Post New Hats Here!

[scooter]

Vic, Frank, and David, thanks for the compliments. Kinda looks like Carlos Santana's long lost child, doesn't she?

 

[hatophile]

Vic, Frank, and David, thanks for the compliments. Kinda looks like Carlos Santana's long lost child, doesn't she?

I thought she looked familiar. She just needs a mustache.

 

[seabass]

Scooter
She's Adorable !!!!! wears the hat well !
now get her a Guitar !

 

[Chepstow]

Frank, nice catch from bay, looks good!

Scooter, that was the right gift for your little granddaughter, she look so sweet with the new hat!

 

[mikespens]

Yep, a real cutie-pie Scooter.

Great swoopy lid Fashion Frank, definitely wear'n it with aplomb.

 

[tealseal]

New hat from Óptimo Hatworks

Hi all,

I'd like to share with you my new hat from Óptimo Hatworks in Bisbee, AZ.
I've put some more photos in this thread.

I wear it almost every day. It works great for Arizona.

-TS

 

[Chepstow]

TS, it works good and looks fantastic! Congrats, a sharp hat!

 

[tealseal]

TS, it works good and looks fantastic! Congrats, a sharp hat!

Danke! I appreciate the compliment.

 

[splintercellsz]

Has the brim been cut down? Should be a nice wearing hat and easy to return to a thin ribbon if you want to. Same store and block/depth as my recent furry clear nutria.

Can you read the LOTXXXX number on the back of the original sweatband?

I believe the brim was cut at some point in it's life (It is a 3 inch brim). It's original sticker (seen in Dinerman's website I liked in the post w/ photos) shows it as a 7, but was stretched to be a 7 1/4. Still a very nice hat at that.

The numbers are very hard to make out, but from what I can see, it says "818" in one area... and another looks like "69#8318?" I will have to take a photo later and maybe Pm it to you, or something of that nature.

 

[memphislawyer]

I actually got two hats today. My custom fedora from Major Mike at Buckaroo Hatters was to be ready today for me to pick out the ribbon. I was between a 12 ligne (medium width ribbon ) and the thinner treatment, I think a 6 ligne. I was able to see each on a hat and for some reason, the smaller ribbon made sense. I also was able to decide the color and wanted something to compliment the fedora and not be so much of a contrast. Mike was very helpful in suggesting the color. So tell me what you think?

this pic is more representative of the color. As others have noted, lighting can play a big part in how it is perceived. In fact, I remarked that it would be hard for me, maybe not for others, to distinguish between the colors dova, silvermist, silverbelly, maybe natural, and the like. However, I did see a few silverbelly hats and some ribbon colors brought out a blueish tone, others a browner

Also, I was not originally a fan of the brown color of my acorn Akubra Stylemaster, and the fact that it has a much bigger brim was always off-putting. Rocky and Mike said I looked fine, but the crown is 4.5 inches, vs. 4.0 in the Stetson Saxon. Seems as though it is too tall, but I trust them. Also, Mike suggested going with a 2 1/4 brim and make it a bit bigger than the 2.0 brim of the Stetson. I agree. I had tried on other fedoras and 2.5 and wider was too big for me and without my even asking, Mike said they were too big. Here is a pic of me in each hat.

 

[memphislawyer]

Now, when I went to pick out the hat, a week or two before Thanksgiving, I had looked at some parbuntal straw hats that Mike had found that were 60 year old hat bodies. The hat body was super, super light, and not all that hard shellac that some hats are. I was worried about durability, and even then, some hats made from shantaung straw (which I read were paper) can feel hard shellacy and sometimes floppy. However, these things are so light and airy and one man that was there to visit Mike had one and he said he weighed it and it was like 3 ounces and maybe half of it was the ribbon:

interior shot of the weave:

I was worried about that optimo style, but the longer I had it on, the more I got over any objections. Besides, that man visiting said you wear the hat and not the other way around. Besides, he had like 25 hats, or maybe he said 35, that Mike had made for him and while I was there, he got another!

