Cheap, quick, easy, and perfect. I bought a 1/2 pint ($3) of clear shellac, used 91% alcohol ($1) and a mixture of 4:1. I took 8 oz. of 91% alcohol and 2 oz. of clear shellac mixed in a spray bottle. Brush hat clean, then sprayed several coats until damp on upper and lower side of a 3 yr. old mink color fur felt Stetson Temple ($229) which would no longer hold shape. Sprayed lower side first. After approximately 30 minutes when lower side was no longer tacky, I sprayed the upper side of brim. Drying time was approximately 30-45 minutes. I shaped the brim as it dried and let it set overnight. The stiffness of the brim was absolutely perfect as was the shape with NO discoloration. I could not have been more pleased. NO problems, quick, easy, worked perfect, at a cost of ONLY $4. Cheaper than any other product sold or advised (shellac chips).
Was coming to the comments to see if this was possible. Thank you for the answer. Been using chips and the process and time to dilute too long and yes expensive for the chips. Can't tell you how many times I ran out of a batch in the middle of stiffening a large batch of hats and had to stop and shake a gallon jug of an hour so that I could continue lol.
If there are more hat-making videos on youtube as helpful as this, this is the first I'm learning of them - thanks so much for sharing your knowledge!!
About 2 days ago I did shellac on the inside and it took the hat shape very nicely, I put the plastic wrap and it helped to not get stuck on the hat shaper, though when I took the plastic wrap there are some shiny spots and wrinkles from the plastic wrap....... Doesn't bother me much cause it's on the inside. Today I did another coat of shellac on the inside and on the brim and outside to make it semi water-resistant. This time I'm not putting the hat shaper on the inside. Let's see what happens it looks pretty good it's almost done.
Am I likely to make a hat? No. Am I fascinated by the idea that I COULD? Heck yeah! I love knowing what goes into making things. It's always helpful to have facts when giving people crap when they whine about handmade goods being "so expensive".
You all prolly dont give a shit but does anyone know a trick to get back into an Instagram account? I somehow lost my login password. I would appreciate any help you can offer me!
@Ishaan Ayden Thanks for your reply. I found the site on google and im waiting for the hacking stuff atm. Looks like it's gonna take a while so I will reply here later with my results.
Thank you for your videos. I have been "upcycling" used fedoras but haven't done any for a year (covid depression). Your videos have given me great new information and new motivation, to get out my hat stuff again. Your videos are great for an amateur like me.
2 years late, nevertheless, a big THANK YOU for you channel and sharing this wonderful craft. I hope to pickup enough knowledge to start hat making - just for myself (I suffer chronic migraine and the sun shines an awful lot here in Australia, either triggering migraines, or turning a moderate headache into a really bad one, so hats are an essential piece of kit for me). Many many thanks for your detailed information 😊🙏👒💜
I also tried the shellac on the inside of a rabbit fur hat but when it dried, it looks shiny and wet and has the plastic prints. But what I'm concerned about it the under brim! I also sprayed shellac and it's not quite sanding off... I guess this process is learn as u go. Would definitely love more videos like this or about fur felts and weights and different types. Ty
Great video. I'm starting to keep rabbits and I happen to be interested in this sort of thing. I recently made my own silk. I also make shoes. Anyway I am having a time trying to find info on actually making one's own rabbit felt from fur. Can you point me know in the right direction?
my 3x 100% wool felt cowboy hat has pretty much no stiffness left. would i be able to use the shellac in this video to spray my hat and give it some body back?
Thanks so much! I'm working on my third hat and carving a basic wood hat block so I can try my first shellacked shaped hat. I hacked a portable steam cleaner for my steam source. And I'm excited to see you using regular shellac I thought I might have to buy something special online because of wax in the shellac? Anyway I'm super excited to be doing this and you are such an inspiration thank you.
i would love to see how to make an indo-aryan phallus / pointed Hat from the past. (if i look on ebay there is only halloween stuff but not a serious Hat available.. so i guess i have to create it by myself)
Thank you for an informative video. I have 2 projects the first is reworking an old fedora that needs to be reblocked. the second is making one from scratch (Ok, this grew out of trying to figure out the first one.) It looks like fun. My question is how much new shellac do I need to apply when reworking the fedora. It is wool felt and seems to be of reasonable quality. Do I go by feel? I am familiar with shellac from woodworking.
when i use this shellac i can see a "snail trail" sheen when it dries. is that normal? should i steam the shellac ferther into the felt? or thin the shellac more? its tricky to sort out. id appreciate any tips!
it makes the hat a bit more resistant to water when you stiffen first. You would be able to still work with it but you wouldn't want to try and stretch it/pull on it as much.
