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Messages
10,839
Location
vancouver, canada
Yeah I can't

Yeah I can't get away with stealing any felt from the brim for the western style hat I'm going for. I might try one of the 50x beaver bodies from them for the next one. Has a little more crown height but still barely enough brim for a western.
This is a 100% beaver from the Mill Whse and it was great felt. Very thick and tough to block. I got a 5 3/4": crown and a 3 1/4" brim before the curl on a 59cm sized hat. Their 50/50 blend is great as well and he should have his next stock sometime this month.
CIMG0242.JPG
 

Darrell2688

A-List Customer
Messages
397
Location
Piner, Kentucky
I purchased my felt from the Millinery Warehouse, a 180g Western Weight and I think my next felt will be the 160g weight, might be a little easier for me to work with. I contacted their customer support about their Granite color felt, and they told me that the 160g felts do not have as much stiffener applied. I will be buying from them from now on, they have great customer service the only problem that I have is that they are sold out of a lot of the felts that I was interested in.
I soaked my felt in the kitchen sink and then worked it down onto the block, put the blocking cord on the felt and worked it down to the brim break, then soaked a cotton t-shirt and covered the felt, I used a hot iron on the brim and pulled the brim out while it was hot and used thumb tacks on the edge of the brim, I was able to increase the brim width using this method. Some of the areas were 3.5" wide, the smallest width was 3.25", so I cut the brim down to 3.25" all around. Just be careful working the felt this way because you can pull the brim away from the crown. I haven't had that experience, but I have seen a YouTube video where someone else had that experience.
 
Messages
10,839
Location
vancouver, canada
I purchased my felt from the Millinery Warehouse, a 180g Western Weight and I think my next felt will be the 160g weight, might be a little easier for me to work with. I contacted their customer support about their Granite color felt, and they told me that the 160g felts do not have as much stiffener applied. I will be buying from them from now on, they have great customer service the only problem that I have is that they are sold out of a lot of the felts that I was interested in.
I soaked my felt in the kitchen sink and then worked it down onto the block, put the blocking cord on the felt and worked it down to the brim break, then soaked a cotton t-shirt and covered the felt, I used a hot iron on the brim and pulled the brim out while it was hot and used thumb tacks on the edge of the brim, I was able to increase the brim width using this method. Some of the areas were 3.5" wide, the smallest width was 3.25", so I cut the brim down to 3.25" all around. Just be careful working the felt this way because you can pull the brim away from the crown. I haven't had that experience, but I have seen a YouTube video where someone else had that experience.
The customer service from Mill Whse is superb. But yes his stocking is hit and miss. The Granite is a great colour. When he gets in stock I place an larger order to tide me over is stock outages.
 

Darrell2688

A-List Customer
Messages
397
Location
Piner, Kentucky
The Millinery Warehouse is a very popular place for hat felt bodies, I didn't order mine until late November I think, and the pickings were slim then. I was originally looking for the Bone color, it was sold out, so I decided on the smoke grey.
 
Messages
10,839
Location
vancouver, canada
The Millinery Warehouse is a very popular place for hat felt bodies, I didn't order mine until late November I think, and the pickings were slim then. I was originally looking for the Bone color, it was sold out, so I decided on the smoke grey.
He has said he makes very little money selling small quantities to individual hat makers. He does a lot of business with larger hat manufacturers. He ships into Canada I think it is for the Bollmann Hat Co. as well as others
 

Darrell2688

A-List Customer
Messages
397
Location
Piner, Kentucky
This is a 100% beaver from the Mill Whse and it was great felt. Very thick and tough to block. I got a 5 3/4": crown and a 3 1/4" brim before the curl on a 59cm sized hat. Their 50/50 blend is great as well and he should have his next stock sometime this month.
View attachment 388044

That is a nice-looking hat BB, did you make the hat bands too? Beaver stands up great in the rain, a natural water repellant.
 
Messages
10,839
Location
vancouver, canada
That is a nice-looking hat BB, did you make the hat bands too? Beaver stands up great in the rain, a natural water repellant.
Yes, I love working with leather just don't have much cause to do so. Beaver is great. I wet blocked this hat as it was so thick and I could not get the water to drain out of the crown through the felt. It was damn close to water proof. I imagine eventually it would have seeped through the felt but it would have taken a long while to get there.
 

Darrell2688

A-List Customer
Messages
397
Location
Piner, Kentucky
Yes, I love working with leather just don't have much cause to do so. Beaver is great. I wet blocked this hat as it was so thick and I could not get the water to drain out of the crown through the felt. It was damn close to water proof. I imagine eventually it would have seeped through the felt but it would have taken a long while to get there.

