Bowed felt hat making

This particular process of felt hat making is believed to have been introduced by immigrant Hatters from the continent in the C16th. Bowed felt making ceased for 150 years in the UK but has been redeveloped by Rachel Frost using historical records.

The main fibre processing is done with a Hatter’s Bow-carder. This is a seven foot long wooden tool resembling a giant fiddle bow, with a heavy gut string stretched along its length. The bow, being hung horizontally from the ceiling hovers over a table with the wool or fur fibres placed upon it. The bow string is plucked into the fibres, causing them to fly into the air. In this way the fibres are cleaned, fluffed up and arranged in a suitable shape and thickness in readiness for felting. Initial felting takes place on a hot-plate with steam and agitation.

Further felting is done by immersing in hot water and repeat rolling until a dense smooth felt is produced. At this stage the felt may be dyed (natural/plant dyes). It is then steamed and blocked to the desired shape and it may be stiffened and sculpted by hand depending on the requirements. It can then be dressed with a lining, sweat band and trim etc.

The cheapest hats were made of sheep’s wool with fur (often rabbit) being better quality and more expensive. Beaver fur makes the best felt that lasts for many years, but is fiendishly expensive and difficult to work. It would only have been used by the best hatmakers. The process is fundamentally much the same for the different materials, although a lighter bow is used for fur than for wool.

• Feltmaking – Most feltmakers today make hats use a different process which, although facilitates great creative freedom in both design and colour, does not produce the dense, smooth felt traditionally associated with functional hats.
• Felt hood making – Felt hoods are not made commercially in the UK. Machine made felt hoods for hat making are manufactured all over the world including the United States, Czech Republic, Poland, Portugal and China.

• Lack of awareness of its existence, potential and therefore lack of demand for the product
• Availability of tools and specialist materials
• Lack of both living craftsmen and written instructions to learn from.
• The high labour investment and therefore lack of financial viability on a commercial scale

• The British Hat Guild
• The Worshipful Company of Feltmakers

n/a

Individual craftspeople:

• Rachel Frost, The Crafty Beggars

Bowed felt for hat making appears to be the only historical method of making felt in Britain. Unlike many other countries, Britain appears to have no tradition (prior to the 1960’s) of making hand-made felt, other than for the purpose of making hats. (previously extinct but has been rediscovered)

There are no contemporary publications about the practical aspect of this craft. However there are academic papers about the trade and other references that touch on the subject. Stockport Hatworks has good documentation of the post-industrial process with limited information and artefacts relating to the craft prior to that.