Looks good to me, man. Very nice colour!
I say do what you can with it first. You may be able get a great look out of it. Remember, it's not about what we think.
fatwoul, that looks like a fine hat to work with! It's got a good brim, crown, and color, too. Really, any hat is worth experimenting with. In fact, Fedora used to experiement and work with all sorts of hats, which got him to the point of making his own! Anyhow, you've done a fine job considering you haven't been working with a block. I'd experiment with dry bashing and shaping the hat however you see fit at this point. You'll get an idea of how the felt works and reacts. Good luck!
fatwoul, if the hat feels cardboardy stiff, sure, take some steam to it. It sounds like there's a LOT of stiffener in the felt. If you want to work the stiffener out, you can gradually massage the hat in your hands, starting lightly and working with the felt as it begins to soften.
Another option, instead of steam, that I've had lots of luck with; put some spring water or distilled water in a spray bottle and dampen the felt in the area you want to shape. How damp depends on how stubborn the felt is, so start with a little at first. I find that nothing softens up a hat like water (wear it in the rain, then play with it... fun stuff). Also, I find that a crown is less likely to taper with water (let it dry on it's own), then with steam.
fatwoul, the more you wear it, the more it should fit to your head over time. You really do have a god hat to experiment with. We'd love to see additional pics as you tinker with your hat.
I'm guessing they can't be rabbit fur felt, since they're New Zealand made, and when I was there I didn't see any rabbits.
On the contrary my friend, New Zealand has a major rabbit problem! About several years ago the hills literally moved they were covered with so many. Then the farmers broke the law and released a toxic chemical that killed many of them, but they are on their way back.
Anyway, one way to tell if it is wool felt is to wet it and see if it smells like a wet dog.
Chewbacca Jones wrote:Another option, instead of steam, that I've had lots of luck with; put some spring water or distilled water in a spray bottle and dampen the felt in the area you want to shape. How damp depends on how stubborn the felt is, so start with a little at first. I find that nothing softens up a hat like water (wear it in the rain, then play with it... fun stuff). Also, I find that a crown is less likely to taper with water (let it dry on it's own), then with steam.
Good Luck!
I agree with Chewbacca Jones on using the straight up water method. If you use steam and use it too much you'll get "shrinkage" on the felt and the sweat. Also be careful how hot the steam is, you could scorch the felt. (Personal experience here)
fatwoul, some of the taper has to due with the block shape. If you were to find or concoct a good hat block to stretch it over, that would help in bashing it into a more Raidereque shape. Still, the more you experiment, the more you learn what works and what doesn't. Keep at it!
I agree with Bink....I'm thinking it just needs a good re block but on the other hand you have a very good TOD hat.......... It doesn't look that bad, good work !
