MAKINS HATS

[hatflick1]

If a similar thread has already been addressed at the Lounge, I missed it.
Anyway, and then there's Makins.

http://makinshats.com/collections/mens-hats/fall-09/style-nn-760-2/

I have seen these fur felt hats at Nordstroms selling for close to three hundred dollars. They are essentially floppy, feature a cloth sweatband as opposed to leather and a rather flimsy hat band one might expect on a less expensive wool fedora. Yet men are buying them, I guess.

Anybody here own one, tried one on, been equally curious as to that justifies
close to a custom made hat price tag?

 

[Lefty]

Here's another thread about Makins.

Apparently, they've been sold by Paul Stuart as well.

 

[Rick Blaine]

East end of a west bound mule...

Every Makins hat I have ever seen has been an aesthetic failure of epic proportions. For people w/ more dollars than sense. shakeshead

 

[hatflick1]

WOW! A SENIOR MOMENT!
I posted the first go-round about Makins.
Where are my meds?

 

[St.Ignatz]

I picked up a Makin from the bay for about $10. Worth every penny, but not much more.

 

[Tomasso]

I have a few purchased under Paul Stuart and Bergdorf Goodman labels. They're soft, crushable and quite comfortable to wear. I wear them mainly with my cashmere and camel hair overcoats and I think they look quite good paired together. Quality-wise, they're nowhere near as well made as my Optimo lids but then they're only half the price. Funnily enough, the women in my life prefer them to my Optimos, which they consider theatrical.

 

[Mr Vim]

Compared to other hand blocked hats, I don't think they measure up, especially in price. Penman rabbit fur hats are cheaper and they look, well quite a bit better.

Then again, this is my opinion and I have not seen either brand mentioned above in person, so what the hay do I know?

 

[AlterEgo]

Though its generally fashion-forward look does not appeal to me personally, since lots of folk I know depend on me for hat guidance, I would like to know more about them, too.

I've never held one "in the flesh," but Makins are featured in the Hartford York catalogue, which says they are "made in NYC near Timew Square with live steam on wooden blocks just like hats were made 100 years ago." HY's catalogue language drifts toward the flowery, so I don't know what to make of that.

Its summer catalogue offers Makins straws ranging in price from $165 to $275. All are unlined, with both sweats and hatbands made of grosgrain. Sizes are S, M, L, XL, which can provide some insight as to quality, though one should not make too much of that. Most being stingy brims, they are offfered in rather edgy ribbon colors, with contrasting body and brim, in non-traditional colors like powder blue and Easter-egg green, or some combination of the three.

I found one--just one--that I like and would actually wear, the "Panama Brooklyn," featuring a semi-telescope C-crown raking down from front to rear, with a very sharp front pinch, 2 1/2-inch brim, and brown ribbon with a narrower gold one woven down the center. The natural-color straw weave looks somewhat course, so the $175 price tag may be a bit steep but not outlandish.

Has anyone here ever owned a Makins or even inspected one up close and personal. If so, ignoring style, how would you rate the quality? Value?

 

[fluteplayer07]

Vicuña?

 

[zetwal]

Vicuña?

 

[fluteplayer07]

Vicuña?

As said by Mark Chevalier.

Can't possibly be the same. At least not for real, at $225.

 

[Lefty]

There's plenty of talk on styleforum about vicuna, and the mythical $30k Brioni coat made from it. If that hat has any in it, it's probably the fur equivalent of hot dog meat.

 

[4spurs]

yep, will definetly bring down the trade

They look like $10 hats to me; but that don't bother me none.

What bother's me is that it get's harder and harder to be an anachronism when more and more people are copying your style.

Hope I don't have to start wearing a baseball hat just to stay behind the crowd.

 

[Tomasso]

Can't possibly be the same. At least not for real, at $225.

Vicuna is also commonly used to describe color; like cordovan, camel, etc....


If you read the description: Colors: Vicuna; Black

 

[fluteplayer07]

Ya know, it took me a very long time to figure out that cordovan was a color too, not just a type of leather. In retrospect, I had several really close calls with some near eBay mishaps. :eusa_doh:

 

[OT1899]

Makins ....

I have a Makins straw. Purchased at Nordstrom's before I figured out what little I now know about hats. In hindsight, I should have passed on the purchase. The "price, quality, and fit" equation just doesn't balance for me ... However, this is just my two cents, which should probably be taken with a grain of salt since I'm new around here ......

 

[hatflick1]

Makins Hats on Sale

If you happen to live in the LA area, IT'S A WRAP on Magnolia has two Makins fedoras for sale at its studio outlet store. Each is ninety-five bucks, one a large brim, the other shorter brim style. They're jammed in a basket with ball caps and hipster straw trilbies. I doubt they will run out the door soon at that price.

 

[danofarlington]

If a similar thread has already been addressed at the Lounge, I missed it.
Anyway, and then there's Makins.

http://makinshats.com/collections/mens-hats/fall-09/style-nn-760-2/

I have seen these fur felt hats at Nordstroms selling for close to three hundred dollars. They are essentially floppy, feature a cloth sweatband as opposed to leather and a rather flimsy hat band one might expect on a less expensive wool fedora. Yet men are buying them, I guess.

Anybody here own one, tried one on, been equally curious as to that justifies
close to a custom made hat price tag?

Let me ask you this: If you could buy that same hat for less and sell it for $300, wouldn't you want to do it?

 

[Undertow]

This hat looks like something you'd pay $25 for at Burlington Coat Factory. The felt looks a little rough, and the quality seems kinda shoddy (especially with a cloth sweatband). [huh]

I own some hats from Burlington, so I'm no saint. But $225? Hmm...

 

[Tomasso]

Did you know?

Makins Hats Ltd. has been honored with a Coty Award “for injecting excitement into a long dormant category." :eusa_clap