The Art of Pith Helmet Puggaree Wrapping
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- Опубликовано: 7 июл 2021
- When it comes to pith helmets, British ones in particular, a puggaree is an essential component to them. Regrettably, most modern reproduction helmets feature a lackluster puggaree, or don't even feature one altogether. One of the helmets most important and iconic features, treated like an afterthought by makers. Even more disparaging, there's very little out there on how to make one yourself. With lots of reading, and looking at images of original helmets, I've formulated a method of making puggarees, that is as close to the original method as possible, with the resources I have available. I hope this video helps to cheer up your lonely sun helmet, in wanting need of a puggaree!
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Couldn’t take my eyes off your puggaree tutorial! Thanks so much for showing us how to do it. So fascinating. Will probably never make one but would be a great conversation starter when someone compliments my pith helmet which I bought on Amazon. People seem to love the look of it.
Can confirm, they are the bane of my existence.
Well, one of them, anyway.
Apparently fancy helmet cloth wrapping is a rabbit hole, who would have guessed that. Should’ve known.
I had a late friend who was with the 14th/20th interwar and seemingly each barrack block had an individual who was particularly adept in tying the pagri, there appeared to be a set rate of wet canteen payment for the services of these individuals.
By Gawd, this video is invaluable! Some observations/suggestions, if I may:
1) using standard RIT dyes, I've been able to match many vintage textiles (incl. pith helmets) quite closely. While tea is one original way it was done, I would personally rather have the color matched well than hold myself to an original method which is simply not as effective on modern materials.
2) Having said that, I'd dye the entire length of material before cutting, so that shrinkage won't matter, and all your pugarrees will match (more effective with repro helmets than original ones, which vary somewhat with age). If you do it in a deep-well sink or large basin, there's a risk that there'll be areas that the dye may be spotty due to being folded and/or not agitated during the dye process... once it's cut and applied to the helmet, however, these spotty areas seem to blend in with the rest of the material fairly well (personally, I also find slight irregularities in places add to the authentic look). If you do it in a washing machine, the color will be uniform through-out (just have to run an empty load after with bleach added to flush the dye from the washer).
3) A polished bone or plastic letter opener -looking instrument is invaluable for tucking the end piece under the body of the puggarree.
4) Your editing was truly fantastic! Everything was clear, and easy to see. The speeded up motion moved along the repetitive wrapping nicely, and you did NOT do what I see so many others do when showing how to fix something: explain the start, and then suddenly cut to the end result, leaving the viewer with that "wha' happened?" feeling. Thank you for that.
Best regards from North Hollywood, CA!
My comment from last year seems to not have posted! Thanks for the kind words and I agree with everything you mentioned in regards to dyeing, I'd definitely in the future change up most of that process for a better result!
Workable solutions! Thank you!
I made a Pith Helmet for a Tarzan and Jane Theme Cosplay. I used a helmet pattern from Muchprops and got lucky when I found this video on how to wrap the helmet to make a Puggaree. I bought 5 yards of 1" wide bias tape from Amazon for $5. That was enough bias tape for a six-layer wrap. No chin strap yet. You made the Puggaree wrapping instructions pretty clear, but I didn't wrap the axis crossings as neatly aligned as yours, still, I'm happy. I used some fabric glue to hold the start end and the final end to stay in place. PS: the bias tape has no stretch, but it has enough texture to grip the matte paint finish I put on the helmet. Thanks for solving my dilemma to get the final detail (Puggaree) that I wanted.
Why wasn’t I taught this in art class
Top ten failings of the education system right there. This is an essential life skill.
Pagri/Pagree means Turban in Punjabi/Hindi, great detailed video!
Thanks for the tutorial, worked a treat :) After a couple of goes with a dry puggaree, eventually dampened it in water and it conformed really well to the helmet and appears to hold a tighter fit. I was using a knock off pith helmet though, so no harm done :)
Glad you succeeded in getting yourself a puggaree!
Awesome! I recently bought a reproduction (French type) pith helmet that has proven to be excellent for hot weather, but the puggaree looks rather cheap and probably won't last long. Gonna have to try this method to upgrade my helmet.
I use a paddle pop stick to tuck I'm and smooth out as u warp. Great video
*Tells my friends to wrap their piths immediately*
That’s the good NCO in you!
Me who is from the East Indian Colonies : "Oh, a pith helmet wrappings tutorial? Cool, maybe i could also practice how to do that."
Jonathan : "I will be using Imperial measurements."
Me : "Welp, one can't be the master of everything."
P.s. Nice video, keep up the good work, mate.
Mate, your comment gave me a good chuckle! Thanks for that!
Glad to see you're liking my work!
Ahh, now where was THIS video when I was doing my safari hat project in the middle of last month? Though I do not do re-enacting myself, I definitely could've used a bit more of a visual guide back then instead of stumbling my way through lol.
