Leather Wide Brimmed Hat

A soft leather wide-brimmed hat. 

Too tall to be a boater and not quite a top hat in falls between to two.

There is no stiffening or hardening of the leather, this adds to the comfort and softens the shape..

Houngan Hat

 This small top hat was a Christmas gift

The hat is decorated with bones and feathers giving it a distinct theme.

The theme in mind is Houngan Priest for the undead or Voodoo religion

I think it might look better with a more colourful headband, red maybe, so may swap this out in the future.

Steam Punked Hat

This top hat as been steampunked

A Christmas gift from friends Jock and Bridgette.

The hat was purchased but when the gifters got it home they discovered a poor quality conversion.

So they took it apart bought loads of cogs and chains and redid it themselves

I was very pleased with the results, a fabulous gift.

The top hat is also a good fit, which with rigid hats is important, I would normally try first.

The hat comes complete with working clock on the top.

I even managed to take it off my head.

Reviewing the Situation

This crumpled top hat makes a perfect hat for a late Victorian tramp.

or a Fagin like villain.

This well-battered grey top hat look takes time or skill to produce, or just luck but is perfect for theatre or larp.

Anyway, I now need to pick a pocket or two.

Tall Top Hat

This tall top hat gives you extra presence.

This is near enough for me a stove pipe style top hat, perhaps to be a perfect stove pipe it needs the side of cylindrical crown more parallel and the brim flatter, but height wise its got the credentials.

Just look at images of Isambard Kingdom Brunel or Abraham Lincoln to see the difference.

Stove Pipe a sub category of top hat, also know as chimney pot hat, a very Victorian hat. 

 Like all good Victorians I need to check my steampunk containment device is still containing the fresh air that was put in it and the clock is set half past 1833.

Putting on My Top Hat

This is typical average height black wool top hat is about the most common top hat you will find.

 On this hat the brim is turned up and the crown while still the top cylinder tapers out towards the top.

Top hat can be taller or lower than this, the cylindrical crown can taper in, be straight or in the case of mad hatter style top hats taper out even more, the brim can be flat or turned up, all these are variations are top hats, some have sub type names others are just a tall top hat or low height top hat.

The black felt top hat like this one has been around since about 1900 for funeral services and still in use today.

I consider a average height top hat to be between 12 and 13 cm high.

Topper

This photo of me was taken at Whitby where I spent the evening wondering about in a steampunk goth festival held there every year.

Top hats first appeared at the end of the 18th century and were very much an upper class status symbol or funeral hat worn by men, the best ones are silk rather than felt.

This hat is slightly battered ex-wedding top hat, the sort you pick up from a car boot for under five pounds.

This hat is 1/4" too big for me, but not complaining, cost next to nothing and does not fall over the ears, just uncomfortable to wear for long periods.

More about top varieties in a later posts

Steampunk Top Hat

This my steampunk mad hatter top hat

Top hats can also be known as Beaver hats, High hats, Cylinder hats, Chimney Pot hats or Stove pipe hats, however I would definitely call this one a TOP hat

Its got a leathery oily feel to the fabric, size 59 which is bit big (by 1 size) for my head, lucky for me my ears keep it up well.

I think this hat will need a slightly insane character in my larp adventures to wear it.

Hard Hats = Hats stiffened in some way so they are no longer bend, this may be through steaming, pressing or adding a rigid material.