History of Wool & Fur Felt Hats - Handmade Hat Making
Felt has been used for producing headwear for many centuries and is
perhaps the oldest textile material. Archaeological evidence shows that from
very early on, people discovered the tendency for fibres to mat together
when warm and damp,
many years before they learned how to spin and weave yarn.
To this day there are three varieties of felt used for hat making. Wool
felt, Fur felt and Beaver felt. Beaver felt hats date back as far as the 14th
Century with the majority of production being based in
In the late 1800s, the traditional and independent hatters who made the
hats they sold in their shops were soon to be replaced by large hat making
factories due to the advent of steam power, which made the hatters bow
redundant. Many of these factories combined both the felt making process with
the production of the finished article. Importing the fur from various overseas
sources, fur mainly from
In recent years, although the hat has seen a marked revival, many of the
traditional hat factories have been faced with closure as a result of cheaper
imports from both the Eastern block countries as well as the
Fur Felt Hats
Fur felt hats are produced most commonly from Rabbit fur with some of
the better quality hats being made from Beaver, although beaver today is
exceedingly rare. Hare fur today is also fairly common with a combination of
Rabbit and fur being more popular.
Beaver Fur Pelts
The initial stage in the hat making process would be the plucking of the
coarse guard hairs from the Beaver pelt,
which was then brushed, with a
solution of nitrate of mercury.
This would raise the scales on the fur shafts so that they would become
firmly locked together. This process became known as "carotting"
and if carried out in a poorly ventilated room, the mercury fumes could damage
the brain, hence the expression "mad as a hatter". The fibres would
then be cut from the skin and placed on a bench in a workroom known as the
"hurdle". Over the bench would be suspended a hatter's bow, very much
like an oversized violin bow and the fibres responded to the vibrations of the
bow which was controlled by the craftsmen, separating themselves and becoming
evenly distributed until they had formed into a thick but loosely structured
mat of material known as the "batt". Several batts would then be shaped into a cone and reduced in
size by boiling and then rolled to create a firm dense felt. The hood would
then be sent onto the hatter who would mould it to the required shape and then
line and finish it.
Hats made from Beaver felt were to see a marked decline in the mid 1800s
and gradually became replaced by the Silk hat,
followed by Fur felt hats and
Wool felt hats.
Rabbit / Hare
Specific breeds of Rabbit are preferred with the majority of fur being
produced in
The initial stage is the production of a cone. This is produced by
placing a certain quantity of fur onto the top of the forming chamber (an
upright cylindrical compartment - within which is housed a copper cone
approximately one metre in height). The cone which is perforated revolves
slowly and an exhaust fan beneath it sucks the air and the loose fur in the
chamber down onto the revolving cone, creating a matt of loosely interwoven
fibres. The cone is then immersed in a vat of very hot water where the heat of
the water shrinks the fibres thus starting the felting process. The fur, which
has formed into a loose layer of felt, is then removed from the cone.
At this stage the felt hood is many times larger than the final finished
hood. To achieve such a significant reduction in size, the layer of felt is put
through the processes of folding, dipping in hot water
and then finally it is put through rollers which will squeeze out any of the
excess fluid, thereby furthering the felting process.
Hood
Blocking
Felt hoods are generally blocked on wooden blocks. The wood for these
blocks tends to come from the American Poplar tree as it has no grain, which if
present would show in the blocking process. A hat block is required for every
size of hat and for every shape of hat and with the current price at around $600
per block, the creation of a new style of hat
represents today a fairly heavy investment.
Flanging
Flanging is the term used to describe the forming or creation of the
brim. The brim is first ironed flat. It is then cut to the required width,
placed on a wooden flange of the necessary shape, ironed and finally dried and
pressed.
Stiffening and Sanding
A stiffener such as shellac is normally always required for the brims
and obviously the more stiffener applied the stiffer
the brim. Stiffener is often avoided in the crowns of fur felt hoods, although
is regularly used in wool felts.
Finally the hat is sanded many times, to create a smooth texture so
characteristic of the fine Fur felt hats.
Trimming
The final stage of the hat process is the trimming. This will include
the insertion of a leather inner band or similar, the lining of the hat as well
as the application of some outer band. The latter, although a relatively simple
process can be the most significant in the terms of the final appearance of the
finished hat, very much determining the character of the hat and consequently
its potential wearer. The more flamboyant the trim, e.g. feather band or silk
band, the more flamboyant and individualistic in style the wearer.
Wool
Felt Hats
These are produced from Sheep's Wool and consequently are significantly
coarser in touch in comparison to the soft Fur felt. They have in recent years
gained in popularity primarily due their competitive price advantage and
because of this are particularly favoured as a fashion item. They do not wear
as well as fur felts and unlike fur felts have a tendency of losing their shape
and shrinking if exposed to rain. The hat making processes involved in
producing a wool felt hat are very similar to those used for Fur felts,
although many of the additional finishing and sanding processes required to
produce a fine Fur felt are obviously not required.
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