Like you I pretty much came up empty when I was looking around for a decently affordable option (couldn't justify dropping $40 including shipping on a hatband) or how to actually _make_ a puggaree myself. Or, well, _almost_ came up empty; after about an hour of searching I eventually ended up on a classical menswear forum called "Fedoralounge," and they happened to have a few threads from about 15 years ago where self-styled adventurer types were discussing how to recreate Golden Age safari style outfits. Specifically one Mike K, who had done a project on how to "safari-ize" fur felt outback-style hats, with the key feature being a classic style herringbone puggaree folded from one long length of ribbon. He (along with one other member who *thankfully* managed to preserve a now-15-year old pictoral guide from LawranceOrdnance on how to fold your own puggaree) were my guides on how to do it myself.
I won't get into a full instructional because what I did was essentially exactly the same as what you did in the video-including the various problems of getting those damn fold bases to be consistent, lol-though I had a few differences on my end. In my case I couldn't quite justify buying a raw 6 yards of uncut cloth since I don't reenact (though in hindsight I should've, since I have a safari jacket that *frustratingly* is missing its self-belt), and additionally my hat had vent holes that a taller helmet-style puggaree would've covered. So I went with a shorter 1 inch wide, 5 yard length of herringbone cotton twill ribbon so I could still get enough wraps to satisfy myself with.
I didn't use pins to hold the ribbon end when I did it; I just pressed the hat+puggaree ribbon end against the edge of a desk and let friction hold it in place. Didn't want to be poking too many holes in the felt of a $150 hat, lol. It was awkward to keep everything in place, but definitely doable since the fur felt of a proper outback hat is much stiffer and sturdier than regular fedora hats, especially in comparison to hats made of wool felt. Managed to get 4 wraps out of the deal before I ran out of space to wrap the ribbon.
Then, of course, I realized the color contrast of bright white ribbon against khaki-green hat doesn't look good, so then I had to undo about 30 minutes of work so I could tea dye the thing overnight. DEFINITELY echo your point about either cold-dying or preshrinking the ribbon, because I just threw it into a pot of boiling hot tea and it ended up shrinking 5 inches short from where I wanted it to end, lol.
I'll *definitely* need to keep this video in mind later for my safari pith helmet project, in any case. I have a source for the chin strap hooks, now with this video I have a way to make a proper helmet puggaree; now I just need to figure out what to do with the sweatband and suspension system. Like you say, the $40 repro Vietnamese-made pith helmets are...usable for most cases, but the build quality just isn't comparable to "real" Indian-made ones. The leather chin strap assembly made from cheap split leather and paper-thin pot metal buckles is garbage. The faux-puggaree is literally just 5 strips of 1/4in wide cloth that were wrapped around once and then pin-stitched in place. And good lord, the suspension system. _Maybe_ I wouldn't be so rough about the headband, if only they fastened it on with something other than cheap pot metal, paper fastener split-pins that dissolve into rust when you get them anywhere near moisture; the ends of those things have stained 4 bright red rust marks into the faux puggaree that are visible from the exterior.
I'm quite humored to have read your comment here, you went through so many of the same experiences that I went through as well. You also saw most of, if not all of the resources I saw. It's amazing how little there is out there. I specially remember those Fedora Lounge and Lawrence Ordnance resources. Also, you would have had this video when you did yours last month, if I had had my act together...I procrastinated on this video quite a bit, a lot went into it 😂 I'd planned this at least three moths ago. On those repros, they're not far off, I just wish they improved some things, including the things you mentioned, it honestly wouldn't take a lot. I've never seen chinstrap hooks for sale anyway, but if you have someone who's good with brass, they might be able to fashion you some.
Hope this video provides you with more help in the future, exactly why I made this, so others wouldn't have to suffer too 😂
This is great. I have a really nice boer war style pith helmet (made in england) that is the perfect shape for the period but the pugaree is red and made from multiple pieces. I have been wanting to replace it for some time but I didn't quite know how to do it. Thanks to your video, I now have a much better sense of how to get it done.
You’re very welcome, good luck!
Thanks so much for the advice, my first attempt was sad but I will try again. All the best.
You’re very welcome, I hope you end up getting yourself a puggaree that you’re happy with!
Nicely done. The North Staffordshire Regiment aka 64th. My original AWI regiment, know as the Black Knots. For there black facings and black regimental colour. The last regiment to carry black colours. The badge is the Staffordshire Knot with Prince of Wales Feathers.
I’m quite the fan of the North Stafford cap badge. Thought I shall be honest, I sometimes can’t unsee it’s uncanny resemblance to a pretzel. I haven’t a close of the black diamond has and lineage to their black facings or not. At the top of my head, I can’t remember at what level that flash was issued.
