Leather hats

[Trikegator]

I have started making hats. I have my own patterns, and I do have some that I have purchased. Is there a market for them?

[fredk]

I'd say yes there is. 

Hats are culture influenced though. A hat that sells well in one place may not sell in another

[Bert03241]

pictures please

[alpha2]

Here's my take on leather hats. They're heavy. They're hot. They're hot. Some people don't even seem to notice, but I'm averse to hot hats, of any kind. If I wasn't bald, I'd never wear a hat. As to location, location, location, I tend to live where it's hot, or humid, or hot and humid. And now, I live where it's almost always sunny, and at over 5000' elevation. So not only is the Sun hot, it's not having to cut through a lot of atmosphere. Stand outside talking to a neighbor for 15 minutes in the middle of the day can show up on your head bone. If I go up in the mountains, it's worse. 

I say again, though, a lot of people seem to love them. I can see where the northern coast of the USA they might be alright. Phoenix, Denver, hot and humid Michigan, another story. Now, all of those places in the mid-winter, maybe okay. 

[Bert03241]

Well I live near Phoenix and I've made 3 leather hats and wear them now and then. They keep the sun off my bald head. Yes their kinda hot but not that bad.

[maxdaddy]

I'm in Florida and wear my own leather hats all of the time. I've made several styles for myself and enjoy switching up the look.

I get comments on them and occasionally the question comes up of "how much I would charge to make one for them?" I never suggest that I make them to sell, but some folks think that I should be happy to make one for them with the same look for about $40. When I explain that there's about 8 hours worth of work that goes into one (depending on the style), plus the cost of the leather I say that if I did sell them I'd probably charge a couple hundred. I've never had anyone respond that they felt that a leather hat was worth that much. 

Hats are not something that I would be able to make and sell profitably in my area of Central Florida. It seems that most folks are happy to buy something mass-produced.

[Bert03241]

yea people have no idea what goes into leather work, and hats are labor intensive

[chuck123wapati]

14 hours ago, alpha2 said:

Here's my take on leather hats. They're heavy. They're hot. They're hot. Some people don't even seem to notice, but I'm averse to hot hats, of any kind. If I wasn't bald, I'd never wear a hat. As to location, location, location, I tend to live where it's hot, or humid, or hot and humid. And now, I live where it's almost always sunny, and at over 5000' elevation. So not only is the Sun hot, it's not having to cut through a lot of atmosphere. Stand outside talking to a neighbor for 15 minutes in the middle of the day can show up on your head bone. If I go up in the mountains, it's worse. 

I say again, though, a lot of people seem to love them. I can see where the northern coast of the USA they might be alright. Phoenix, Denver, hot and humid Michigan, another story. Now, all of those places in the mid-winter, maybe okay. 

and why people traditionally wore straw hats in summer and felt or leather in winter. Leather hats are ok used at the right times same as shoes. Summer isn't the right time to sell them for sure. unless maybe biker type head gear.

[Northmount]

If you are going to wear leather hats a lot in the summer, you need either a thick head of hair, or need to add some insulation so the hot leather doesn't lay on your bald head.  I often switch to a straw hat on hot sunny days.  Winter can be a problem too.  Frozen leather on a bald head is not too comfortable. 

Some of this depends on the hat style.  If there is no air gap between a bald head and the leather, the effects are really intensified.  I wear an Aussie style hat, low profile; the top rests on my head, so I can tell you current weather conditions!  I have at times folded a handkerchief and laid it on the the top of my head to prevent migraine headaches and heat stroke.

Felt cowboy hats can be problematic in the summer too.  There is good reason to have a selection of hats for the seasons.  That selection may include a straw hat, a felt or leather hat, and for cold winter climates (<0C or 32F) something with ear flaps to protect your ears,  as well as being able to protect your bald head. 

Then there's a picture of a cowboy out on a snowy windswept range with a bandana wrapped around his hat and ears.  Dual purpose, keep the hat from flying away, and keep his ears from freezing.

[CastleLeatherWorks]

I would love to see some pictures of these hats. while i would almost certainty not wear a leather hat im sure there might be a handful of people not opposed to such a thing.

[fredk]

Here is my current hat. I think I've had this hat for about 14 or 15 years now. It gets abused. Folded and stuffed into a coat pocket or a haversack or laptop bag, thrown around the back of the car. Occasionally it gets sprayed with silicon water repellent.  Wearing such a hat in N.I. is still quite rare and I still get odd looks and even laughed at.

Its an Australian made hat. I think the leather is of a 'split' but unknown animal

Whilst I sympathize with youse about wearing a leather hat in hot sun we never get 'hot' sun.  Summer temperatures here are usually no more that 20* / 68*    With our climate it is cooler all year round with a chance of some rain 368 days of the year

My hat, as worn by Murdoch

My hat in its natural state

 

When I made medieval style kit I adapted a small skull-cap hat for wearing under chainmaille armour. It was very popular to other types of people. I sold dozens of these. On one day at a fair my wifey sold 15 or 16 (as well as the 3 me and sons were using!) This sort of hat is/would still be popular in N.I.