I was having a similar problem with this 180g rabbit fur felt, I put the felt onto the block as far as I could get it, I then turned it upside down inside of a deep cooking pot and then put some heavy weights on the crown block and let it sit. I don't know when it finally seated into the crown because I let it alone until the next day.
 
Messages
10,839
Location
vancouver, canada
I was having a similar problem with this 180g rabbit fur felt, I put the felt onto the block as far as I could get it, I then turned it upside down inside of a deep cooking pot and then put some heavy weights on the crown block and let it sit. I don't know when it finally seated into the crown because I let it alone until the next day.
I have never had that much of an issue blocking a felt. Even 220 gram western weight. Yes, I have to muscle it but with gloves, a hand steamer, a puller downer and then a pusher downer with the blocking springs it does not take too long. The hardest part with the heavier western weight where I need to steal brim width to get the crown height is getting the blocking spring over the brim break. But again a good pusher downer and the blocking springs and determination it doesn't take too long. It is just hard on my arthritic hands.
 

Darrell2688

A-List Customer
Messages
397
Location
Piner, Kentucky
I guess I will have to check out the blocking springs. Do you buy those for the size hat your working on or would one big enough for a size 7 1/4" work for a maybe a 7 1/2"?
 
Messages
10,839
Location
vancouver, canada
I guess I will have to check out the blocking springs. Do you buy those for the size hat your working on or would one big enough for a size 7 1/4" work for a maybe a 7 1/2"?
You need a separate one for each block size. They come in centimetres. The blocking springs and a good pusher downer has helped me a ton. That and lots of steam.....I use my Jiffy Steamer for a good general steam saturation and then I use a handheld for spot steaming areas as I do the blocking.
 

Darrell2688

A-List Customer
Messages
397
Location
Piner, Kentucky
The blocking springs look like they fit really tight, but it looks like they would roll down the felt and block/ I am guessing that they apply a lot of pressure to the felt?
 
Messages
10,839
Location
vancouver, canada
The blocking springs look like they fit really tight, but it looks like they would roll down the felt and block/ I am guessing that they apply a lot of pressure to the felt?
Yes, they do apply pressure and leave a mark on the felt but in the end they produce the exact measure you are seeking. They don't slip and they really help if you are trying to steal crown height from the brim width. It is much easier to push them past the factory brim break in the felt.
 

Darrell2688

A-List Customer
Messages
397
Location
Piner, Kentucky
What size blocking spring would I need for a 7 38" hat size or a 59cm? Would a blocking spring for a 59 cm work for my felt? Will the blocking spring pull the felt down tight against the block?
 
Messages
10,839
Location
vancouver, canada
What size blocking spring would I need for a 7 38" hat size or a 59cm? Would a blocking spring for a 59 cm work for my felt? Will the blocking spring pull the felt down tight against the block?
Yes, I match the blocking spring size to the block. So my 59cm blocks get 59cm blocking springs. And yes they hold very tight but being silicone they slide easily down the felt.
 
Messages
10,839
Location
vancouver, canada
Does your plywood have a hole big enough to fit over the hat block felt and blocking spring?
No just the felt with the block still inside. I remove the blocking spring at that point as it has done its job. The felt is dry and I use the plywood as a press to flatten the brim and if the felt crown is less than the full 6" I use the correct thickness of plywood so the felt/block sits flat and I can iron the brim and set the brim/crown break. To set the brim/crown break I need the block still inside so I have something for the tollicker and curved iron to set against.
 

Darrell2688

A-List Customer
Messages
397
Location
Piner, Kentucky
Hi BB,
So you use the blocking springs when you put the felt on the block, then after the felt is dry you remove the blocking spring and use the plywood to iron out the brim. How many plywood boards do you use for each hat? Do the blocking springs replace the blocking cord and work better? Every time that I work on a hat, I have had to soak it in warm water, put it on the crown block, put the blocking cord on, then start ironing on the brim or I end up with wrinkles in the hat brim.
 
Last edited:
Messages
10,839
Location
vancouver, canada
Hi BB,
So you use the blocking springs when you put the felt on the block then after the felt is dry you remove the blocking spring and use the plywood to iron out the brim. How many plywood boards do you use for each hat? Do the blocking springs replace the blocking cord and work better?
I have a number of work stations 2' x 2' square tables. I use one of the 2'x2' plywood sheets with the holes cut for the block over top of the blocked felt then clamp them to the table squeezing the felt between the two. The blcoking springs are used instead of the blocking cord. They are easier to push down the blocked felt and I don't have to be concerned about the 'slip knot' slipping.
 

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