milan straw coming unstitched

[hatsandart]

i just pick up a wonderful champ 50's milan straw with a backbow and i love it it but..... when you go to pull the brim down the stitching that holds the circular nature of the straw pattern has popped in three locations. two on the front and one on the back. you can see the little tiny threads where they have given way. my first instinct is say its toast. i cant imagine how you stitch it back together but the rest of the hat appears to being great shape. i dont know if dry rot ate the thread or what. its form l.a.
i was thinking superglue on a toothpick but that is kind of a one shot and youre out. if it works great if not there is not a way of undoing it.
any suggestions would be appreciated

 

[T Jones]

i just pick up a wonderful champ 50's milan straw with a backbow and i love it it but..... when you go to pull the brim down the stitching that holds the circular nature of the straw pattern has popped in three locations. two on the front and one on the back. you can see the little tiny threads where they have given way. my first instinct is say its toast. i cant imagine how you stitch it back together but the rest of the hat appears to being great shape. i dont know if dry rot ate the thread or what. its form l.a.
i was thinking superglue on a toothpick but that is kind of a one shot and youre out. if it works great if not there is not a way of undoing it.
any suggestions would be appreciated

You may want to give Tom Gomez a call. A couple friends of mine swear by him. I've seen his stuff. He does great work...

http://gomezhatcompany.com/about.html

 

[Tomasso]

I would give Optimo a call. They are the only hatter that make 'real' Milan hats these days so they should have the expertise to do a quality repair.

 

[The Wiser Hatter]

Art also makes "real" Milan hats.

 

[Tomasso]

Art also makes "real" Milan hats.

Oh, I thought he was just now acquainting himself with the process/machinery to begin offering them for the first time this coming summer. In any event, Optimo have made a lot of them over the last decade or so and I imagine they have made some repairs along the way as well. They would be my choice for a repair job at this time.

 

[The Wiser Hatter]

Oh Art no Art is making them now. This problem would be a tricky repair for sure.

 

[GBM]

You might try one of the past masters of wheat straw: Morgyn Owens Celli. Something about him:
https://www.thatwayhat.com/store/millinery-hats/strawbenders

 

[Art Fawcett]

i just pick up a wonderful champ 50's milan straw with a backbow and i love it it but..... when you go to pull the brim down the stitching that holds the circular nature of the straw pattern has popped in three locations. two on the front and one on the back. you can see the little tiny threads where they have given way. my first instinct is say its toast. i cant imagine how you stitch it back together but the rest of the hat appears to being great shape. i dont know if dry rot ate the thread or what. its form l.a.
i was thinking superglue on a toothpick but that is kind of a one shot and youre out. if it works great if not there is not a way of undoing it.
any suggestions would be appreciated

Depending on where the breaks are, a simple lock stitch method would work to repair this. Find thread the same color as was used originally and hand sew it back together. The key is to lock in the last good stitch to keep it from unraveling as it is done with a chain stitch machine. Even if sent to a hatter, the method would be the same with perhaps the hatter using a narrower swing arm machine that you would have. I use a 1950's Viking for this purpose.