Ask a question, get an answer

[belfastboy]

Thank you for explaining. Being new I didn’t realize there was that kind of focus. My intention was to ask about them as a company, as far as the quality of product and service, not so much about the style. I’m working my way up to higher quality hats, but I do like a fair range of materials and colors like they have. Most of my hats fall in the cheaper price range, only a few over $100.

Save your money and transition to higher quality. A wool hat screams 'cheap' from across the room. They don't look great out of the box and they certainly do not stand up to the rigours of weather and wear.

 

[jeffgarf]

Save your money and transition to higher quality. A wool hat screams 'cheap' from across the room. The don't look great out of the box and they certainly do not stand up to the rigours of weather and wear.

What he said.

 

[Jon Crow]

If you can do $90 for a hat, then you might consider shopping eBay for a vintage one. Just about anything in good condition made before 1965 is gonna beat almost anything made today (bespoke not included), and you can find them for less than $90.

Which is why I prefer my Vintage Lyon not the modern one

 

[Cleo’s Daddy]

I’ve just ordered the Stetson Whippet in Tawny. How does the shop’s screen colour compare to the real thing. Any photo of one worn outside on the Fedora Lounge?

 

[Uncle Bennie]

I’ve just ordered the Stetson Whippet in Tawny. How does the shop’s screen colour compare to the real thing. Any photo of one worn outside on the Fedora Lounge?

I don’t have any pictures of one in the wild or anything, but you’re really going to like it, I’m glad you got what you wanted.

 

[Cleo’s Daddy]

I don’t have any pictures of one in the wild or anything, but you’re really going to like it, I’m glad you got what you wanted.

I found a pic of one on FL in good light which, I’m pleased, is lighter in tone than on the shop website. It’ll go great with my tweed overcoat and my suit and sports coats. The self consciousness I had initially is gone and I can’t wait to wear it.

 

[Uncle Bennie]

I found a pic of one on FL in good light which, I’m pleased, is lighter in tone than on the shop website. It’ll go great with my tweed overcoat and my suit and sports coats. The self consciousness I had initially is gone and I can’t wait to wear it.

That’s great man! You gotta let us know how it looks when you get it!

 

[RickP]

Pretty good choice for a first hat... enjoy it. Once youve worn it a bit. Id suggest looking around for an older Whippett. Depending on what style makes you smile, you might find you like the looks of older styling better. I have a modern Tawny Whippett, and its a great little knock around hat

The newer versions of the hat have a lower crown and a bit more inward curve. The older hats generally have taller and straighter crowns... to my eye the older hats display a bit more attitude lol. I wear my old one a lot

Fortunately for us these days, Stetson back in the day made several Whippet-like models with the wide brim binding... Ive seen lots or Royals and Royal Deluxes like those with taller crowns in almost new condition for pretty close to the price point of the modern Whippett.... If you like the style, you have options for the future... Enjoy your new lid!

 

[The Shoe]

A quick recommendation and a question. I know they’re not popular on here, but I would avoid purchasing anything directly from Chritys’ for the time being. I ordered two cloche hats for Etsuko. On December 16th I got a message that the hats were on the way, with a tracking number. By the next day, DHL showed “Shipment information received” and estimated delivery date of December 21-22. That date arrived, but no hats. Tracking still showed “Shipment information received”, but the delivery date had been updated to December 22-24. That date came and went. Checking the website, it said they would have a new website up in January. All the links were missing from the homepage. On the 26th, I sent an email asking about my order. They say they reply within 5 working days. Being the Christmas New Year period, I stayed patient, but sent a polite, but more strongly worded email yesterday. I’ve just found this website that has reviews of Christys by a lot of people in the same situation.
Has anyone heard anything about this? Maybe you can help me, @Edward?

 

[The Shoe]

Further to this, Google Maps shows Christys’ as being “temporarily closed”.
I think it may be time to start chargeback proceedings with my credit card company.