I have one of those cap badges of course, as well as the blazer patch. I am sure the flash being black has to with the facings color. As to the diamond shape not clue either. Well the 64th and 38th (South Stafford's) were amalgamated in think 1968 but the black flag et al remained for a while. Yes it does look like a pretzel, a ropy looking pretzel at that.
The Flash indicates the wearer's Battalion. Each Bn in a Regiment would have had a variation of the Regimental flash in this instance a black diamond indicates the wearer as 7th Bn North Stafford's where as the 1st Bn was a black rectangle (3x2in) with a white cap badge and red wording on it. As for the colour black post 1881 both the North and South Staffords wore white facings, cuffs and pipping, but the colour black was still retained, North Staffs and later Staffordshire Regt 1959, in other regimental devices. South Staff's pagri flash colour was green.
@@TheFarOffStationdo you know the legend of the Staffordshire Knot, the badge of the County, not just the Regiments? Back in the dim and distant mists of the Middle Ages, one Earl of Stafford was extremely strict in the administration of “justice”, and also appears to have been a stickler for efficiency, so much so that hanging one miscreant at a time was inefficient for him. He therefore asked his minions to devise a knot which would allow him to hang three men at once with one piece of rope!
I’ve always wondered how the pugaree was wrapped around the Pith helmet.
I always wondered as well, it was a really cool process to figure out how they're made and come together!
Was looking all over for a tutorial on the puggaree. Thanks.
You’re very welcome, I hope this helps!
Brilliant great demo and very clear to understand I can now action my 3 helmet/hats cheers
Great video once again
Thanks, mate!
Well done Laddie, well done.
Thanks, mate!
I love this video so very interesting thank you.
So awesome I live in North Staffordshire.
Thanks, old chap, glad to hear you like it!
Very cool to hear, that you're from North Staffordshire! The North Staffords were your home regiment!
Great Video
Thanks, mate!
Cool, well done. Thanks
Glad you liked it!
Very helpful video
Hope it's of use to you.
Nice editing!
Thanks, old boy! Glad you like it so!
Thanks!
Nice video. And very nice new intro!
Thanks, mate!
thank you so much
You’re very welcome!
just got around to doing a foreign service helmet, removed and binned plastic liner. left the studded plastic strip each side in place. soaked and narrowed the helmet shape. ( see other utubers) recreated a new liner with leather and crinkled green venting (as per period versions) to match lining colour. added a calico skull cap with lace as per private purchase concept. added 4 buttons to this liner to marry it up to studded plastic insert.
created puggaree with 5 strips of calico type 7m fabric, soaked in coffee and rinsed. didn't get excited about shrinkage etc. some dark edges and blemishes make it look field worn. puggaree well pinned to make edges tight, if you don't pin it along the top it goes baggy. wool felt regimental patch created and added. not enough or vague info on a lot of puggaree patches so i made mine slightly over size similar to some tartan recorded surviving period versions, it looks the part. the chin strap is from a british drill instructors cap in brown leather (the small stud version) the hangers were made from thin brass folded and hung in the centre of that plastic studded strip. the liner holds it firmly in place inside helmet brim. thought about adding a brass chinstrap hanger on rear. but didn't want to poke hole in shell. this item can be obtained from old british tunic brass belt hangers modified to shorten.
whilst not a purist item its a prototype to give practise before producing a genuinely detailed item from more accurately sourced or made attachments. the liner looks good mainly because prototype stitching is concealed. overall it has the look of period photo references.
a point to note is that this version of the helmet is probably 2 inches shorter than it should be to be accurate. the puggaree added shows this height difference. also in photos of the genuine item the ride high showing the the ears. adding this liner improves on the appearance in making the helmet sit right on the head. all i need now is a display turnip to park it on. auld veteran
Good luck on your helmet journeys!
Want one!
They’re pretty cool, mate!
I love pugarrees... Piths... Slouch hats... Piths...
Where can one purchase a quality Wolseley Pith helmet?
I think that very much depends upon what your standards are. The standard repros from places like SoF aren’t built bad, they’re of a solid construction, but their geometry and hardware aren’t the greatest. I personally own Second World War made helmets since they are cheaper than First War and Interwar helmets. I find their shape in particular is much better, whether the cork or felt helmets. It really comes down to budget, I think originals or custom reproductions by Nat Soy are the best options, but a standard cheap repro from SoF can be made to look pretty damn good, particularly if ad the appropriate puggaree!
This helped! Lindybeige brought me here 😚
Glad this video could be of service to you!
‘You and ur mates’ we love a bit of casual British slag from an American 😂🤝
Cheers from across the pond!
One easy way to get your cut straight is to pull one thread out and cut along the gap.
I would’ve suggested using coffee rather than tea, though I suppose tea is more historically accurate.
Didn’t have coffee, so it wasn’t used.
