Hat felt....how do you distinguish what type it is? and a style question

[laurenm]

Hello,
I'm listing some felt hats and have seen felt's described as 'fur felt' etc. Is the fur felt the fuzzy sort or is there more of a spectrum for describing the quality?
For example I have a hat by Peter Bettley the style of which i have seen described both as 'floppy hat' and 'festival hat' and even 'fedora'....the felt is quite thick and soft and much better quality than the cheaper, stiffer felts that abound. Wondering if this is felted fur or just better quality (cotton?) felt. Two others I have are, for lack of a better term more 'wooly' looking, with more of a nap.
Just wondering how to determine and then describe the material.
Thanks alot,
Lauren

 

[Rue_de_la_Paix]

Lauren,

Of course, as you know, judging the fiber content of a felt is difficult from only a small photo. That said, all 4 of your hats appear to be fur felts, of various types. There are many types of fur-felts. Your hats do not look like wool felt, although on the Bettley I cannot be sure, but as he was a higher end milliner I suspect it is fur-felt also. The first three fur-felts look to have a type of velour finish, each a little different in nap. The last (white) hat is a fur-felt with a type of plush finish to the nap. Fur felts are the best quality, followed by wools, and cotton felt is generally not used in millinery for hats except for children's and souvenir type hats. Cotton felt is considered a craft material.

To answer your question, fur felt can be long and "fuzzy" as you call it, or a very smooth finish, and 100 kinds in between.

B

 

[laurenm]

Thanks again Barb.