You add this foam that has a sticky side. You put it on the underside. They sell them at hat stores and online. I bet you could make it yourself with double sided tape and foam.
I like dyour video but I would have like to see how the black and the red came out after you applied the shellac. Can you do another video with the results. Also do you work with straw hats?
Make more please, im from the Philippines and would really like to start a fedora/hat businesses here! Godbless y’all and thank you for these videos 🙏🏻
Real Shellac is brown. Doesnt that change the color? How often does a wool felt hat need to be stiffened? Often? Are you aware they have a hat worn by Constance Hopkins who came on the Mayflower? Its crown is Sugarloafed? kind of tall and the brim is medium wide with a slight up turn. Her father Stephen is an ancestor of mine. An old guy I knew used to take old records,break them into pieces ,and soak them in alcohol. That was how he made shellac. The old records were shellac disks. Zinser used to make Bullseye shellac to cover knots in wood. Probably a different recipe today. Great video.
I've used the spray shellac on white and it hasn't discolored. I Always do a test patch first on all my lighter colors. The shellac flakes tend to be darker but can be thinned to avoid discoloration. Always test anything you feel may stain or leach color. All hats I make are stiffened to maintain their shape. And it usually takes many years and lots of wear to need to re-block and re-stiffen
Not as far as I know there are some good videos that you can find from the top hat block makers. I think a lot of them do it with measurements and from eye.
Top job the 007 Chinese evil agent used to throw his bowler hat to hurt his opponents sort of like Boris Basra off and Natisha from Bullwinkle and rocky J squirrel used Hurt their enemies Bullwinkle moose also played a character L kabon where you would hit the person with his guitar
thanks for the video. I've been using gelatin for years and am finally ready to start experimenting with shellac. I mixed my own shellac flakes into isopropyl as instructed. I'm curious if there is any difference between what I'm mixing up verses what you are using?. Do you know if its safe to add shellac to hats that have a small amount of gelatin that I soaked into it during the blocking process? ANYWAYS. great channel, love seeing how others make their hats.
Interesting! I've never used gelatin. There isn't too much difference other than with the flakes you can control how much shellac you want in your mix. The spray and cans tend to be a little thinner. I would test on a felt swatch that you did the same gelatin treatment on- there is a slight chance that the shellac will try and break it down. I'm really interested to see how it comes out!
I do several coats the first go careful not to soak all the way through, let it dry and repeat until it's at the desired hardness. Sometimes I repeat that up to four times since I like them rock hard
Cheap, quick, easy, and perfect. I bought a 1/2 pint ($3) of clear shellac, used 91% alcohol ($1) and a mixture of 4:1. I took 8 oz. of 91% alcohol and 2 oz. of clear shellac mixed in a spray bottle. Brush hat clean, then sprayed several coats until damp on upper and lower side of a 3 yr. old mink color fur felt Stetson Temple ($229) which would no longer hold shape. Sprayed lower side first. After approximately 30 minutes when lower side was no longer tacky, I sprayed the upper side of brim. Drying time was approximately 30-45 minutes. I shaped the brim as it dried and let it set overnight. The stiffness of the brim was absolutely perfect as was the shape with NO discoloration. I could not have been more pleased. NO problems, quick, easy, worked perfect, at a cost of ONLY $4. Cheaper than any other product sold or advised (shellac chips).
Was coming to the comments to see if this was possible. Thank you for the answer. Been using chips and the process and time to dilute too long and yes expensive for the chips. Can't tell you how many times I ran out of a batch in the middle of stiffening a large batch of hats and had to stop and shake a gallon jug of an hour so that I could continue lol.
If there are more hat-making videos on youtube as helpful as this, this is the first I'm learning of them - thanks so much for sharing your knowledge!!
About 2 days ago I did shellac on the inside and it took the hat shape very nicely, I put the plastic wrap and it helped to not get stuck on the hat shaper, though when I took the plastic wrap there are some shiny spots and wrinkles from the plastic wrap....... Doesn't bother me much cause it's on the inside. Today I did another coat of shellac on the inside and on the brim and outside to make it semi water-resistant. This time I'm not putting the hat shaper on the inside. Let's see what happens it looks pretty good it's almost done.
Am I likely to make a hat? No. Am I fascinated by the idea that I COULD? Heck yeah!
I love knowing what goes into making things. It's always helpful to have facts when giving people crap when they whine about handmade goods being "so expensive".
You all prolly dont give a shit but does anyone know a trick to get back into an Instagram account?
I somehow lost my login password. I would appreciate any help you can offer me!
@Alonso Felipe Instablaster :)
@Ishaan Ayden Thanks for your reply. I found the site on google and im waiting for the hacking stuff atm.
Looks like it's gonna take a while so I will reply here later with my results.
