Vintage custom hatters and lesser known vintage production hatmakers

[Rabbit]

Barclay

Light pearl felt with silk finish (RLK's pics)

 

[seabass]

Custom Built, Crosely Lane, Hat's by Stylists

 

[splintercellsz]

Hardeman

I remember watching that on the bay, but missing the auction end day. Blargh! Such a beautiful hat! Glad to see it end up with ya, Rabbit!

 

[Rabbit]

I remember watching that on the bay, but missing the auction end day. Blargh! Such a beautiful hat! Glad to see it end up with ya, Rabbit!

Nice hat indeed, 1930s at the most recent. It didn't end up with me, though. None of the hats from the auction pics are mine.

 

[splintercellsz]

ah! My bad then!

 

[alanfgag]

Not sure this fits the bill, Nik... two Panama hats with custom hatter branding:

Hand the Hatter/ Boston.

Brodt's / Washington, D.C.

 

[gtdean48]

I'll just link to the Jay Lord Hatters thread = http://www.thefedoralounge.com/show...ord-that-is...&p=914944&viewfull=1#post914944

 

[Rabbit]

Not sure this fits the bill, Nik... two Panama hats with custom hatter branding

Great stuff, keep them coming. :eusa_clap

I think the custom-made Panama hats make a fine addition. Here's one more. My other two vintage Montecristi Panamas have no branding at all.

Montecristi Optimo 26x25 650 wpsi Campbell Quality Hat Works, Kansas City

 

[danofarlington]

That Hand of Boston optimo is a very fine weave.

 

[mayserwegener]

Hans Baumgärtner Velour Fürth i./B., Germany

 

[Neophyte]

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?36708-Mystery-Hat&p=827120&viewfull=1#post827120

I was searching Thorougbred and for some reason came across this thread wherein the OP received a mystery hat and was investigating it's origins. It comes from The Carlson Company in Great Britain.

Most of the other posts in the thread were Lounger commentaries on the hat's similarity to the Stetson Vogue and Stetsonian models.

I found this fedora at the Vintage Expo In Santa Monica, it came with a red Thoroughbred hatbox, but isn't a Thoroughbred. Here are some pictures of it. It says "His Excellency- World's Premier Hat" and the crest at the top is a D and an H. Disney maybe? There is makers label inside the sweatband, but the makers name fell off, and there is a price tag of $10.

BREAKING NEWS
I have found info on the brand of this hat!
I always thought The Carlson Company was just a label of the store but not the maker, but oh how I was wrong.

Excerpt from http://www.sentimental-value.com/?cat=14
" This is vintage Stetson hat was sold by The Carlson Company in Britain (see above gold embossed stamp in leather band). I found an interesting tidbit online which referred to the Carlson Company as the place where Humphrey Bogart bought his signature fedoras.

After seeing similar labels, I think this hat was most likely manufactured sometime before 1940. You can see in one of the photos, the actual price when new was $5.00."
http://www.sentimental-value.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/12/stetson_derby_pricetage.jpg
I have a hat where Bogart bought his, hmmm
. Inside the sweatband, I have the same square tag with cut edges. The Mystery is solved!

 

[barrowjh]

Loewe custom thin-ribbon

Might as well throw in my Loewe, one of my finest hats. I believe this felt is substantially beaver, as the hand is as nice as any beaver felt in my collection, but there is nothing in the hat itself that clearly claims the content is beaver. Here is the logo in the crown - under the oilskin -

on the left, the box says American Made, and on the right, A-1-X Grade.

A prior bash:

As currently bashed in a DTD:

Underside:

 

[tonyb]

Interesting that both Thoroughbred and Hardeman made this roster.

I don't dispute that both are among the "lesser known" production hats. Still, Thoroughbred hats were carried by many retailers as recently as, say, 20 or 30 years ago. I couldn't say if they're still around.

Hardeman was a fairly big player in the industry back before any but the most elderly of us were even born. They had a large manufacturing plant at the corner of Aurora Avenue and Republican Street in Seattle (the building still stands, and a painted sign on one side of it still reads "J.T Hardeman Hat Co."). The company advertised in magazines with a large West Coast circulation (Sunset, for instance), and its products were carried by many retailers as well as in its company-owned retail stores in Spokane, Portland, Denver, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and two in Seattle.

 

[rlk]

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?36708-Mystery-Hat&p=827120&viewfull=1#post827120

I was searching Thorougbred and for some reason came across this thread wherein the OP received a mystery hat and was investigating it's origins. It comes from The Carlson Company in Great Britain.

Most of the other posts in the thread were Lounger commentaries on the hat's similarity to the Stetson Vogue and Stetsonian models.

Not so sure about this.

How about Pennsylvania:

 

[hatsRme]

M & K Custom Hatter

Not very often a mellon head like me can post a vintage hat, and two is even more amazing. Measuring in at just under 63 isn't the biggest dome in the world, but it sure limits what I find in vintage hats. I proudly present my two M&K Custom Hatter products, which I estimate to hail from around 1940... (comments, opinions, other guesses encouraged).

 

[Neophyte]

Thank you, Robert, for finding that. I'd edit it into my original post, but seems I'm past the time limit to do so.

 

[barrowjh]

Those two M&Ks are really nice hats.

 

[besdor]

I guess that store is long gone...

 

[hatsRme]

Thank you, Barrowjh! Two of my best.

And as for the store, I couldn't find anything online about it.

 

[Pseudomodo]

Good Morning Rabbit!

I have a mystery jet black fedora recently purchased. Has a narrow 1/2" ribbon with a very long bow.

Can't research the name "Monfur" or "Monfar". It seems quite old. The other side of the sweatband says FRAWLEY & CO. LTD. 34-33 THOMAS ST. DUBLIN

Sorry not able to send pics. I have them, but not quite up to speed on how to post photos.