HAT 



2713 



HAT 



slipped over the crown. While on the block 

 or mold the hat is dyed, stiffened with size, 

 and dried. A Derby is stiffened with a solu- 

 tion of shellac in alcohol. The hat is then 

 removed to another block, on which it re- 

 ceives finishing touches; it is sandpapered to 

 remove any unevenness of surface, the sweat- 

 band, lining and trimmings are attached and 

 after a final shaping and testing on the block 

 it is ready for the market. 



Silk Hats. The first silk hats were made 

 in Florence, Italy, about 1760. They are tall 

 and stiff, flat on the top, rounded like a 

 stovepipe, and have a satiny luster. In their 

 manufacture silk plush takes the place of 

 beaver fur, which was once used but has be- 

 come too scarce and costly for the purpose. 



Women's hats, made of straw, felt, fur or cloth, 

 are trimmed in many ways. Fur, feathers, 

 ribbons and flowers are the principal trim- 

 mings, varied to meet the requirements of the 

 prevailing mode. Audubon societies are en- 

 gaged in a crusade to prevail upon women not 

 to wear any part of a bird upon their hats 

 (see AUDUBON SOCIETY). In less civilized coun- 

 tries fashion decrees fewer changes; a certain 

 style of headdress once adopted is held for 

 generations. The women of Sikkim, India, 

 wear an extravagant, turbanlike erection deco- 

 rated with gold ornaments and precious stones. 

 The Shan girls and many of the coolies of 

 Indo-China wear a huge hat of plaited straw, 

 with a brim like an umbrella and a big cone 

 on the top. The Burmese are partial to a 



SOME STYLES IN HATS WHICH SELDOM CHANGE 



(1) Headdress worn in parts of India. (2) Straw hat with cone-shaped crown, worn over a tur- 

 ban ; the hat of Shan girls in Burma. (3) Straw hat worn by men in Burma. (4) Turbanlike hat 

 made of strips of cloth, worn by women in parts of Indo-China. ( 5 ) A straw cap bound by a metal 

 band constitutes the head covering of the Igorot in the Philippines who has not yet come under the 

 influence of the Americans. (6) Headdress of Swedish girl. (7) The Siamese hill women wear this 

 style of headdress. 



The body is now made of calico, stiffened with 

 shellac, the plush being shaped on a block 

 and cemented to the frame of the hat. The 

 brim is made of two or three thicknesses of 

 stiffened calico. The plush is brushed and 

 ironed until it adheres to the frame without 

 creases, the trimmings are added and the hat 

 is ready for use. The machinery used in 

 making silk and Derby hats is of American 

 origin. 



Straw Hats. The straw used in modern 

 hats is chiefly grown in Italy, Japan and China, 

 and is exported from those countries in braids 

 which are afterwards wound into the required 

 shapes. Machinery is used for sewing the 

 braids and hydraulic presses are usually em- 

 ployed to fix the shapes. Sizing is used to 

 stiffen the straw, which accounts for the sticky 

 feeling of a straw hat dampened by rai-n. 



Hats of the World. In civilized countries 

 hats vary greatly in shape, size and color, but 

 the materials remain the same year after year. 



somewhat similarly-shaped hat, although the 

 women usually wear a cloth hat without a 

 brim, shaped like a large fez. The formerly 

 savage Igorrote of the Philippines wears a small 

 "pillbox," made of straw and bound by a metal 

 band. The headdress of the Swedish peasant 

 girls is simply and attractively made of cloth, 

 the color depending on individual taste. In 

 shape it resembles the hood formerly worn 

 on cloaks, and may cover the head when 

 required. The Siamese hill women go to 

 extremes, and wear a huge structure with an 

 erection of lace on a light wooden framework. 

 The headdress of many natives of Africa con- 

 sists merely of feathers, and the Indians of 

 North America usually wore elaborate cover- 

 ings of skins decorated with gayly-colored 

 feathers. It is probable that all head cover- 

 ing originated in the desire for ornamentation 

 rather than utility. F.ST.A. 



Consult Rhead's Chats on Costume; Hughes' 

 Dress Designs. 