@Ishaan Ayden It did the trick and I finally got access to my account again. I'm so happy!
Thanks so much you saved my account !
@Alonso Felipe glad I could help =)
Thank you for your videos. I have been "upcycling" used fedoras but haven't done any for a year (covid depression). Your videos have given me great new information and new motivation, to get out my hat stuff again. Your videos are great for an amateur like me.
What do you do about the smell?
I love the hats as well as the piece of history you told us about them 🥰
2 years late, nevertheless, a big THANK YOU for you channel and sharing this wonderful craft. I hope to pickup enough knowledge to start hat making - just for myself (I suffer chronic migraine and the sun shines an awful lot here in Australia, either triggering migraines, or turning a moderate headache into a really bad one, so hats are an essential piece of kit for me).
Many many thanks for your detailed information 😊🙏👒💜
Glad you wear a respirator. The old chemicals were very toxic, hence the expression’ mad hatter’
Mercury
I also tried the shellac on the inside of a rabbit fur hat but when it dried, it looks shiny and wet and has the plastic prints. But what I'm concerned about it the under brim! I also sprayed shellac and it's not quite sanding off... I guess this process is learn as u go. Would definitely love more videos like this or about fur felts and weights and different types. Ty
you have to take a cloth or a paintbrush and really work it into the felt to make sure it doesn't get shiny. Will make more going over the shellac :D
Un gros MERCI, vous d'une grande gentillesse et générosité!❤
Thank you for your videos. If you can do a video on sewing a hat band and lining on a fidora style that would be great. I cant seem to find one.
stay tuned! :D
Love the gray top hat. Very informative video. Thanks !!
I would love to see more videos on hat making. I brought my hat shapers and I’m ready to follow along!!!!
i am sooo glad i found your channel! i want to make some hats. ill watch all of your videos!
Merci infiniment pour vos trucs, vous êtes très professionnelle et j'adore votre personnalité, merci encore du Québec , Canada
The derby is my favorite too. I have a derby hat souvenir from The World's Fair 1900. I also have one of the top hats that "pop" out, with the box.
I've just gotten into hats and hat making, and i love your videos. also, your style is immaculate.
Can't wait for the next videos. ❤️
Great video. I'm starting to keep rabbits and I happen to be interested in this sort of thing. I recently made my own silk. I also make shoes. Anyway I am having a time trying to find info on actually making one's own rabbit felt from fur. Can you point me know in the right direction?
It's long but helpful it's very wet and messy! I've done it once and oh my does it get everywhere. ruclips.net/video/zUoQMcZIDic/видео.html
my 3x 100% wool felt cowboy hat has pretty much no stiffness left. would i be able to use the shellac in this video to spray my hat and give it some body back?
❤ VERY INFORMATIVE, LOVED YOUR VIDEO ❤ !!!
can you do a time lapse on the full process of making a brimed hat? extremly interested in this craft. thanks!
Que tipo de feltro você usa, e espessura?
Thanks so much! I'm working on my third hat and carving a basic wood hat block so I can try my first shellacked shaped hat. I hacked a portable steam cleaner for my steam source. And I'm excited to see you using regular shellac I thought I might have to buy something special online because of wax in the shellac? Anyway I'm super excited to be doing this and you are such an inspiration thank you.
can I apply it on rabbit felt for a rigid structure? 🙂thanks
Thank You
do you machine sew your sweatbands into your hats?
if it is a flexible hat like a fedora or such I do. If it is one of my very hard bowler hats I hand sew it in,
Where did u buy the hot plate for the iron?
i would love to see how to make an indo-aryan phallus / pointed Hat from the past.
(if i look on ebay there is only halloween stuff but not a serious Hat available.. so i guess i have to create it by myself)
Do u use a specific type of alcohol is used inHat making
next tutorial you make.... "how I tie my headscarf"
also, I am really interested in reblocking vintage/antique hats that have gotten squished.
When starting a new hat, is this the first thing to do ? Adding the shellack, then steaming, then putting it on the hat block ?
Steaming it, put it on the hat block, allow to dry fully for 24hours then shellac
Thank you for an informative video. I have 2 projects the first is reworking an old fedora that needs to be reblocked. the second is making one from scratch (Ok, this grew out of trying to figure out the first one.) It looks like fun. My question is how much new shellac do I need to apply when reworking the fedora. It is wool felt and seems to be of reasonable quality. Do I go by feel? I am familiar with shellac from woodworking.
This was incredibly helpful. Though....when you spray the shellac is the hat wet or dry?
when i use this shellac i can see a "snail trail" sheen when it dries. is that normal? should i steam the shellac ferther into the felt? or thin the shellac more? its tricky to sort out. id appreciate any tips!
