Portland OR hat museum? CW top hats

[suitedcboy]

Has anyone been to the Hat Museum in Portland OR?
There is a mini-article about in on Collector's Weekly page.

The other thing I find odd about CW is how many top hats are on there right now.

 

[jlee562]

I know Mr. John Penman has worked with the owner before on some projects...

 

[CaramelSmoothie]

Funny you should mention this museum. Owner has a very bad/snarky attitude when I called. I read the Yelp reviews to see if anybody else experienced the same thing and sure enough a reviewer mentioned it as well.

 

[Garrett]

I curate for this museum

 

[Garrett]

Funny you should mention this museum. Owner has a very bad/snarky attitude when I called. I read the Yelp reviews to see if anybody else experienced the same thing and sure enough a reviewer mentioned it as well.

I think Alyce may sound this way but is unaware of it. She is a great gal and I can assure this is not done deliberately.

 

[CaramelSmoothie]

I think Alyce may sound this way but is unaware of it. She is a great gal and I can assure this is not done deliberately.

Going by the conversation I had with her, I disagree.

 

[bendingoak]

making the statement "bad/snarky attitude". Can you please explain? Alyce is a very nice woman who will spend a great deal of time with people talking hats. Knowing here like I do I find it hard to believe.

 

[VTporkpie]

I for one am quite looking forward to checking this museum out. I'm currently planning my relocation to Portland, and as a hat enthusiast, I'm in. I certainly hope the area is nice, and geographically I'll be closer to a Penman Hat-something I've pined for for years!

 

[bendingoak]

I for one am quite looking forward to checking this museum out. I'm currently planning my relocation to Portland, and as a hat enthusiast, I'm in. I certainly hope the area is nice, and geographically I'll be closer to a Penman Hat-something I've pined for for years!

You will enjoy the museum and alyce. Please feel free to drop a line when your in town and I'll block some time for you. Pun intended.

 

[Blackthorn]

Going by the conversation I had with her, I disagree.

Very interesting....

 

[bendingoak]

Very interesting....

I'm still waiting for answer to my question. To make such a statement without explaining doesn't do much.

 

[CaramelSmoothie]

I'm still waiting for answer to my question. To make such a statement without explaining doesn't do much.

I was relating MY experience with the owner when I called to obtain more information about her museum. I had planned to take a trip to Portland, OR earlier this year and am always in search of museums both big and small wherever I travel and the Hat Museum turned up in a Google search. I called the museum and as I was explaining my reasons for wanting to visit her museum while stating the number of hats I had in my collection she rudely cut me off to say "so you're a beginner", or something to that effect, this was back in February and I haven't thought about it since then. Now, I don't consider myself a beginner in hat collecting since I have been doing it for over a decade and I was insulted she took it upon herself to tell a perfect stranger over the phone their own skill level on hats when my own expertise was not the point of me calling. Further, after that the conversation went downhill because her tone to me indicated she did not want to be bothered so I just cut the conversation short and have no desire to visit the museum. I don't really care about others' experience with her, I am just judging her based on MY experience and that is what counts for ME. I looked on Yelp and sure enough there is a review that describes Alyce exactly how I encountered her on the phone:

http://www.yelp.com/filtered_reviews/la59jt_lazx3VeI3Sj1O5Q?fsid=l0NCQlLEUudXmd7keh_LAw

Tulsa, OK
1.0 star rating
8/18/2012

They really need to assign someone other than Alyce to do the tours. She was rude, defensive and wouldn't let us look at what we really wanted to see out of her line of sight. This was my second time to go. I had no interest at all in the room of 'funny hats' made of fake fur, fleece and foam rubber. I was there to look at the history and construction, being a milliner and hatter myself.
Her particular and personal attitude about the 'history' of hats, giving credit to "British Creationism" of Fashion hats is really presented in an insulting manner.
Also for being in the Northwest Pacific region there are not really ANY examples of the awesome work of our own Native people. The few Native hats of other lands are glossed over in an unattractive and downplayed part of this "museum" under the stairway next to the gift shop and not given much credit.
When my very good friend, a resident of Portland asked about handicap accessibility she nearly had her head bitten off!
There really are some fine examples of millinery and hattery but being rushed through and disrespected is NOT my idea of a good time. I cannot recommend this tour. Your money would be better spent buying a book. At least you won't get snipped at!
I have never in all of my 54 years ever been treated with such disdain in a place I have paid admission to.
For a 'museum' that depends entirely on admissions and donations to keep going, Alyce is not doing you any favors.

 

[hatsRme]

We have only one opportunity to make a first impression... sounds like she blew it.

 

[Brad Bowers]

I've always wondered what goodies she might have in her C&K/Dobbs/Cavanagh collection.

Brad

 

[The Wiser Hatter]

Danbury CT should be the home of the best hat Museum. Don't know anything about why Portland has a hat museum. Looks like a personal collection. Has anyone been to the Danbury Museum? Since that was one of the main cities for hat production I would think they had something on hat manufacturing.

 

[hatsRme]

I believe the Norwalk, Ct museum has (or had) a collection of hats and related items... if it has re-opened. I couldn't find much in Danbury beyond a general city history approach by the Danbury Historical Society.

 

[mayserwegener]

I am not aware of any large scale permanent hat exhibitions (hat collection plus hat making machines) in the US. It would make sense to have one in Danbury, CT.

The permanent hat exhibition at Novy Jicin (Czech Republic) museum would be a good model. They have over 6000 hats in their archives and all kinds of hat machines going back to the mid 1800s.

http://www.360travel.eu/chateau-novy-jicin-hats-exposition-i

http://www.360travel.eu/chateau-novy-jicin-hats-exposition-ii

The city has also recently opened a City of Hats visitors center.

http://www.mestoklobouku.cz/en/navstevnicke-centrum/

 

[CaramelSmoothie]

We have only one opportunity to make a first impression... sounds like she blew it.

And here's the thing, it's not like once that happened I came running to the FL to complain. This happened last winter and once I got a whiff of her attitude I just made up my mind that this was not an attraction that I would be visiting and pretty much forgot about the matter until this thread. As you can see from the Yelp reviews, the other reviews are positive so obviously everybody who walks through the museum's doors aren't subjected to the rudeness. I'm in no way trying to discourage anyone from visiting the museum, I'm just giving my personal experience which was not a positive one and once I saw that Yelp review it accurately described the owner's attitude that I personally experienced.

 

[The Wiser Hatter]

Steve I remember your post on your visit to Tonak the museum. Could not find the thread. Do you have it saved?
I remember also Besdor's trip to the Borsalino-Hat-Museum-Pictures

 

[CaramelSmoothie]

While not a hat museum, the Kansas City Garment District Museum does have some hats on display. The people who run it are very hospitable and give a great tour of KC's role in garment manufacturing:

http://www.kcgarmentmuseum.org/