You don’t have to draw a line, you can pull out a thread and get an exact straight line without worrying about stretching etc
Not really feasible with this length of fabric.
Green Tea was used to dye cloth if it bleached too white.
Was there a tactical use for this puggarree? It would be useful for emergency wound binding, while keeping heat away from the head when in normal use in the tropics, and looking very cool.
Great video! Thanks! I have my material! Question- I have a metal badge Id like to put on it. WWII British pin. Should they go on the front or left side where the flash would go?
Badges aren't the most common thing on helmets, but certainly are present. When we do see them present, they're almost always on the front of the helmet. So for you, the front is most likely the best bet!
where can i buy a new puggaree? I can only find ones for slouch hats online.
The only option is really to make one yourself.
Hello, very informative video. I wonder if you have any tips on making a WW2 British four fold slouch hat puggaree ? I am currently trying to create a 2nd Norfolk’s slouch hat circa 1944 Burma.
Best wishes David Moore
Hi David, I’ve never quite looked into the slouch hat puggarees but I think you could obtain the same results with this method! You may just need something inside of the hat to keep it solid whilst wrapping. I think I’ve seen things online about the puggarees, but I’m not sure if they’re a anything at all about construction. Let me know how it goes if you try!
I kind of want to put a pugary on a modern combat helmet
Does anyone know how to securely attach a hackle (official colored feather) to a sun helmet puggaree?
In hindi khaki means sacrifice yourself to people's good will Namaskar🙏 my family fight against British🇬🇧💂 empire God bless your peoples , I we become friends .love for our old friends
A friendly world of peace is what we all strive for!
I found a Khaki Police Sikh Turban Punjabi Pagri Cloth 7Meter on line... By Jove! etc., etc. I'll have the gals at JoAnn's cut it as I'm a lazy sob
Good luck!
What is your opinion on WWII slouch hat puggaree? Either British or Australian?
I never have given it much thought aside from thinking it was a nice touch.
I thought people sell the pugaree itself. Kind of need it for my pith helmet which is the zulu war type
Nat Sooy who makes the best reproduction Colonial Pattern helmets, does make puggarees, no idea if he sells them individually. That being said, if you’re doing Zulu War, you don’t even need a puggaree, as they weren’t used in that conflict!
@@TheFarOffStation I need for my.boer war impression!
@@brickproduction1815 you can make one yourself, or you can can try and see if a maker will make you one of those stiffened ones! It’s kind of hard to to have one done if one doesn’t have the helmet.
@@TheFarOffStation yeah got my helmet already
@@brickproduction1815 then it might be just as easy for you to wrap your own.
Could one use bias tape?
You probably could if you could find some that was wide enough, that being said, I’m not sure if you could do it in one long wrap, as bias tape generally only has one side that doesn’t show a fold.
I'm curious are you able to do something similar by making a puggaree for a slouch hat at home?
I’m sure these principals could be applied similarly. It’s all in the same vein.
@@TheFarOffStation Indeed I just see it as an interesting predicament when it comes to slouch hats. I might need a friend willing to sit down and have them stand the wrapping process or a dummy head. Mostly due to the fact fur felt is not as tough as Pith when it comes to just pure rigidity.
@@johnmarston9999 oh yes, most definitely, those slouch hats don’t have much rigidity. Have you looked on Google about making them for slouch hat? I feel like there’s a post somewhere about them, although it might it might not be very specific.
@@TheFarOffStation You have generally got my curiosity now on it worked back in the day. All though the search results are clouded with knitted beanies with a simlar name to the slouch hat I will try myself a bit of digging. If you happen to find anything slouch had specific to Puggarees on your end be sure to let me know as well.
So what is the purpose of this thing? Why is not a pith helmet good enough on its own?!? Is it there as a retainer of moisture? Reinforcing the helmet? Sun screen? A way to attach other things to the helmet? Something else?
There are other reasons earlier in the 19th century, but really by the point of the Wolseleys, it’s purely for decorative and stylistic reasons.
@@TheFarOffStation Thank you for answer :)
@@martinan22 you’re very welcome!
If its not on the internet you can try a library. No need to reverse engineer the manufacturer.
Wherever you live must have a significantly better library than here.
Because I’m sure the local library in scenic Middle of Nowhere is just brimming with sources on how to wrap an obscure piece of British kit from over a hundred years ago.
@@TheFarOffStation any library can order the book you want from another library.
@@RinnzuRosendale well, I already own a great deal of the literature that’s out there on British sun helmets, there’s surprising little. I’m really not sure what else there is to find. I’ve found no library’s that carry the books that I’ve looked for, which is why I’ve bought them instead. Looking through them (and their numerous close photos of helmets) and using online resources and photos, I’ve been able to approximate how they were made. Regrettably, a library wouldn’t have helped me much in this instance.