Newbie here-loving your tutorial. Why do we need to shellac?
Oops. You kind of explained it later. Yes, agree, hat making is an art that needs to be preserved.
Que material usa para hacer ese sombrero??
Friggin hats man!
What would happen if you used a felt stiffener before you steam and shape the hat?
it makes the hat a bit more resistant to water when you stiffen first. You would be able to still work with it but you wouldn't want to try and stretch it/pull on it as much.
What type of equipment would I need to do this at home?
Tell me the shellac is not dangerous for the scalp and the hair, or the skin?
Not after it has dried, you can even cover wooden dishes or spoons ect with it and use them to eat with.
@@bunnybragg5145 Merci énormément de vos réponses,.
@@intergamme J’étais heureux de le faire
how do you size a hat if a hat is a little too big can you down size it?
You add this foam that has a sticky side. You put it on the underside. They sell them at hat stores and online. I bet you could make it yourself with double sided tape and foam.
I like dyour video but I would have like to see how the black and the red came out after you applied the shellac. Can you do another video with the results. Also do you work with straw hats?
I need more 😭😭
Make more please, im from the Philippines and would really like to start a fedora/hat businesses here! Godbless y’all and thank you for these videos 🙏🏻
Real Shellac is brown. Doesnt that change the color? How often does a wool felt hat need to be stiffened? Often? Are you aware they have a hat worn by Constance Hopkins who came on the Mayflower? Its crown is Sugarloafed? kind of tall and the brim is medium wide with a slight up turn. Her father Stephen is an ancestor of mine. An old guy I knew used to take old records,break them into pieces ,and soak them in alcohol. That was how he made shellac. The old records were shellac disks. Zinser used to make Bullseye shellac to cover knots in wood. Probably a different recipe today. Great video.
I've used the spray shellac on white and it hasn't discolored. I Always do a test patch first on all my lighter colors. The shellac flakes tend to be darker but can be thinned to avoid discoloration. Always test anything you feel may stain or leach color. All hats I make are stiffened to maintain their shape. And it usually takes many years and lots of wear to need to re-block and re-stiffen
I would love to see how you blocked that top hat. These videos are great.
Very cool and helpful video! Thanks!!
Hi, where did you get your hat mold you used in the video? If you don’t mind sharing.. 😊
The one that I used for the first hat was a hat block that we made. The other hat shapes that you see in the video are from Hatshapers.com
My husband would like to make the wooden hat forms. Is there a source for hat form patterns?
Not as far as I know there are some good videos that you can find from the top hat block makers. I think a lot of them do it with measurements and from eye.
THANKS FOR YOUR TUTORIALS
Top job the 007 Chinese evil agent used to throw his bowler hat to hurt his opponents sort of like Boris Basra off and Natisha from Bullwinkle and rocky J squirrel used Hurt their enemies Bullwinkle moose also played a character L kabon where you would hit the person with his guitar
Can you tell me what material the hat is made please
Felt, I work with both wool felt and fur felt (rabbit or beaver)
thanks for the video. I've been using gelatin for years and am finally ready to start experimenting with shellac. I mixed my own shellac flakes into isopropyl as instructed. I'm curious if there is any difference between what I'm mixing up verses what you are using?. Do you know if its safe to add shellac to hats that have a small amount of gelatin that I soaked into it during the blocking process? ANYWAYS. great channel, love seeing how others make their hats.
Interesting! I've never used gelatin. There isn't too much difference other than with the flakes you can control how much shellac you want in your mix. The spray and cans tend to be a little thinner. I would test on a felt swatch that you did the same gelatin treatment on- there is a slight chance that the shellac will try and break it down. I'm really interested to see how it comes out!
Hello can you please let me know where can i contact to you for order?
Which felt did she use ?
Used both rabbit fur felt and wool felt. I prefer rabbit or beaver they are much easier to use and give a cleaner finish.
Here in Nigeria what can we use to make it hard apart from Shelia?
Here is a list of hardeners you can use- several are available internationally :) hatacademy.com/profiles/blogs/which-stiffener-should-i-use
How to cut it and fold
Can you use shellac on hats made of woven material?
yes you can- make sure you use a brush to get it smooth onto the fibers- it may take a few coats
About how many coats of shellac do you use on the bowlers?
I do several coats the first go careful not to soak all the way through, let it dry and repeat until it's at the desired hardness. Sometimes I repeat that up to four times since I like them rock hard
Can i use with a straw hat (vintage boater)?
Yes you can- make sure it's very very clean first before you spray it
Thank you, very helpful!
Thank you
Amazing!
🎩 💗
Thank you 🙏🏻
nice thanks
Not bad!
God bless you
Too much talk
You are wonderful! Thank you