Club Obi Wan

......but you are no steve delk yet......

i just wanted to share my progress in my millinery aspirations. about a month back, i had 2 rabbit dress bodies blocked.....both of them gave me some problems with the brim as the blocked body was 2 3/4" around the rough brim in some spots which made it difficult to use the brim cutter. after trimming the first one to an acceptable dimension, it got stomped on at my daughter's birthday party. i put it behind the couch in a safe place and blocked off access to it.....somebody jumped over the couch and crushed it. the second hat body, i pulled too hard onto the block to give me more brim to work with....it pulled a "herbert johnson" on me and shrank 1/8" to 1/4" in the brim as well as in the crown height.....i pounced her anyways and found out that it was just too small to make a great hat. 2 bodies down the drain.

so the 3rd (and 4th) bodies that i got were rabbit western hat bodies. lots of brim to play with and a very thick felt....which will be good for resilience. the first one that i've done so far was blocked and cut perfectly. i pounced her till she was like velvet at my finger tips. the sweat was cut and sewn perfectly and i attached her with the best stitch job i have done so far........just waiting on the ribbon now to complete her. here are some pics:

waiting on ribbon:



close up of the stitching and pouncing....pics don't do it justice...not at all:




i have 2 sources of ribbon before i call up steve to buy some. one source i believe is shipping this week. another source, i ordered over a month ago and nothing yet and no answers to my e-mails......i'm almost ready to publicly flog their e-store.

well when i get this one done and if the ribbon gets put on as good as how the rest was constructed, this will be my 'go to' hat. i'll be looking to put alot of miles on her.......if so, i may use up that last hat body for a TOD hat. with that, i may sell off the raven bar hat i made previously....too many hats taking up space now

Beautiful start, G!

Annnnd WHAT size do you wear?
(Y'know... just askin'...)

;-)

Just to be clear: I'm winking because overall, I'm in a good, jokin' around mood...
But Dude:
I'm DEAD serious when I ask you that... what size do you wear? (I'm already counting bills...)

Mitch

mitch, my head size is 22.5" around......my raven hat is slightly 'looser' so i quickly measured her and she's about 22.75" or so ;-)

Arrrrghhhh!
I'm 23&1/8 inches!

Curse you, giant melon of a head!!! - (that, admittedly, until a moment ago I simply regarded as my "regular 'ol head")

...

Ah well...
(You WILL let me know once you start taking requests though, RIGHT G?)
Mitch

Have you rounded the top of the block on this one, G?

no sir.......same block as before i put an extra 1/4" on the crown height to give me a deeper center crease, i'm hoping she'll work out.

That is one nice looking hat G, can't wait to see some great ribbon on that hat. Hey Mitch, don't feel bad having a big melon, I got one too. 23 7/8 inches. I guess us big heads are kind of rare around here. Anyway nice hat G, keep up the good work. Who knows maybe you'll open up your own hat shop and we'll be buying hats from you. ;-)

IndianaChris

Hmm, that must be the fedora of a gearhead. Not as clumsy or as random as a baseball cap, but an elegant headpiece for a more civilized age. ;-)

You know G, come to think of it, that hat doesn't look half bad without a ribbon... Ribbons. Who needs em, right?

I'm with Castor. That hat looks great without a ribbon! And I even like the color.



Dave

Castor Dioscuri wrote:Hmm, that must be the fedora of a gearhead. Not as clumsy or as random as a baseball cap, but an elegant headpiece for a more civilized age. ;-)

You know G, come to think of it, that hat doesn't look half bad without a ribbon... Ribbons. Who needs em, right?

nice one castor!

i had such high aspirations for finalizing this hat. i bought some vintage dark brown (not chocolate, not coffee or cappuccino colour....but dark dark brown.....indy brown!). it measured 1 7/16", was rayon or cotton/rayon, and from a dead stock from earlier in the 1900's. only 5 or 6 inches was used on the 7 yard real. its been over a month and still nothing....no communication to me despite my numerous inquiries.

i look forward to the creases i put into her.....i'm hoping she'll respond nicely.

That thick felt looks like it will hold the crease very nicely. G, that is one tough looking hat!

Dave

being a stitch nazi....the western hat body doesn't really lend itself to a dress hat look. i wish i could get a rabbit hat body that will fit my block but the supplier said they don't come that big in the brim

working with the rabbit dress bodies was very nice and it would have made for a perfect raiders-esque look. i guess i'll just have to settle for the fact that this hat will be able to take a @#$$-kick'n and ask for more

Did you ever check with Biltmore?

DR Ulloa wrote:I'm with Castor. That hat looks great without a ribbon! And I even like the color.

Yeah, I've gotta say... that color is really, REALLY nice. THAT - and that thick, tough looking brim - really has me looking forward to seeing it finished (especially so I can see what G can do to it in the way of the bash).

But, while it DOES look pretty great even WITHOUT the ribbon...(and I hope this doesn't SHOCK ;-) anyone reading this) I'm STILL looking forward to seeing this baby WITH a nice, darker ribbon and handsome bow!

Things ARE looking GREAT, though...
Keep us posted, G!
Mitch

RCSignals wrote:Did you ever check with Biltmore?

i sent them an e-mail and they never replied.....

Incredible job my friend! I'm in that step too, but using a wool body
Keep up the good work!
Best Regards,
-Alfonso

Indiana G wrote:

RCSignals wrote:Did you ever check with Biltmore?

I sent them an e-mail and they never replied.....

Give them a phone call. Tell them you are Canadian and want to buy Canadian.

I GOT IT!!!!!!!!!! 12 yards of the most beautiful indy brown ribbon.......enough for 12 hats....but i just need enough for one right now

this hat is finished tonite!!! will post pics


btw, RC, i did call biltmore....they did not have any hat bodies or ribbon to help me with (in stock). you were right though, erica was extremely helpful and friendly. she pointed my in the direction of some potential suppliers but only one being canadian......i may give him a call to see what he's got for hat bodies; i would love to make at least one hat that is a raiders hat, and as floppy as the TOD cockpit hat. i'm using that as an example because you can actually see how 'mushy' it is when willie grabs it.........stay tuned folks!.........and no, no one can have it

Indiana G wrote:...and no, no one can have it

Something tells me you're going to have to start getting used to "Hat Hounds" barking at your door, G!
(They - alright... WE - can smell new ribbon like fresh meat...)

Looking forward to those pictures.

Best of Luck with everything!

Indiana G wrote:this hat is finished tonite!!! will post pics

;0

Dave

DR Ulloa wrote:

Indiana G wrote:this hat is finished tonite!!! will post pics

;0

Dave

it's on my 'my herbert johnson' thread ;-)

Was there a problem with hatsupply.com's hat bodies? Too small?

3thoubucks wrote:Was there a problem with hatsupply.com's hat bodies? Too small?

don't know....i don't order hat bodies from them. i get mine from winchester.

Check Mark Brody's sticky hat making tutorial. That's where he got his hat body!