Just What the Hell Is a Blocked Hat?
Named for the block of wood around which they’re molded, handmade blocked hats&#8212;bowlers, fedoras, anything with a structured brim and crown&#8212;are made much the same way today that they were 150 years ago. Old-school hatmaker Frenel Morris of Still Life in New York first steams the felt for about thirty seconds. This softens the fabric so that it can be stretched onto the block, where creases are ironed out. The hat is then dried in an oven at 120&#8211;200 degrees for twenty minutes, setting the shape. Out of the oven, it’s trimmed and pinched further into shape. “If it’s a decent quality and you take care of it, it will last forever,” says J.J. Hat Center’s Marc Williamson. So don’t balk at the price; pony up. It’s a small expense for a lifetime of class.