half-size stretch shouldn't be a problem if the leather is in good condition.
I really like the look of the crown tip patch. Very traditional.

+1
I'd go with sixties judging by the style of the hat. The lettering on the sweatband suggests to me that it might have been made by Fléchet. Go slow when stretching it and it should be fine.

 

[Daniele Tanto]

Today Sunday the weather and mood were suitable for shooting some new hats.
These are the latest arrivals before the European closure for Covid 19. Both come from France and arrived two months and half ago.

The first is a Flechet "Diplomatique" or homburg. Size 55cm.

I bought it without knowing anything else that was "special" for the lining and the brand, never seen in the Flechet production.

I have many and nobody has these "signs", but above all for the color of the felt.

You can see it in reflected light being a mixture of brown / blue with a dark indigo ribbon.

The shapes are classic with 6 cm brim. and the crown at 12 cm.

It has no defect, except the small "butterfly" to indicate the back of the hat is missing.

The felt is very soft and very easy to handle.
Un classique français intemporel!

 

[Daniele Tanto]

Today sunny Sunday after a week of intermittent rain. The Italian spring is in full swing, you can see it from the greens of the leaves of the wisteria that has already bloomed and faded. These are the latest arrivals before the European closure for Covid 19. Both come from France.

The second is a Morreton "Velrex". Size 59 cm.

Very difficult to find already as normal hats, the Morreton brand had in this case a special plus: it was in black velour

I had glimpsed some flaws in the seller's horrible photos, but I decided that giving it a chance was important. Upon arrival it turned out better than I expected, especially the velour which is very thin and malleable

The hat has some trace of moths above the crown, but overall it is very beautiful. What puzzles me is that it looks completely new

The hat is superbly finished


The shapes are classic with 6 cm brim. and the crown at 12 cm.

The semi-shiny black velvet felt is very soft and very easy to handle.
An unexpected arrival for my French collection

 

[the_imperialist]

Today sunny Sunday after a week of intermittent rain. The Italian spring is in full swing, you can see it from the greens of the leaves of the wisteria that has already bloomed and faded. These are the latest arrivals before the European closure for Covid 19. Both come from France.

The second is a Morreton "Velrex". Size 59 cm.

Very difficult to find already as normal hats, the Morreton brand had in this case a special plus: it was in black velour

I had glimpsed some flaws in the seller's horrible photos, but I decided that giving it a chance was important. Upon arrival it turned out better than I expected, especially the velour which is very thin and malleable

The hat has some trace of moths above the crown, but overall it is very beautiful. What puzzles me is that it looks completely new

The hat is superbly finished


The shapes are classic with 6 cm brim. and the crown at 12 cm.

The semi-shiny black velvet felt is very soft and very easy to handle.
An unexpected arrival for my French collection

Beautiful examples - I think I saw the listing for the Morreton, glad it has made its way to Italy. I have a black velrex myself - identical to yours, and the felt really is quite lovely. I also had a brown velrex, but it turned out too small and I have to move it on. I'm a great fan of this make!

 

[mayserwegener]

Today Sunday the weather and mood were suitable for shooting some new hats.
These are the latest arrivals before the European closure for Covid 19. Both come from France and arrived two months and half ago.

The first is a Flechet "Diplomatique" or homburg. Size 55cm.

I bought it without knowing anything else that was "special" for the lining and the brand, never seen in the Flechet production.

I have many and nobody has these "signs", but above all for the color of the felt.

You can see it in reflected light being a mixture of brown / blue with a dark indigo ribbon.

The shapes are classic with 6 cm brim. and the crown at 12 cm.

It has no defect, except the small "butterfly" to indicate the back of the hat is missing.

The felt is very soft and very easy to handle.
Un classique français intemporel!

Daniele, Really fantastic Hombug! The Felt color and finish are beautiful. Also like how Ribbon color plays off the Felt.

 

[mayserwegener]

Today sunny Sunday after a week of intermittent rain. The Italian spring is in full swing, you can see it from the greens of the leaves of the wisteria that has already bloomed and faded. These are the latest arrivals before the European closure for Covid 19. Both come from France.

The second is a Morreton "Velrex". Size 59 cm.

Very difficult to find already as normal hats, the Morreton brand had in this case a special plus: it was in black velour

I had glimpsed some flaws in the seller's horrible photos, but I decided that giving it a chance was important. Upon arrival it turned out better than I expected, especially the velour which is very thin and malleable

The hat has some trace of moths above the crown, but overall it is very beautiful. What puzzles me is that it looks completely new

The hat is superbly finished


The shapes are classic with 6 cm brim. and the crown at 12 cm.

The semi-shiny black velvet felt is very soft and very easy to handle.
An unexpected arrival for my French collection

Daniele, Super looking Velour! It's very dense with a fantastic Velour finish. I also really like the Form and the medium width ribbon and sharp bow design. Very happy to see this one!

 

[drmaxtejeda]

Feiges. I had forgotten I had this. After readung all this thread, I looked at my French hat pics.
Can anyone tell me more about it? It IS French, correct? No, I just noticed it says Feiges Chicago!
Oh, well, I will leave this post and post a Gelot to make up for it.

9

 

[drmaxtejeda]

Gelot

 

[drmaxtejeda]

A Mystery hat! The box says Mossant, but the liner shows an American Eagle and flag, and says "Derniere Crèation Paris". I had to buy it, for the mystery and the sweatband.