 

[Dan718]

Pretty good choice for a first hat... enjoy it. Once youve worn it a bit. Id suggest looking around for an older Whippett. Depending on what style makes you smile, you might find you like the looks of older styling better. I have a modern Tawny Whippett, and its a great little knock around hat

View attachment 760860 View attachment 760861

The newer versions of the hat have a lower crown and a bit more inward curve. The older hats generally have taller and straighter crowns... to my eye the older hats display a bit more attitude lol. I wear my old one a lot

View attachment 760863 View attachment 760862

Fortunately for us these days, Stetson back in the day made several Whippet-like models with the wide brim binding... Ive seen lots or Royals and Royal Deluxes like those with taller crowns in almost new condition for pretty close to the price point of the modern Whippett.... If you like the style, you have options for the future... Enjoy your new lid!

I’ve been considering one of these too. A bit less high value than the Borsalino, a bit more subtle and suited to daily use than the Fed IV, a true knockabout hat.

 

[RickP]

I’ve been considering one of these too. A bit less high value than the Borsalino, a bit more subtle and suited to daily use than the Fed IV, a true knockabout hat.

Most the older Stetson Whippet-ish like hats that Ive handled have been modestly lightweight felt..... much easier for year round wear compared to a heavier felt of a Campdraft or FedIV ( athough I do love both of those)

 

[Dan718]

Most the older Stetson Whippet-ish like hats that Ive handled have been modestly lightweight felt..... much easier for year round wear compared to a heavier felt of a Campdraft or FedIV ( athough I do love both of those)

That’s what I was thinking. The Fed IV is a great winter hat, but I don’t see myself wearing it through the summer except in terms of its shading capacity.

I’m still considering another akubra for a general fieldwork hat, but as a ‘knockabout’ a fairly unprepossessing lightweight fedora is probably what’s needed, and the Borsalino while a cracking hat, feels a bit too refined for that.

 

[jeffgarf]

Further to this, Google Maps shows Christys’ as being “temporarily closed”.
I think it may be time to start chargeback proceedings with my credit card company.

I ordered my hat as part of their sale and received it in the US in the time it was said to be shipped. I did notice the website change right before New Year's and was interested to see what was coming next. I did not think closing a 250 year old business was it, though.

 

[The Shoe]

I ordered my hat as part of their sale and received it in the US in the time it was said to be shipped. I did notice the website change right before New Year's and was interested to see what was coming next. I did not think closing a 250 year old business was it, though.

Right? I ordered these during the sale, too. From all appearances, it looks like they’ve registered a whole lot of hat deliveries, taken the money and done a runner. If that is the case, it’s a pretty ignominious way for a 250 year old business to end.

 

[Edward]

A quick recommendation and a question. I know they’re not popular on here, but I would avoid purchasing anything directly from Chritys’ for the time being. I ordered two cloche hats for Etsuko. On December 16th I got a message that the hats were on the way, with a tracking number. By the next day, DHL showed “Shipment information received” and estimated delivery date of December 21-22. That date arrived, but no hats. Tracking still showed “Shipment information received”, but the delivery date had been updated to December 22-24. That date came and went. Checking the website, it said they would have a new website up in January. All the links were missing from the homepage. On the 26th, I sent an email asking about my order. They say they reply within 5 working days. Being the Christmas New Year period, I stayed patient, but sent a polite, but more strongly worded email yesterday. I’ve just found this website that has reviews of Christys by a lot of people in the same situation.
Has anyone heard anything about this? Maybe you can help me, @Edward?

I've done a bit of digging around, and I can't find out any more. I suspect if they'd gone under as a brand it would have been reported *somewhere*. Seems most likely that this is a combination of them taking a longer holiday over the Christmas / New Year period, and either there being some sort of delay in processing at their end, or a sudden run on low stock, or postal delays out of their hands or all of the above. There were instances I heard of of significant delays in postage across the board for anything in the UK in late November / December this year, so it's possible they got hit with that.

The London store is coping up as open as normal on the web for me, I guess you could try giving them a call around the time difference - https://discountmum.co.uk/place/christys-london-london/ number there. I don't know whether they are running the same accounts as the webshop, though - they may be siloed. Beyond that your options do seem to be either wait it out or engage the credit card charge back. Hope you get it sorted either way; it's always frustrating when companies do the 'new website coming soon' thing and then leave us all in the dark.

