Hats Off: Local Hatmakers
By Ellen Metrick
Hats inspired by local history, made and shaped by local women — and clever hat cases made by another — are as gorgeous as the surrounding mountains.
Crossbow Leather & Hats
Rebecca Adams and Macy Pryor
The historic building at 101 West Colorado Ave. was once occupied, in the late 1800s, by W.B. Van Atta’s dry goods and clothing store. Crossbow now pays homage to the space, outfitting it with similar goods and keeping the original tagline “The up-to-date outfitter,” which can be seen in vintage lettering on the window. Here, custom hats await in the form of fur felt bodies to be shaped and designed onsite. Pre-shaped wool hats are also available. Explains Rebecca Adams, “We work with our partner to design the blocks and colors for our hat bodies, which are then fitted for each customer in the shop. You can come in and have a custom hat within a few hours, being a part of the shaping. While we do that, you can also walk to the belt bar and get measured for a handmade leather belt.”
Customers can also choose from a wide variety of bands and accessories with conchos and turquoise from local silversmiths, beads, feathers or pins. Leather hat bands, along with the other leather goods instore, are made by Crossbow’s staff at their leather shop in Norwood, just 45 minutes away, and can also be customized with branding or embossing. Says Macy Pryor, “The whole premise is to offer experiential shopping; to make something that customers have a hand in. I love making products that will last forever and I love to share that process.”
Camp Bird Telluride
Kim Lake
During the pandemic, artist Kim Lake started a hat project. She got serious and eventually exchanged her life savings for milliner’s tools: a conformateur for fitting a hat to each individual’s head; a steam-driven, custom-plating machine; hat blocks; a crown iron from the early 1900s; a spinning sanding table; and woodworking equipment to make “lasts” — the customized wooden form used to shape and store hats. Since then, Lake’s business has grown by word of mouth and moved from an old mining shack on a side street to a studio on Colorado Avenue, below Overland Sheepskin Co. Says Lake with wonder in her voice, “People say they can recognize my hats. I’m known for creating layers within the same color range and people notice.”
Lake mainly makes hats by appointment, slots that fill quickly once scheduling opens each summer and winter. “I turn my custom around in approximately six months from fitting and I only take as many orders as I feel I can turn around in that time frame,” she explains. “That is why my fittings sell out each season.” Lakes adds, “These are heirloom pieces, completely handmade. I want to make you the last hat you’re going to buy, an identifying piece of your uniform.”
Lake’s customers choose the felt, either 100 percent beaver or a blend of beaver and rabbit. For the sweatband, Lake encourages customers to have in mind a saying or mantra, which she embosses on the band in gold leaf. The hat band is a special touch, she says. Lake hand-dyes silks or makes them of snakeskin or locally sourced feathers. Then she burns a story into the felt, a story unique to each customer.
Lake has a small selection of ready-made hats on hand in her studio, but the handmade custom hats are her jam, she says. “I love getting to know people and making them something they’re going to love forever. Each hat is a combination of my personal voice and a customer’s personal story.”
Photos by Abie Livesay
Disco Swell
Caitlin Sappington
Caitlin Sappington also began making hats during the pandemic, but originally they were bucket style, typically for the beach, and she was working to sew them herself. Recalls Sappington, “I was frustrated and couldn’t get the hats right.” Part of the challenge was that sewing was not a skill she knew well.
Then, on a camping trip with her grandfather, Sappington was reminded that millinery was like sculpting, a skill she did know, so she jumped into the Western scene, found herself a teacher and started training in Salt Lake City. Next, Sappington brought her style and tools from California and started selling in Telluride, beginning with the Telluride Farmers’ Market. Nowadays, Society Telluride, at 126 E. Colorado Ave., carries her ready-made work, while custom hats are by appointment. Sappington’s hats are completely handmade. “When you make a product yourself from scratch, you oversee every step and quality control is very sound. You ensure that you’re creating a long-lasting product.”
Sappington’s swirled-pattern hat liners are inspired by ‘70s band posters. Her overall style? “I love the California 1970s golden era,” she says, adding that, while her hat styles “err on minimalist,” she’s “open to off-the-wall, commissioned work.”
The felt for her hats is 50 percent beaver and 50 percent rabbit. Some hats are wool. Sappington sources what she can locally, but the freshwater pearls that are part of her handmade hat bands come from a female-owned California source. These hat bands are multi-purpose; they also can be worn as necklaces. Sappington encourages customers to bring jewelry that is special to them. “Bring pendants, bring grandma’s earrings, material from wedding dresses or Dad’s old silk tie,” she says.
Zenith Goods
Shaylynn Serleth
What does one do with their hat when it’s not on their head? Well, many savvy local and visiting shoppers use a hat case handcrafted by Shaylynn Serleth. Serleth’s venture began when a friend who loves wearing hats was talking about the challenges of traveling with her favorites. Serleth quickly saw a gap she could fill with hat cases. “I am always asking, ‘What can I create that doesn’t exist?’ In this case, I took an existing idea and made it work. These cases are durable, user-friendly and chic.” They’re also travel-friendly with an exterior passport zipper pocket, a trolley sleeve, an interior slip pocket and inner mesh zipper pocket. Two elastic straps hold the hat snug and the case fits easily under airline seats. “I knew, if I’m not checking a bag, I would need to replace my personal item with my hat case, so I added as many bells and whistles as I could.” It also had to be easy to clean, Serleth decided. Her cases can be wiped down with a damp cloth and, unlike a traditional hat box, they are hat-shaped and feature a range of colors, from beige to a brilliant peacock blue. Interchangeable cross-body straps are also available. Hats with 4-inch brims and smaller fit in the cases. They’re lightweight and the materials are recyclable and water resistant, too, Serleth notes, adding that depending on the hat size, more than one may fit in her cases. “The idea is, buy a case and use it for a lifetime.”
Photos by Nathan Rist