Club Obi Wan

I've been meaning to post this here for a while, but I've been busy. My birthday came and went in October. My dear sweet mother wanted to take me out shopping for a gift. I had just recently gotten a nice grey 3 piece suit, but when I got home, I realized that my Moonstone Federation was too light to wear with the suit, so I'd been thinking about getting the Carbon Grey Federation. Knowing that I wanted a new hat, we went out in Chicago. I had low expectations, knowing what kind of hats most retail stores (even those dedicated to hats) have. We stopped by a Goorin Bros store. The hats looked nice, but they were really just one step above Scalia, and all their hats in store were wool

I didn't want to be too picky and refuse anything other than my pre-selected Akubra (which I had no hope of finding in stores), but I didn't want to settle for a hat I didn't like either. We walked out of Goorin Bros empty handed, and searched for another. She found a place on her smartphone called Sid's Clothing and Hat Store. As we drove up to it, it looked like a Pawn shop from the outside. She thought it was going to be a bust, but I wasn't ready to give up just because of that. Well, it wasn't a bust. I wish I'd gotten a picture of the inside of the store. They advertise 30,000 hats in stock, and that sounds about right based on what I saw, and they were NICE hats, too. There were a few cheaper hats (there may have been some wool), but the huge majority was rabbit and they had a good number of beaver hats too. They showed me a Borsalino (pictured below) that I fell in love with. It's super soft; very comfy! Not quite an Indy hat - the brim is a little short, the crown is too low, and it's got a bit of taper to it - but it just looked so great, I couldn't pass it up. They also gave it to me in the nicest hat box I've ever seen. As we were checking out, I did a little more browsing around. They had a Stetson Stratoliner that I tried on (which is now on the wishlist), and a photo of Johnny Depp from "Public Enemies" hanging on the wall. I asked, and they said they supplied all the hats for the film. If you're ever in Chicago, this place is DEFINITELY worth checking out.

Excuse the bad pictures. I barely had time to take these, much less get all dressed up with my SLR and tripod. The picture of me in the suit was from later that evening when we went to see John Williams conduct the Chicago Symphony (yes, they performed Indiana Jones: Marion's Theme, Scherzo for Motorcycle and Orchestra, and The Adventures of Mutt). My dear sweet mother insisted on getting a picture in front of the fireplace where there was barely any lighting to speak of rather than the light-as-day-but-not-quite-so-picturesque kitchen.

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I'll definitely have to get some better pictures later.

Borsalinos are nice hats. I have had one pretty close to that one since about 1985. it could probably use a cleaning and a reblock but it's still in great shape. That one should keep you smiling for a few years.

That's a nice choice you made there. It suits you well.

If you get to the city again, visit Optimo. I have no idea what your budget is, I mean, I know you were wanting a Fed, but their stuff is nice to look at regardless. They have 2 locations in the city. I've only been to the south side store.

In September my wife and I were in Paris for our honeymoon. I can't thank enough our friends and family who helped make that possible. Anyway, one day I made the pilgrimidge to the Borsalino shop. It was a lovely little boutique in a rather lovely neighborhood. The gentleman at the shop spoke only French and Italian which added to the fun of making a hat purchase. Despite the language barrier he was extremely helpful and patient. It took me a while to decided but in the end I picked a hat that is rather similar to yours. All in all it was a wonderful experience and I have a treasure from the city of light.



Congratulations on your new Borsalino! You too have good memories tied to your hat. Wear it well and good health. Cheers.

They lied to you. Graham of Optimo did the hats for public enemies.

Nice borso

edit: Rather he did Depp's hat anyway.

Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if they did Depp's hat, but I doubt they ordered hundreds of custom hats. I'll have to check out Optimo next time I'm in town.

Better pics, including the bound edge...

Stetson is now making a new open crown Premiere Stratoliner as well, FYI.

Nice decorative stitching on the Borso, you don't see that much anymore.

So I've heard, but the only new hats I've seen are still made on "bashed" blocks.

I thought they havent been released yet? Are they out now?


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I think the last update is that retailers can order the Stratoliner. I'm interested in the gray felt hat that was pictured here and I think Tumblr with a reference to the Raiders Seaplane hat. Looked like a good color. Supposedly open crown, too, I think.

I'm sure updates will be forthcoming from Mattdeckard when he has some information.

Nice find and it looks great with your suit.

It even has a wind trolley. Nice touch.


Regards,

Indiana Jeff

erikgunnlugson wrote:I thought they havent been released yet? Are they out now?


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Officially, no. They're a part of the 2014 fall catalog. But they can be had as special orders. Fedora Lounge members have started to get theirs. I'm expecting mine in this week. Delmonico should be adding them to their website soon.

And as much as I like seeing pictures of this hat, I have to put my Moderator hat on and ask for the number of pictures to be reduced to 6 per the site rule on picture posting in a thread.


Regards,

Indiana Jeff