shelves of hat making tools artisan

All About Our Hats

A hat makes the perfect accessory to give any outfit that little extra something. Whether it be small, large, brightly colored or classic black, wide brimmed or small and subtle: our hats will complement any style at any occasion.

All about hats

woman with brown hat sunshine city

Atelier made

Our hats are all handmade in an atelier in Pigeiros, a town south of Porto, Portugal. The workshop is run by two brothers, who were schooled in the art and tradition of hat-making. And when we say tradition, we mean tradition: the techniques and methods of their craft stem from the late 20th century, as their small family factory was first opened in 1883.

hat steaming machine artisan

These are their steps to crafting a wool filt hat:

  1. The crown of the hat is shaped by pressing it by hand around a steel mold and treating it with heat and steam.
  2. The brim of the hat is further shaped using a variety of hot tools, much like irons, to press it into the desired shape.
  3. The shape of the hat is finished completely by hand while the material is still settling, by running the fingers over the edges of the crown and the brim, pressing the material into shape where necessary. This step shows the true artisan knowledge of the craftsmen: for this step, no tools, except their hands, are used.
  4. The finishing touches are added by hand; any ribbons, decorations or other additives are hand-sewn onto the hat.

The hats are made of carefully selected wool filt, a durable material that is both stylish and comfortable. The designs are timeless and classic: this is the style that these artisans know best. They craft each hat completely by hand, ensuring the best quality and durability. They provide only the very best quality, which can only be achieved by staying true to their traditional artisan crafting techniques.

hat making tools artisan craftsmanship

Our designs

Our three main designs include the following hats:

Our Brasil hat (pictured above) is beautiful and classic fedora style. The fedora originated as a women's hat, and was named after a female character in a Victorian play. However, interestingly, by the 1920s, the fedora had been adopted as typical menswear. Our modern fedora design, the Brasil, is not only unisex, but also beautiful, stylish and versatile.

The Gaucho (pictured above) is a hat named after the Argentinian horsemen who would wear this style of headwear for protection while working in the mountains and on the prairies. Oval crowned and wide brimmed, these hats now provide not just shelter from the elements, but a fashion statement and a unique item of bohemian flair.

The Rancher (pictured above) is a fedora, but unlike the Brasil it has a hard brim and a more cowboy-like style, hence the name. With a broad grosgrain ribbon around its triangle-shaped crown, it is a variation on a classic cowboy hat, and will add a sense of confidence and refinement to any outfit.

 

man working in hat atelier hatmaking artisan

In Conclusion: Modern Design, Traditional Technique

Feliz’s hats are truly special items. It is the combination of modern, contemporary design choices with meticulous, beautiful and traditional craftwork that makes them so. It is the care and attention put into each hat - the time that goes into making every aspect of this classic accessory beautiful and functional. And we love working with true artisans and preserving their knowledge and craft. In this way, we are proving to the world that mass-production could never create a product so beautiful, so unique, and so full of soul.



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