Thin Ribbon and Stingy Brim

[J.T.Marcus]

On my last day off, I decided to do some projects that had been on the back burner, for a while. This was a Bollman Dynafelt (wool and fur blend). The synthetic sweatband was falling apart, and I needed the 1 1/2" grosgrain ribbon for another hat. That left a camel colored body, which I hated to throw away. I replaced the sweatband with a padded fabric one. Then I went looking through my surplus hatbands and came up with this thin ribbon. I've never seen a thin ribbon on a stingy brim, but it looked so good I thought, "Why not?"

Yeah, it's got taper, but we forget that there actually was a time when hat makers (and buyers) thought a bit of taper was fashionable. It kind of reminds me of what college professors once wore. (Yes, I used to be an "adjunct" one of those.)

I'm actually thinking about keeping it, now!

 

[deanglen]

H-m-m-m-m-m-m,....not sure,... maybe. It'd would have to grow on me. Maybe just a bit more brim, J.T., fully aware that the point was the stingy brim wiith the shoestring ribbon.







dean

 

[Colby Jack]

Very nice

J.T. I like it...You wear it very well!:eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[bolthead]

I like it JT, I think it looks good. I thought of trying it myself but didn't know how it would turn out.....now I do.

 

[RBH]

JT I am not fond of stingys but I have to say that looks good on you. You did a great job!

 

[Razzman]

J.T. great job. That hat looks great on you. :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[fatwoul]

H-m-m-m-m-m-m,....not sure,... maybe. It'd would have to grow on me. Maybe just a bit more brim, J.T., fully aware that the point was the stingy brim wiith the shoestring ribbon...

Good job as the ribbon is, JT (your alterations are consistently exemplary), I tend to agree with dg on this one. I'm not sure this one suits you as well as some others I have seen. It might be because I'm not used to seeing you in a stingy.

Another thought: I don't know if it's visible on anybody else's screen, but I think i detect a slightly darker felt where the ribbon used to be, perhaps where the hat has faded a touch? I'm not really sure what could be done about that. How would this hat take to your hat dye technique? Not only might that even up the colour, but if it made the hat a little darker that might also help with the look of it on you.

I have a stingy grey wool felt (you can see it in my signature), and when I wore it, my dad was kind enough to say it made me look like a forger. So maybe I'm just picking at yours to even this score with the world. lol

 

[J.T.Marcus]

fatwoul, You are right about the slight fading. The felt that was under the ribbon is a "tad" (That's a scientific term meaning "less than a toad.") darker than the exposed felt. Whether it is obvious depends largely on the light. This was, in the final analysis, a "styling exercise" (as the automobile engineers would say.) I was impressed with the fact that it is possible to put a thin ribbon on a hat that does not usually sport such a hatband. (I did wear the hat yesterday, and I'm thinking about wearing it again. It's a change.)

 

[fatwoul]

Absolutely. As both a change, and as a styling exercise, it is an experiment that is always worth performing, and guaranteed to be a success, in that you are sure to learn something in the process.

 

[deanglen]

Hey, J.T.! Try a montana peak! Just a thought. Mr.L inspired me.





dean

 

[Tango Yankee]

An interesting exercise...

...but I think the thin ribbon throws off the visual proportions between the height of the crown and the width of the brim. It makes the crown seem much too tall for the brim.

But for me that in itself makes the exercise a success, as fatwoul noted earlier about learning from exercises, because that's a relationship I wouldn't normally consciously examine. Being able to see both the thin ribbon and the area the original ribbon covered simultaneously helped show the visual difference between the two.

Regards,
Tom

 

[carter]

J.T., That hat just looks like a Tyrolean Mtn. Hat to me.

How 'bout something like this?

I think either the fading [or the sweatband bleeding through] are going to be an issue for you. With a Tyrolean look this wouldn't be visible.

 

[pgoat]

I like it, JT!

I prefer nice wide ribbons but as I have a few stingy brim fedoras I know the wide ribbon can look disproportinate. That really balanced out the hat - and I might add it actually looks quite good on you!

 

[surely]

Hiya gents. I have a camel playboyII with a stingy brim & a thin ribbon! Will post pics asap.