An interesting part of making the Panama hats is the blocking. So, what really is the blocking. This is a process where a Panama hat is given its final shape. This method of hat blocking was done by hand but it is vanishing into extinction. But most of the Montecristi Hats are hand blocked unlike the Cuenca hats that are done through machinery.
Hat blocking brings out the real beauty of the Panama Straw Hats. And through blocking, you will get the different style of the Panama hats. Hat blocking is an art. When carefully done, it can give you the best Panama Hats, if not then it will spoil all the hard works done on weaving. The real recognition of the Panama hat blocking will be understood when you compare a blocked hat with an unblocked one.
If you want to put your hands on the real unique Panama Straw Hat, then the one that has been blocked by hand will be it. Hand blocking truly is a fine art. It is endangered but some few artisans are trying to revive the hand blocking method today. What is so important about hand blocking the Panama Hat is that it brings out the true essence of the whole process of the Panama Straw Hat weaving. The Panama Straw Hats takes a long process to weave by hand and finishing it with machine blocking does not pay full credit to the whole thing.
The process of hand blocking can take a lot of work and requires tools and techniques. The natural hand blocking is what makes the Montecristi Hats famous for its shape. It does have a lasting unique shape. It may be an old fashion way but when you wear the hand blocked Montecristi Hat, you will get a feel that can’t be expressed with words. Once the Panama Hats are hand block, it can be re-blocked again.
So hand blocking a Panama Straw Hat in a way gives full respect to the long process of hand weaving method. Next time you buy it make sure it is hand blocked.
Often people when they go to buy the Panama hats would get into great confusion when it comes to grade the hat. Well, to a layman, all the Panama Straw Hats seems equal. But when the price seems different from each hats the confusion adds more. Sometimes the locals cheat them when they sell the Panama Hats saying it to be ultra fino or super fino. Do not get entangled with the word ‘fino’. Best is you see if the Panama Straw Hats are indeed ultra fino yourself.
Of course the first thing you have to see when you grade a Panama Hat is the fineness of the weave. Anyone would know how the weavings are done. Even a child can make that out. When you go for Panama Straw Hat shopping, always take a closer look at the hat weaves. The finest Straw Hats will be the one that are weaved very thinly. When the weaves are finely done, the grading also increases and of course, the amount of work must also have doubled. The Montecristi Hats have always surpasses the Cuenca Panama hats. The reason- it takes only three days to weave a Cuenca hat while the Montecristi Hat takes months of careful work.
Do not take the grading system of the locals too seriously. There is actually no standardized system of grading. One local grading might differ from another even when the weaves are same. Most of them would grade their Panama Straw Hats as Fino, Fino-Fino, Super Fino, Ultra fino or Museum quality.
Coming back to grade the Panama Hats, all you need to do is see the fine quality of the weave. Second the color. While you view for the quality of the hat weave just see if the pattern of the weaves are homogenous and straight all through the hat surface. Though it cannot be 100% perfect but still the closest will do. The colors of the Panama Straw Hats can also differ from one to another. See if the colors are even throughout the hat surface. Sometimes you will find uneven colors. It is perfect to have slightly different shades but not the one that are too noticeable.
The traditional way of finding the finest quality Panama Straw Hat is by counting the number of rings and vueltas. You will find these rings on the inside of the crown when you view it holding it up to a light. The ring or vueltas are formed when the weavers add new strands of straws while weaving. The point is when you find large amount of rings, the weaves are tighter and finer.
A final tip that would help you to see the fineness of the weave is by counting weaves in number in a square inch of the Panama hat first horizontally and then vertically. By measuring the number of horizontal rows and multiplying it by the number of vertical rows. Usually the vertical count will be larger than the horizontal. The result will be the Montecristi Cuenta (Count). When the Montecristi Cuenta is more than 900 then, it is the most finest, a treasure so to say. If it is less than 200 then, it is not that worthy if you are looking for an original Montecristi Panama hat. Though this is a tedious job to count the weaves but it is worthy at the end.
The panama hats are one of the finest Straw Hats found on this earth. It is a work of art that most people would love to put their hands on it, actually heads on. People would often wonder why on earth the Panama Hats are so expensive, especially the Montecristi Hats. Well if they knew the long process that it takes to make a Panama Hat then, they would have understood why the high price tag is there. The Panama hats are made from straws and to weave to the cloth-like fineness from the straw is something that needs the hand of an artist.
The process of making the Panama hats starts right from selecting the right stalk of the Toquilla palm leaf, which grows in Ecuador. It is where the straws are taken. Usually it takes around 48 Toquilla palm stalks to weave one Panama hat. The next thing is to take the straws out from the stalks. When you peel off the stalks, you will find the strands of straw inside it.
