I recently got three hat forms from Hat Shapers to make more felt hats. In the past, I just shaped my hats with the washboard and fulling techniques. I would then put plastic bags inside to hold the shape while the hat dried. But to make a hat that is really specific, it works wonders if you have a hat form. The hat above was an experiment and was only partially successful. It was going to be a flat beret with a brim but it ended up looking really silly. So I turned it into a baseball cap with the help of a hat form. It still looks a bit silly but at least it doesn’t cause people to fall down laughing.

 This hat is a sample made using a Columbia wool from Oregon. It comes in these really nice tweedy colors. It doesn’t felt as quickly as merino but it’s very sturdy and works really well for hats. I used the fedora hat shaper for this one and it actually looks like a fedora.

I used flax and bamboo fiber to add a little embellishment to the brim. I’m still trying to work out where you put embellishments that will end up in the area of the hat band. It’s hard to determine that exactly because of the shrinkage and how the hat form works. I never thought I would like making hats but with the hat forms, they are really easy. I have no connection with Hat Shapers but I do like their products.