NY Times article on city's hat shops and one on JJ Hats......

[Aureliano]

I must confess I haven't been to most. Only W&W, JJ and Bencraft. I didn't even know the others existed. Cool pictures. Ok article.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/30/fashion/hats-and-how-to-wear-them-critical-shopper.html

 

[DJH]

Nice little read - thanks for posting!

 

[monbla256]

Great pics, and as was said, OK article. Thanks for the look

 

[Aerol]

Neat article. Thanks for posting.

 

[Aureliano]

And another from another source on JJ hat center. Better article and nice pics.

http://www.wnyc.org/blogs/wnyc-news-blog/2011/jun/29/niche-market-jj-hat-center/

 

[Oldsarge]

Okay, that does it. The founding Arth store is in Costa Mesa, just down the freeway from me. Saturday I will pay them a visit and give my after-action report. I may even break down and buy a hat . . .

 

[MikeBravo]

Interesting comment " a stingy brim is for dandies"

I wider brim has traditionally considered rather to be foppish and flamboyant, any thoughts?

 

[Oldsarge]

I don't know when that might have been. To me, out here on the Left Coast, a wider brim bespeaks a working hat. Perhaps I've been around too many Westerns or something but a stingy brim, IMO, is affected. I mean, if it won't keep the sun out of your eyes, why are you wearing a hat in the first place? So, yeah, stingies are for dandies.

 

[InsolentPuppy]

NYT reporting that is the opposite of reality? I'm shocked, shocked! Next you'll be telling me that there's gambling at Rick's.

Interesting comment " a stingy brim is for dandies"

I wider brim has traditionally considered rather to be foppish and flamboyant, any thoughts?

 

[IsaacRN]

I really miss living in NYC. I use to shop at JJ's and would have my Borsalino Newsboys stitched by a salesperson named Marc. He would stitch the top of the had down to the brim on the opposite sides of the button.

 

[jaco]

Nice articles.

I hope to travel in the US...sooner or later: ti would be perfect to visit again New York aiming to those "hat temple".
Unfortunly in Milan there are only 3 good hat shop but and 2 Borsalino boutique in wich you can find only Borsos, Barbisios, some Stetsons and few other things.

 

[Aureliano]

Nice articles.

I hope to travel in the US...sooner or later: ti would be perfect to visit again New York aiming to those "hat temple".
Unfortunly in Milan there are only 3 good hat shop but and 2 Borsalino boutique in wich you can find only Borsos, Barbisios, some Stetsons and few other things.

Cappelleria Mutinelli and Melegari beat all stores here in NYC, unless you're looking for Stetsons. I've been to both in Milano and the Borsalino ones you mention (I love the tiny one near the Cathedral, actually right behind the Leonardo statue) So the hat temples are actually on your front!

 

[Feraud]

Interesting comment " a stingy brim is for dandies"

I wider brim has traditionally considered rather to be foppish and flamboyant, any thoughts?

On the streets you will see those who affect a dandy look wearing stingy brims.
Then again, non-dandies wear 'em too so go figure..

 

[garenb]

Okay, that does it. The founding Arth store is in Costa Mesa, just down the freeway from me. Saturday I will pay them a visit and give my after-action report. I may even break down and buy a hat . . .

I've been to the Soho Arth store a couple times. Cool vibe, relatively small, and way over priced (in my opinion) for the majority of the hats they had on display. Most of which were wool stingys. Just my 2 cents.

 

[tonyb]

A quick read-through discloses nothing factually inaccurate in that NYT piece. Sure, the guy has his opinions, to which anyone is free to take exception. But it certainly isn't the case that people here keep their opinions to themselves.

That "a stingy brims is for dandies" bit is in the paragraph in which he briefly lays out "the takeaway" from his venture into the land of hats. He is reporting mostly on what he was told -- in other words, other people's opinions.

Can't say I'm familiar with Jon Caramanica's work, but it appears to me that he's a darned good writer.

 

[jaco]

Cappelleria Mutinelli and Melegari beat all stores here in NYC, unless you're looking for Stetsons. I've been to both in Milano and the Borsalino ones you mention (I love the tiny one near the Cathedral, actually right behind the Leonardo statue) So the hat temples are actually on your front!

Sorry but I disagree.
- cappelleria melegari (www.cappelleriamelegari.com): nice shop, full of beauties but you have to spend almost one whole day before to find something veri specific (the clerks are the firsts that don't know the order in which hats are stocked) and here you can only find modern Borsos, some vintage Panizzas or Barbisios (mainly big or small sizes) some stetson (only in the last 2 years the importer restarted to distribute non wool felt) and...nothing else. Good choiche but not a complete offering
- cappelleria mutinelli (in "corso Buenos Aires"): nice shop (vintage appearance) but odd owner tand not so good choiche (same as melegari, prices from 5 to 10 % higher or lower...I never undertand why)
- cappelleria cabella (in "viale monza"): same as before but even more tight choices (only panizza and barbisio as felt) and even more odd owner. Good prices but not comparable to others (exclusive distributor of contemporary Barbisio).
- Borsalinos points (there are another one, plus the one you mentioned, not far from "San Babila"): the sell only Borsos...in any shape, price range, material, configuration and so on
As you can see my complaint is that you doesn't have a real alternative (Stetson, Akubra, Lock&Co, Christys and other contemporary firm aren't known).
Best of all is Melegari: they have a restoration and cleaning service, sell accessories and raw materials, and have a laboratory in Monza in which they produce their own hats (with the same souce of Borsalino, regarding felts...the standar ones because Borsalino produce High end felt only) and they have other two stores (one in Milan in "Galleria Meravigli" and one in Monza) but, I repeat, not so huge choiche.
Positive the fact that you can buy a hat and ask them to change almost everything (ribbon, lining, sweatband and so on) but since the supplier are not so regular sometimes you find beauties other awful stuff.
Reading TFL since a while I can say that here we are more limited and closed mind: "only Borsalino knows how to make felts, Barbisio is the second choice but modern ones aren't at the same quality of pre '65 (I agree), all the rest are craps".

Once, when I went to Melegari I had the chance to talk with one of their historical clerks (an old and nice sir) and he told me that until the '60/'70 Milan was The Dream City for Hat lover because starting from piazza duomo and going ahead passing Corso Vottorio Emanuele, Piazza San Babila, Corso di Porta Venezia, Piazza della repubblica, Corso Buenos Aires, Piazza Lima, PIazzale Loreto, Viale Monza (...about 4 kilometers nice walk) you can find at least 15 hat shops with a huge selection of very fine products.
In fact just around Milan there were a hat maker district...what a shame!
And nowadays is difficult, for example, to find fine wood blocks or raw materials...everithing lost in time's fog.

 

[mayserwegener]

Sorry but I disagree.
- cappelleria melegari (www.Reading TFL since a while I can...el and Wegener in the late 1960s early 1970s.

 

[Aureliano]

If you're looking for akubra, lock & co, Christys; etc you won't find any in any store in NYC either. Here Borsalino (my family lives close to the San Babila Borsalino shop) dominates the market of all stores, followed, I'd say by Stetson. Only Worth & Worth sells Guerra and only they do serious hat work (finishing, custom, re-blocks, cleaning and ribbon) in NYC. JJ hats will steam your hat and change your ribbon if they have any in their pre-sewn stock.

 

[kaosharper1]

Nice New York Times Article

Thought this article was good for those who want to, but aren't sure:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/30/f...ar-them-critical-shopper.html?ref=todayspaper

 

[dhermann1]

More than nice. Profound. Deceptively profound.