Now, there were several hats in my size there, maybe 6 or 7, and various treatments. One had a thicker black ribbon, b ut I have a panama hat with Black ribbon. There was a brown ribbon I liked. But I had an idea. Well, Mike did. He has a green ribbon with a design in it that looks great for a summer hat. But I dont do green much and I wanted something versatile. Mike had some felt fedora hats that had a contast in color with the keeper, and I asked him if he could do up a khaki color ribbon with the brown keeper. He did! I was thinking brown ribbon with khaki keeper, but Rocky and Mike thought the ribbon I have pictured would work better. Then Mike had an idea. What if I watned to come back and have him do up a new ribbon in other colors I changed my mind this summer. I wanted a blue and so he picked out a khaki keeper and a grey and I chose grey. He made it so that the ribbon treatments would not be tacked down, and I can change them out. Here is the other treatment, the khaki one:

Mike is so easy going and, I was there for two hours and it seemed like five minutes. He really is an artisan, and what I liked is that he did not view other hatmakers so much as competition, but as keeping an artistry alive, which was a refreshing air.

I dont think Ill have 35 hats, but I can see me getting another one to two hats. I wish everyone could go to a hat maker, not just a hat shop, as it is neat to see the tools of the trade, and also ask questions. Having someone who can suggest and guide is nice, because Mike was able to tell me what did and did not work. I can see where having custom color combinations can be addicting, and it can be like a kid in a candy store experience. I tried on a few western hats, and because I was in a suit after church today, remarked that I felt like I had on a JR Ewing hat in one black hat. They thought it looked fine, but Im not a western guy. Mike even turned the brim up on the Optimo panama hat into like a homburg and said it looked good that way. Me in the Optimo:

 

[seabass]

memphislawyer,
both are Outstanding !
good you got 2 fo1 ribbon on that nice straw....
The finish on that felt real nice !!!!!!

 

[TPD166]

My "New" Vintage 3X Open Road

My ebay win just came in the mail today and it is better than I expected. It has a minor sweatband issue that I was aware of, but it is otherwise a beautiful hat that fits like it was made for me. Auction pics only for now.

 

[randooch]

memphislawyer,
both are Outstanding !
good you got 2 fo1 ribbon on that nice straw....
The finish on that felt real nice !!!!!!

+1 on that.

TPD, nice grab there. What crease will you use? Looks like it will be cooperative.

 

[tealseal]

TPD,

Please keep the cattleman's crease (but fix it up a bit). Beautiful hat! Do you like your OR's snapped up or down in front?

 

[TPD166]

Thanks! I have a number of Open Roads (and OR clones) - they're are about half and half cattleman and tear drop creases, but a most have the brim turned down in front. After playing around with this hat once I got it home, I think it will remain a cattleman and leave the brim up (it will be my only "traditional" OR, and I think this particular hat has always been worn that way). I need to steam out a couple of storage dents, and it will need a light cleaning (and eventually repair the sweatband), but it is wearable as is. I need to browse the OR dating forms for some specifics, but I am pretty sure this is from the early '50s.

 

[carouselvic]

early 60's would be closer

 

[tealseal]

Thanks! I have a number of Open Roads (and OR clones) - they're are about half and half cattleman and tear drop creases, but a most have the brim turned down in front. After playing around with this hat once I got it home, I think it will remain a cattleman and leave the brim up (it will be my only "traditional" OR, and I think this particular hat has always been worn that way). I need to steam out a couple of storage dents, and it will need a light cleaning (and eventually repair the sweatband), but it is wearable as is. I need to browse the OR dating forms for some specifics, but I am pretty sure this is from the early '50s.

I saw a fellow in Santa Fe with a vintage OR, 1960's vintage, snapped up all 'round with the cattleman's crease. Looked great. My OR I've snapped down, but that's only because it's modern and I liked the look.

Wear in good health, Sir.

-TS

 

[TPD166]

I saw a fellow in Santa Fe with a vintage OR, 1960's vintage, snapped up all 'round with the cattleman's crease. Looked great. My OR I've snapped down, but that's only because it's modern and I liked the look.

-TS

I like the brim up/cattleman look, but this will be the first OR I've left that way. Most of mine are vintage and have the brim snapped down. I have a modern OR in black that has the cattleman crease, but I have the brim curled for the "Hemphill" look - kind of western homburg.

early 60's would be closer

That works too - I'm early 60s vintage myself! Thanks!

 

[LoveMyHats2]

Real nice hat Robert.