Hat making?? Learning Millinery..

[belfastboy]

A bit of both. One was established the other just a few years in.

 

[Darrell2688]

A bit of both. One was established the other just a few years in.

After looking at the hats that they make, I have to wonder how the long the hat last and if it feels comfortable to wear. When they make the hats and use a torch on the felt or a soldering iron to burn designs in the felt. Would that type of work on a felt make the hat hard and or brittle? I think that their hats would sit around for a bit longer waiting for the right person to walk through the door, someone like Johnny Depp, he seems to go for the torn, ripped brim hats.

 

[LorenWho]

I have seen a significant uptick of Fouquet hats on ebay. Perhaps purposely distressed hats are starting to fall out of style?

 

[belfastboy]

I have seen a significant uptick of Fouquet hats on ebay. Perhaps purposely distressed hats are starting to fall out of style?

That style has to be serving a saturated market. There are multitudes of them on Instagram, many of them true 'table top' hatters making hats on their kitchen table. Very very few classic hat makers out there. The weird thing I have never seen anyone wearing one of these distressed hats out on the streets of my city and I live in Vancouver, not exactly a backwater village.

 

[shopkin]

The weird thing I have never seen anyone wearing one of these distressed hats out on the streets of my city and I live in Vancouver, not exactly a backwater village.

It's difficult enough wearing a nice hat out on the street these days.

 

[belfastboy]

How so? I never leave the house without one on my head.

It's difficult enough wearing a nice hat out on the street these days.

 

[Darrell2688]

I checked Ebay for Nick Fouquet hats, there was an entire page of the hats, about 1/3rd of the listings being sold are posted by the owner, that creates a number of questions, do they have regrets for the purchase, some of those hats are so high priced, it is crazy.

It would be better to buy a hat that you like and make your own changes to the hat, that is what makes the hat your hat.

 

[shopkin]

I never leave the house without one on my head.

As do I.... although mine are not really nice hats.. But, then there's this:
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/courage-to-wear-a-fedora.78845/

 

[belfastboy]

I guess I just don't understand your point. If you have no problem and I have no problem, wherein lies the problem?

As do I.... although mine are not really nice hats.. But, then there's this:
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/courage-to-wear-a-fedora.78845/

 

[LorenWho]

Unless I am going to exercise , I too pretty much always have a hat on when I leave the house. I wear what I feel comfortable in.

I guess some of my hats are kickaround old and a little beat up, so technically distressed. Kinda like me!

 

[Darrell2688]

As do I.... although mine are not really nice hats.. But, then there's this:
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/courage-to-wear-a-fedora.78845/

The problem with wearing a hat might be: you don't like the style of the hat, or you don't like what the hat is made of? My son went to Ireland on vacation last year and he bought me a Wool Newsboy cap, it is a nice hat, however the problem is, it is not my style of hat and I havn't worn the hat any where, I wish that I had told him before he and his wife went to Ireland for vacation, Don't buy me anything. The hat is a Guinness newsboy or flap cap, the only place that I have ever seen one of those hats was in the movies.

 

[belfastboy]

Unless I am going to exercise , I too pretty much always have a hat on when I leave the house. I wear what I feel comfortable in.

I guess some of my hats are kickaround old and a little beat up, so technically distressed. Kinda like me!

I have my grab n go hats.....in various degrees of 'worn'. Distressed is OK in my books as long as it has me doing the distressing by wearing them, living in them and subjecting them to life.

 

[belfastboy]

The problem with wearing a hat might be: you don't like the style of the hat, or you don't like what the hat is made of? My son went to Ireland on vacation last year and he bought me a Wool Newsboy cap, it is a nice hat, however the problem is, it is not my style of hat and I havn't worn the hat any where, I wish that I had told him before he and his wife went to Ireland for vacation, Don't buy me anything. The hat is a Guinness newsboy or flap cap, the only place that I have ever seen one of those hats was in the movies.

If I don't like the hat it don't stay in my closet very long.....it gets moved on; sold or donated. Why would I wear something I don't like? Why then would I keep it? I have made numerous mistake purchases......but if nothing else I have learned in the process what I like and what I dislike.

 

[Darrell2688]

Well I keep the Guinness Newsboy hat because my son bought it for me. If someone else had bought for me I would have unloaded the hat some place or gave it to someone, so I hand onto the hat or rather it hangs on a hat hook in the hallway. Right now I am working on another chocolate brown Indy style hat, it is almost dry from the blocking, ironing process.