 

[Jedi Leba]

How tight is your range of hat size that you would consider buying?

My experience has been limited to S/M/L/XL sizing, which isn’t super precise. I’ve measured my head at 58 and 59, and tonight my wife said it was 58.5. Which puts me into a Large with some amount of padding, depending on the hat, since I don’t want to risk the Medium being too small.

For hats that are sold by the centimeter, I figure to buy 59. In American sizing, the charts I’ve seen have leaned me toward 7 1/4.

My quandary comes from the following pic on a listing for a vintage fur felt hat that has a 7 1/4 tag but measures on the small side. With my measurements and this hat’s credentials, would you recommend going for it and potentially having to try to stretch it?

 

[Rocktransformed]

I like the look of hats like the Stetson Open Road or Stratoliner, but when I went to a local western wear store to try on the Open Road last year, I found that... it did not fit me. The 7 1/8 was too tight and the crown too shallow, and the 7 1/4 was too loose, especially on the sides, but I think also still a bit off in the front and back as well. I learned that I have a long oval head shape, and the off-the-rack shape of those hats did not fit me.

What are my best options for getting a hat that actually fits me right? Get a 7 1/8 and get it stretched? Search eBay for vintage long oval shaped hats? I'm not really up for spending $850 on a Garrahan Trailsman or whatever, when I'm still not sure I won't just look silly in a hat of this type.

 

[blewnote]

I like the look of hats like the Stetson Open Road or Stratoliner, but when I went to a local western wear store to try on the Open Road last year, I found that... it did not fit me. The 7 1/8 was too tight and the crown too shallow, and the 7 1/4 was too loose, especially on the sides, but I think also still a bit off in the front and back as well. I learned that I have a long oval head shape, and the off-the-rack shape of those hats did not fit me.

What are my best options for getting a hat that actually fits me right? Get a 7 1/8 and get it stretched? Search eBay for vintage long oval shaped hats? I'm not really up for spending $850 on a Garrahan Trailsman or whatever, when I'm still not sure I won't just look silly in a hat of this type.

I'm sure the old heads with more knowledge than me can weigh in on this better, but I think I can offer some advice. I the crown on the 7 1/8 and 7 1/4 Open Roads (current production) are shallower than the vintage hats, but are the same height, so if the 7 1/8 is too shallow the 7 1/4 will be too.

If you search for long oval here I'm sure you'll find more information about that, but yes, you can certainly buy long oval hats off eBay if you look for them. I have several, even though I'm more of a regular oval. Additionally, my understanding from folks is that if you use a 2 way hat stretcher (the kind that just expands longitudinally) to stretch out a hat that is just a little tight for you it will assume a long oval shape and be more comfortable for you.

 

[Dan718]

I like the look of hats like the Stetson Open Road or Stratoliner, but when I went to a local western wear store to try on the Open Road last year, I found that... it did not fit me. The 7 1/8 was too tight and the crown too shallow, and the 7 1/4 was too loose, especially on the sides, but I think also still a bit off in the front and back as well. I learned that I have a long oval head shape, and the off-the-rack shape of those hats did not fit me.

What are my best options for getting a hat that actually fits me right? Get a 7 1/8 and get it stretched? Search eBay for vintage long oval shaped hats? I'm not really up for spending $850 on a Garrahan Trailsman or whatever, when I'm still not sure I won't just look silly in a hat of this type.

I’m between sizes so have had to deal with this.

Overall I’d go a size up and let it shrink rather than stretching a hat. Not only will stretching tend to warp the brim, but leather will shrink over time anyway.

I initially wore a size 57, I have one hat I wear regularly in that size but it’s a touch tight if I don’t wear it regularly.

On the other hand, I bought an Akubra in 58, it felt loose initially, but within a week it had shrink down to fit my head perfectly. In part due to the steaming and shaping no doubt, but going up a size was definitely the right move.