Lightweight "Stitched-Brim" Stetson

[jimmy the lid]

I have never seen a Stetson quite like this one. The brim has concentric stitching in the style of a Milan-weave straw hat. But this is a felt lid -- incredibly lightweight, dense, exceptionally smooth felt. Judging by the liner and sweat, I would date this to somewhere around the early 50's -- there is a full complement of Stetson Philadelphia factory stickers behind the sweat. The word "Pearl" is stamped on the back of the sweat, and I imagine that it denotes the color of the hat, which is certainly unique -- an off-white color that has a very subtle undertone of what I can only describe as "key lime." The color changes, depending on the lighting. I think I've definitely found my lightweight summer felt!

Cheers,
JtL

 

[John in Covina]

Tropical!

It is a beauty and suggests a tropical fur-felt hat for certain. What a catch!

 

[Tango Yankee]

Um.... Wow. I like it. Goes great with that shirt, too!:eusa_clap :eusa_clap

Cheers,
Tom

 

[Razzman]

Sweet looking lid JTL! :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[J.T.Marcus]

That hat and shirt were made for each other!!! :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[Feraud]

A beautiful and unique hat. I seem to recall either Baron Kurtz or Marc Chevalier posting something similar.
It is good to see another one.
Enjoy.

 

[tonyb]

What I can see of the ribbon and bow, and of its color and proportions, and what you tell about the lightweight felt, leads me to suspect that what you have there is essentially a Stetson Playboy with a whole bunch of extra rows of stitching on the brim.

If you ever decide you don't want it around anymore ...

 

[carldelo]

Weird and cool

That's outstanding - I'd love that hat. Are those concentric rings, or is it one big spiral stitch? It seems like it would be difficult to do that detail stitching without a dedicated machine.

 

[jimmy the lid]

Thanks, gents.

I wasn't sure what I would ultimately think of this hat once it arrived, but I thought it unique enough to give it a shot. John in Covina, you have it right -- live and in person, the hat has a tropical feel. The stitching on the brim gives the hat a kind of Milan-weave effect that one associates with a straw lid, and the light color is reminiscent of the color you see on some Panamas.

Tango and J.T. -- it really is amazing how the hat works with that shirt. The light color on the shirt is virtually identical to the color of the hat. Very cool! Since this is a color that finds its way into a lot of tropical-style shirts, I think the hat should work out for the warm weather months!

The color of this lid is a bit tricky to capture -- the flash tends to bring out the "key lime" undertone a bit more than you would necessarily see with the naked eye. The open crown photo, taken in sunlight, shows that the coloring is more subtle. If you see the hat from across the room, it appears to be white or off-white.

tonyb -- I thought the same thing about the hat being reminiscent of a Playboy. The ribbon is slightly wider, and the crown a bit more generous than on the one Playboy I own. The brim comes in at 2 5/8". But, man, this felt is really soft and smooth.

carldelo -- glad you like the lid. And you are exactly right -- the stitching is actually done in a spiral. I literally had to take my finger and track one of the rows of stitching to catch this. Good call!

I'd love to know more about this style of lid -- how it was marketed by Stetson and how long the style was manufactured. Any thoughts or info appreciated!


Cheers,
JtL