Every month we offer a discount on one of our designs and this month it is the crown block CB141 and brim block BB55.
It’s a moment I’ve been planning for a while as CB141 is a favourite of mine and after a few hats, this one is my best so far! I love the deep dimples and well defined ridges and the design comes from an original block from the early 20th century.
It’s a very simple blocking process which I’ll briefly describe. First the felt is steamed and stretched over the crown and a tipper is used to shape the top. The felt for the brim is pressed flat onto the table with the corner between crown and brim being held tight with string. You can iron the brim gently to get it nice and flat. At this stage you can make the felt look a little nicer by gently sanding it all over with 320 grit sandpaper – all in the same direction. By now, the crown is complete and you can trim the brim to width using our new brim cutting wheels (see below). I chose 1 1/2″ but you can go up to 2 1/2″ with the BB55. The little video below shows the brim being cut.
[iframe id=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/OnUUcgLWtdQ” align=”center” maxwidth=”400″]
At this stage you can sew in the sweatband and prepare the ribbon if you like. That leaves only the brim shaping to be done.
Place the hat upside down inside the brim (the brim must be on a stand or have its own brim legs) and then tie a cotton sheet over using the string groove. Pull it nice and tight, spray lightly with water and iron – not too hot. Leave to dry and remove.
A little steam across the front allows you to bend the front of the brim down to complete the shape. Attach the ribbon and you’re done.
Alternatively, instead of using the cutting wheel, the brim can be shaped on the block and the felt tied into the string groove. After it is dry you can cut the excess off with scissors, but the brim cutting wheels do allow you to cut a very smooth and clean edge. They also allow different brim widths to be achieved from the same brim block as the shaping is done after cutting.
Here’s another great example of the crown by Suzanne Nurse of Z Malan
You will receive 15% off the items below when you quote Block of the Month – offer excludes the brim cutting wheels.
Ideally you’ll need some brim legs with the brim but if you think you will order more sizes in the future then it is well worth buying a brim stand which can be used for all your subsequent brims.