 

[BigHat]

If I don't like the hat it don't stay in my closet very long.....it gets moved on; sold or donated. Why would I wear something I don't like? Why then would I keep it? I have made numerous mistake purchases......but if nothing else I have learned in the process what I like and what I dislike.

I started wearing hats and caps out of necessity, being bald and fair skinned. As you’ve pointed out, you will make mistake purchases along the way. All part of discovering what you do and don’t like in a hat. Tall crowns with little to no taper is my preference. One of the reasons I decided to make my own.

 

[belfastboy]

I picked up 10 flanges from my new supplier yesterday and I am well pleased with the product. I have been stalling on the purchase as to buy wooden is very expensive with a long wait and/or expensive shipping. My new supplier is a 3D printer here in my city. The flanges are mostly #19 profile plus a few flat ones to fill out my inventory.

He thinks, with good reason, that the PLA filament offered by most is a cheap entry level filament and not great for hat making purposes. He uses PETG for the flanges and ABS for the blocks, both have higher heat resistance than the much lower properties of PLA. PLA is used, as it is easy to work with, low grade printers handle it whereas the higher grade material requires more expensive printers.

As well, the 3D printing process produces grooves in the finished product which renders blocks & flanges unacceptable for lighter dress weight felts as the ridges are transferred to the felt. Allan places a finish coat of resin to fill in the grooves so his product is smooth, no grooves present at all.

At this time he can make the flanges in various widths, #52 & #51 block profiles in both long and regular oval.

He is also working on conformateurs, rounding jacks and brim curlers. His prices are very affordable, esp for US customers as he sells in Canadian funds. He is in the process of setting up his ETSY shop. If you have inquiries send them to me in a PM and I will forward them to him.....you can beat the rush that will occur when he opens his shop officially.

 

[LorenWho]

Regarding hat blocks, I now have purchased three. All three are wood. All three appear to be vintage. All have the boss or center post underneath.

However, each has a different size center hole. One is 5/8" (with a metal flange), one is 3/4" (with a metal flange with a few open holes on the flange as well as a couple 1/2" holes - one above and below the trough), and the third has a 3/4" hold (no metal flange to reinforce the hole).

While they have some small cracks in the end grain on top, they seem usable.

Does anyone care what size hole is in the center? And, why?

Thanks,

-Loren

 

[TWKundrat]

Regarding hat blocks, I now have purchased three. All three are wood. All three appear to be vintage. All have the boss or center post underneath.

However, each has a different size center hole. One is 5/8" (with a metal flange), one is 3/4" (with a metal flange with a few open holes on the flange as well as a couple 1/2" holes - one above and below the trough), and the third has a 3/4" hold (no metal flange to reinforce the hole).

While they have some small cracks in the end grain on top, they seem usable.

Does anyone care what size hole is in the center? And, why?

Thanks,

-Loren

The only reason the hole size would matter is if you are using equipment that it would need to fit such as spinners, crown irons, sanders, etc. If you are doing everything by hand it doesn't make a difference. It's also easy enough to drill out a hole to make it larger if it needs to be.

 

[belfastboy]

Regarding hat blocks, I now have purchased three. All three are wood. All three appear to be vintage. All have the boss or center post underneath.

However, each has a different size center hole. One is 5/8" (with a metal flange), one is 3/4" (with a metal flange with a few open holes on the flange as well as a couple 1/2" holes - one above and below the trough), and the third has a 3/4" hold (no metal flange to reinforce the hole).

While they have some small cracks in the end grain on top, they seem usable.

Does anyone care what size hole is in the center? And, why?

Thanks,

-Loren

I have a mixture of vintage and new. The vintage have 3 different sized holes. The new wood ones all seem the same at 1". I make my own block stands and have them in various sizes to fit the vintage blocks. I don't use a block stand when I block so don't really care all that much if the hole fits the stand tightly. I really just use the stands to set the blocks up a bit when the felt is drying.

 

[belfastboy]

Regarding hat blocks, I now have purchased three. All three are wood. All three appear to be vintage. All have the boss or center post underneath.

However, each has a different size center hole. One is 5/8" (with a metal flange), one is 3/4" (with a metal flange with a few open holes on the flange as well as a couple 1/2" holes - one above and below the trough), and the third has a 3/4" hold (no metal flange to reinforce the hole).

While they have some small cracks in the end grain on top, they seem usable.

Does anyone care what size hole is in the center? And, why?

Thanks,

-Loren

I have refurbished all my vintage blocks. Filled the cracks & spidering with a good quality wood filler and then coating. They are now good for another generation of hat makers.