Material question!

My favorite sun hat is a commercial one, made of yards and yards of polyester horsehair braid sewn into shape. I suspect you could take the crown out of it if you really wanted, but I prefer to have some scalp protection, too. It's survived about 10 years of yard work, mowing and other outdoor stuff, still looks good. The tag said "100% polyester, spot clean", but after it got caught in a truck door and got all greasy, I treated the grease and threw it in the washing machine -- came out good as new.

The hats I made as a kid just had layers of denim, closely quilted, in the brim, and they worked well, too.

Another thought... have you seen the foldable hats with a wire rim?

Salvage the wire out and make your own!

My mother's wedding hat (1932) she made from horsehair braid (dunno what fiber, certainly not poly). She had it and wore it fro years after, with different flowers, ribbons, etc.

I love denim sun hats, Vogue 8405

has several brim widths, I plan to make a couple.

Or, go to a craft store and get some millinery wire.

Thank you, Kay and Beverly,

"BEI Design" schrieb im Newsbeitrag news:mhhm2h$gtq$ snipped-for-privacy@dont-email.me...

Ah yes, good old polyester - I wish I had a hat like that. I know that protection of the scalp is, especially after menopause, when your hair gets thinner is desirable (and I probably should plan that way) but I tend to get so hot on the head under a conventional hat. I do own a very pretty straw hat that cost me more than I dare to own. You may admire me here ;-) :

However, it is very light-coloured, and I wouldn't dare wear it riding my bicycle for sweating it through and losing it.

I bet that it is real horsehair braid, Beverly; I can't think of any material of those days that would have replaced it then. Yes, once you have the right one, hold on to it, remodel, clean, refurbish but never let go of it (I guess that goes for men as well as for hats) .

When I'm out in the sun, I usually have a kind of bandana with a little shield in front wound around my head. That absorbs the sweat nicely, is washable, and can be folded away easily. Since the sun is getting stronger and I remember my dear mother's death (black skin cancer) I feel that I should protect my ears, too. So the adjustable brim-only hat would combine the convenience of being folded away easily with the open top for fresh air, and I could wear a bandana under it, too, to absorb the sweat. A wire in the rim wouldn't be too good, I guess. As for ready-made patterns - I have such a large head that I need men's sizes. I thought that a plain circle would be just enough. Perhaps denim, nicely quilted would be enough. I'm still pondering...

U. - Too many projects in my head, so little energy to do them.

Why not just put mesh panels in the side of the crown, somewhat like:

One of the reasons I bought the poly horsehair braid hat is that it's all slightly ventilated, and it has a lanyard so I don't lose it in the wind.

Kay