Roll yr own hats

[Zorg]

Here's two really neat sites on feltmaking, including one with hat form blanks for shaping.

Roll yr own cocked hat.

:)

http://www.geocities.com/sallypointer/Pointyhats.html

http://www.hatshapers.com/

Z

[blackjohn]

Nice. Thanks for the links. I'm always on a quest for a better hat.

As for those pointed witches' hats, it's pretty neat to think that the earliest example dates to about the 4th or 3rd century BC from a grave find in China's Tarim basin.

Blackjohn

[Stynky Tudor]

Aye felting to make ones hat be a fun and time honored tradition, but it’s a hell of a lot of work. A couple years ago I was doing some felting, working with pre-dyed, carded fleece to make me own hat blanks. Even after the learning curve, I found it difficult to maintain quality and consistency. It gave me a real appreciation for the process before machines. Especially after last year when I threw my back out while making my last hat blank. It’s still sitting down in the basement on my felting table unfinished.

And though mercury works well and is period for stiffening one’s felt, even limited exposure to it isn’t really a good idea, thus the term, ‘Mad as a Hatter’. It’s better to use something like shellac or hydrolac for such things.

If anyone here does go through the process of making one’s own hat blank and\or even just shaping a premade hat blank, please let us all know and share some pictures.

[Zorg]

And though mercury works well and is period for stiffening one’s felt, even limited exposure to it isn’t really a good idea, thus the term, ‘Mad as a Hatter’. It’s better to use something like shellac or hydrolac for such things.

Actually, even a good starch will work. I know a number of fiber artists that use either spray starch worked into the fabric or, as you said, a dilute shellac.

As for the effects of mercury, They're overstated. Now if you'll excuse me, the winged giraffe here wants to use the computer and I have to get back to working on the hats if the table will just stop melting.......

[Stynky Tudor]

As for the effects of mercury, They're overstated.  Now if you'll excuse me, the winged giraffe here wants to use the computer and I have to get back to working on the hats if the table will just stop melting.......

LOL, Now that I eat 10 pounds of lead paint flakes every day, I don't have that problem anymore.

Actually, even a good starch will work.

Now maybe I just didn't work with it long enough, but I wasn't ever able to get starch to work much for me. It always seemed that within a few hours or by the end of the day, me hat was in desperate need of a reshaping.