   

 

As I said earlier;

On 1/5/2021 at 2:03 AM, fredk said:

Hats are culture influenced though. A hat that sells well in one place may not sell in another

 

[maxdaddy]

8 hours ago, CastleLeatherWorks said:

I would love to see some pictures of these hats

Here's a few of my recent hats that I wear often.... a fedora, a porkpie, and a bowler.  (Apologies for appearing in the bowler picture... I don't have a picture of it on a prop. ) The bowler gets the most comments and questions from strangers, by far. I used from patterns from Tony See (DieselpunkRO) as starting points.

Even if I'll likely never sell a hat they are a lot of fun to make and wear out. 

 

[Bert03241]

I posted these in another thread they should be here , so I'll put them here LOL

OK heres the 3 I made. The baseball style was my first and has been hanging a while now covered in dust LOL

Edited April 6, 2021 by Bert03241

[Bert03241]

how do I get rid of this comic book cover??????

[fredk]

8 minutes ago, Bert03241 said:

how do I get rid of this comic book cover??????

Top right of screen - you, your name & picture. Click on it and it gives you a menu. Choose 'Profile'. Click on that. New screen page. Over on left you'll see your picture. Bottom left of it is a wee box. Hover your cursor on it and it says 'Profile picture',  click on it and it opens a wee window in which you can change your picture

[billybopp]

7 hours ago, maxdaddy said:

"There's 106 miles to Chicago, we've got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark out, we're wearing sunglasses and leather bowler hats."   "Hit it"

[Bert03241]

5 hours ago, fredk said:

Top right of screen - you, your name & picture. Click on it and it gives you a menu. Choose 'Profile'. Click on that. New screen page. Over on left you'll see your picture. Bottom left of it is a wee box. Hover your cursor on it and it says 'Profile picture',  click on it and it opens a wee window in which you can change your picture

I think its the COVER photo I want to get rid of not my signature photo  LOL I don't see an option to delete cover photo

[CastleLeatherWorks]

11 hours ago, maxdaddy said:

Here's a few of my recent hats that I wear often.... a fedora, a porkpie, and a bowler.  (Apologies for appearing in the bowler picture... I don't have a picture of it on a prop. ) The bowler gets the most comments and questions from strangers, by far. I used from patterns from Tony See (DieselpunkRO) as starting points.

Even if I'll likely never sell a hat they are a lot of fun to make and wear out. 

 

i must admit these are way better looking than i initially envisioned lol...... great job and the designs are nice

[chuck123wapati]

2 hours ago, CastleLeatherWorks said:

i must admit these are way better looking than i initially envisioned lol...... great job and the designs are nice

great looking hats ! Great stache too. 

[maxdaddy]

Thanks... the 'stache didn't survive the pandemic. But neither did the mohawk or other silly looks that I experimented with while I was working from home most of 2020.

Edited April 7, 2021 by maxdaddy

[Doc Reaper]

I just have a couple of simple questions

1 - how do you size a hat, and is there a formula to use to transfer to the material so I cut it right????

2) - how do I know that the hat will fit?

[fredk]

For #1 the best way is measure around the head; about  1 inch above the eye brows and just above the ears

If you are making a hat of panels, the sum of all the panels, each panel measured between the sewing lines at a point which will the brow line, should equal the total of the circumference of the head

For something like a fedora, which has a one piece crown, that should be the same as the head circumference plus any sewing/lacing allowance if its ab over-lap join

#2 you don't, until you try it on. If you've measured and cut carefully it should fit ok

 

[Doc Reaper]

What I’m asking is info on either  an Aussie or fedora, do I need to add to compensate for where the brim meets the bottom of the stack? Is there a way to make the oval hole in the brim piece that matches the circumference of my head

[fredk]

Just so we is all talking the same; The upright part of a fedora type is usually called the crown. The top bit which keeps the rain out is the Crown Former

Yes, you need to add at least 1/4 inch, maybe up to  about 1/2 inch for the bottom edge of the crown to fold outwards to sew to the brim. Commonly, the Crown Former has the excess and its folded down so that the Crown former inserts into the crown piece and then its sewn around the circumference from the side

For fitting to the shape of your head; there are several ways to do that

1. If you have a hat that fits, or even if it doesn't, cut a piece of cardboard so it fits neatly into the hat and use that as a template to cut the hole on the new brim piece card pattern

2. Take some cardboard, cut a hole in it and try fitting it over your head, keep trimming it until it is a comfortable size that fits. Then cut another 1/8 inch or so from the edge of the hole. That's an allowance for the leather of the crown when it fits to the brim. The old time 'mad hatters' of London used to keep wood discs with egg shaped holes in them for sizing customer's heads. They kinda look like toilet seats,  

3. I have a few polystyrene foam heads which I use for sizing the panel hats. In centimetres the heads go from 54cm, 56, 58 & 60 circumference. For doing a brimmed hat I cut a cardboard pattern and trial it out on one of my disembodied heads first 

[chuck123wapati]

Does anyone have a fedora pattern that they would share? My son wants to try his hand at making one.