Different felt qualities - felt hat qualities
What are the differences between wool felt and fur felt hats?
The felt hat can be either wool felt or fur felt. The difference is significant as the raw material doesn't produce the same felt quality.
In both cases, the hat remains quality, comfortable to wear, and always manufactured with respect for traditional hatmaking. However, the fur felt hat is made with more noble materials.
There are two categories: wool felt hats and fur felt hats.
| Type of felt | Wool felt hat | Fur felt hat |
| Origin | These are strands of wool which constitute the raw material used for wool felt, in contrast to the higher-end fur felt. |
Hare fur, domestic rabbit fur, and wild rabbit fur are the raw materials used for luxury felt. Different qualities can be obtained depending on the work done on the felt surface. smooth felt: (smooth felt) sanding the felt with sandpaper. Flemish felt: (fur imitation) pulling the fur using a wire brush. moleskin felt: (velvet imitation) the fur is pulled using sharkskin, then trimmed. |
| Waterproofing | Not waterproofIndeed, originally, the wool felt is not waterproof but can be made waterproof through processes like Stetson's Vita Felt. |
WaterproofIt is naturally waterproof due to the fur it's made from to resist rain |
How to distinguish between fur felt hats and wool felt hats?
You will easily recognize a fur felt hat because the quality is not the same.
The fur is indeed softer to touch while wool felt is rougher.
Moreover, fur felt has a more luminous and shiny appearance than wool felt.
How to judge the quality of a felt hat?
Some brands like Stetson and Bulhide use a rating system to try to judge hat qualities: The X system.
On some hats, you'll see an inscription on the inner band indicating a number of X's (for example, 20X in Stetson indicates it contains a percentage of beaver fur).
The rule is simple: the more X's, the more beaver fur (nobler fur) the hat will contain, which is combined with rabbit fur.
The Stetson with 100X is the President hat at Stetson, this headwear is given to each American President and is made from 100% Beaver fur.
Note that the X doesn't indicate quality, which is subjective and personal. It can be a hat's ability to be foldable and return to its original shape without marks. Vitafelt is one of the most well-known, popularized by Stetson.