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Jun 4, 2014

A Drop in the Bucket (not a joke)



Readers, even I am tired of seeing close-ups of myself in this hat so I can imagine how you must feel.

But I must update you on my latest hat tweak.

Try as I might (and I did, oh, how I did), I couldn't deny what a number of you pointed out yesterday: my bucket (sun?) hat was too shallow for my head. 

But after watching one of the scariest sewing tutorials I've ever seen in my life (thanks for the link, Kathy), I had an epiphany: I could separate the crown from the rim and add an extra inch of depth in the form of a decorative band.  So that's what I did!

Look again at the top photo.  What looks like a band is actually my scalp.  I cut the top off the hat and measured the extra depth I'd need.



I cut two bands of bias (about 2" wide) from a contrasting tropical print in my stash and interfaced them.  I lapped the inside band (with each band edge folded under roughly 1/4") over the edge of the hat rim and edgestitched.  I attached the other edge to the crown, lapping and edgestitching the same way.  Finally, on the right side of the hat, I stitched on the outside band.







And voila!

This hat isn't perfect -- it's still more round than oval -- but it's better.









Once again, thank you for your honest feedback. 

Have a great day, everybody!

26 comments:

  1. CherylJune 4, 2014 at 9:50 AM

    Bravo! I would have probably ditched the thing but you rescued it and made it spiffier at that.

    ReplyDelete
  2. MouseJune 4, 2014 at 10:01 AM

    Not only does the hat look better on your head, it looks better off; the contrasting band is an improvement. As well as lengthen, did you widen the hat by removing any of the inner edge of the brim? I ask because yesterday's version not only looked too shallow but too small. Well done! Now onto the board shorts!

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  3. JenniferJune 4, 2014 at 10:05 AM

    Much better! What a great solution you came up with - I actually prefer it with the contrast band.

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousJune 4, 2014 at 10:10 AM

    I like the feather placement on the band!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousJune 4, 2014 at 10:12 AM

      For some reason I'm jonesin' for a pina colada now...

      Delete
    2. GKJune 4, 2014 at 10:14 AM

      Yeah, me too. :)

      Delete
  5. CarolJune 4, 2014 at 10:55 AM

    Great work Peter! My son wants one!

    ReplyDelete
  6. lwJune 4, 2014 at 12:06 PM

    The contrasting band takes it from nice to really cool. I want one just like that. Maybe it's time to write your own pattern?

    ReplyDelete
  7. MIchaelCJune 4, 2014 at 12:58 PM

    Great hat. Perfect for hot weather & protection. Don't want those kitten scratches round the eyes. I would like a wider band for more glamoor.

    ReplyDelete
  8. ebJune 4, 2014 at 1:57 PM

    Now THIS fits. All hail the large noggin!

    ReplyDelete
  9. andibJune 4, 2014 at 2:42 PM

    The hat band makes it looks more like a fedora, which is a good look for you!

    ReplyDelete
  10. UnknownJune 4, 2014 at 2:55 PM

    You know what having a big head means..;-)...a big hat!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  11. AnonymousJune 4, 2014 at 4:07 PM

    Now it looks better than good -- it looks great! The band was a bit of genius. And please keep sharing -- we all learn from each others successes and corrections.

    ReplyDelete
  12. mssewcrazyJune 4, 2014 at 5:45 PM

    Every time you take the scissors to that wonderful hat,I say oh no or something sort of like that. Of course you then go on to make it even better. Now you're cooking the hat making. The fit looks wonderful

    ReplyDelete
  13. KnitwitsowlsJune 4, 2014 at 6:18 PM

    I liked it before but it looks even better now!
    Frankie
    http://www.knitwits-owls.blogspot.co.uk/

    ReplyDelete
  14. Debbie IlesJune 4, 2014 at 6:22 PM

    So much better, once the tears of laughter cleared and I could actually see, having first seen that first shot of you with the bald skin band.

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  15. Kansas SkyJune 4, 2014 at 9:27 PM

    I likee!

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  16. kathyJune 5, 2014 at 9:38 AM

    The band does take it up a notch. Glad the 'scary sewing tutorial ' helped.

    ReplyDelete
  17. SJ KurtzJune 5, 2014 at 7:37 PM

    All I can see now are bucket hats. Walking around downtown this morning; bucket hats in the windows, on the manikins, on the tourists, ON THE LOCALS! I don't think it's related to 'when you have a hammer, everything looks like a nail'. It must be...

    Peter Lappin - trend setter! (on the left coast in Seattle no less)

    ReplyDelete
  18. overflowingstashJune 5, 2014 at 8:01 PM

    I like it better with the new band. But the floppiness of the brim still bothers me a little bit. In the 3rd photo of you modelling it (where you're looking to the right) it almost look right - like a stylish fedora. I wonder if a hat wire at the brim edge could tame the waves. I had a straw hat that wasn't very stiff, but had a well defined / controlled curve in the brim. On closer examination it turned out to be wired at the edge.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousJune 6, 2014 at 7:29 AM

      Yes, or dunk the brim in liquid starch and set it straighter.

      Delete
  19. AnonymousJune 6, 2014 at 10:24 AM

    Genius!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Sammi357June 7, 2014 at 12:39 PM

    It's because most heads aren't really true ovals, either. They can be shaped a lot like beans.
    Worked at a hat shop that has a vintage head 'conformateur'...Like this:
    http://www.houseofninesdesign.com/2011_04_24_archive.html and they kept a pattern of each person's head. People were always surprised to see the true shape of their heads.

    ReplyDelete
  21. AnonymousJune 7, 2014 at 3:17 PM

    Peter, you are cracking me up with these hat posts! I'm glad you seem to have found a solution, because man, this seems like a lot of work for a hat! Thanks for sharing the adventure with us. :)

    ReplyDelete
  22. UnknownJuly 17, 2014 at 12:29 AM

    nice share sam
    regards Jual Mesin Vacuum Frying Murah

    ReplyDelete

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