When the strands of straw are taken out the next thing will be to boil the strands in water for some time. When it is properly done, the strands of straws are let to dry. The Cuenca and the Montecristi Hats are made differently. The Cuenca hats are bleached with chemical and the Montecristi Hat have to be smoked with sulfur. Here we will tell you more about the process of making Montecristi Hats as it requires adequate amount of time and carefulness. When all these are done, its time to start weaving.
The weaving takes some weeks and for each weave, you need special weavers to finish it-from weaving the whole hat to weaving the edge backward when the hat is finish to tightening the brim edge to cutting off the excess straws. After that, the Straw Hats are washed, bleached and dried. Next is to pound the hats to soften the straws and make it more flexible. Here you have to dusts the hats with the sulfur powder and pound. When the hats are finished pounding the extra straws are shaved using a razor. After trimming off the edges, the hat is given for ironing. The hats also have to be form into a specific Panama Hat shape and ironed. Finishing with the ironing, the hats have to go for blocking. This is a process where a hat is given the final shape. Unlike the Cuenca hats, the Montecristi Hats are blocked with hands. The former is blocked using machines. After blocking and readjusting the edges the hat is ready for giving a final touch-the ribbons. The ribbons are also sewn with hands for the Montecristi Hats.
So you see all these hard works are involved in making a Panama Straw Hat. Now you know why the Panama Hats can reach a price up to the sky. Its all the work of the master artisans.
It is very common for the Panama hats to make an appearance in the Hollywood movies from time to time. Especially when the Panama hat was in its golden era, it made a frequent appearance. If not in the movies, the Panama hats are a favorite among actors and directors. Stars of Hollywood often wear the Panama Straw Hats on and off the screen. They have widely popularized the use of highly fashionable Panama Straw Hat.
The Montecristi Hats are quite famous with the celebrities. Mostly the hat is a way of representing a connoisseur or rich and sophisticated character and the Panama hats just fit the bill. From time to time, the Panama Hats has come into the light of Hollywood movies. You will find great actors donning the hat in the movies. Some great actors that had worn this panama hats in movies were The Naked Jungle, remember Charlton Heston and Eleanor Parker. Casablanca is another great movie where you will find the Optimo style of Panama hat don by Sydney Greenstreet and Paul Henreid donning the Panama Fedora Hat. In Fitcaraldo, actor Klaus Kinski wore the G ambler Panama hat style. In Hannibal, Antony Hopkins adorns himself with the Panama Hat Fedora.
Remember Gone With the Wind, where Clark Gable wore the Plantation panama hat style. Gregory Peck wore the Colonial model in the movie, To Kill a Mockingbird.
Perhaps the Panama Straw Hats has not accepted defeat and seem to survive giving grace and elegance to the people wearing it. Since it has never been out of the vogue for ages, it has become a favorite accessory of the actors both in the film and outside of it. Panama hats often are a style booster but more than that, it goes with every dressing so it’s a favorite whether in Hollywood or not.
The Panama Hat, as everyone now know is not made in Panama. In fact, it is in Ecuador where the Panama hats are weaved. The two Ecuadorian towns of Cuenca and Montecristi are the main producers of the Panama Hats. However, these two towns do not produce the same quality of Panama Straw Hats even though the designs may be close.
So how can you tell the difference between a Cuenca hat and a Montecristi Hat? There are major differences between these two hats. The Montecristi Hat in quality is much more superior to the Cuenca hats. The Cuenca hats are made much faster so there are weaved in less time than that of the Montecristi Hats. The production level is also much larger and much cheaper to produce and sell. The Montecristi Hat on the other hand can take several months to make. More than quantity, here quality is a real issue. So in production level, the Montecristi Hats are produce less in number each year.
Another difference between the two hats is that the Cuenca hats can have only one shape. The Montecristi Hats on the other hat can have varieties of shapes. A true Montecristi Hat has the ability to re-blocked in any shape. The Cuenca hat does not have that flexibility to change shapes. Once made, the shapes are permanent. The Montecristi Hats are made to last a lifetime because the straw is so thin that becomes flexible. The Cuenca hats are made with thicker straw that might break after heavy usage. On the edge of the two hats, it is back weaved. The Cuenca hats do not have a strong back weave like that of the Montecristi Hat.
The Cuenca hats are bleached with chemicals in order to turn the different color tones of the straw into white. The straws will start breaking sooner or later if exposed to the strong sun with poor humidity. The Montecristi hats have a natural straw color and the process involves to be smoked with sulfur and hand washed in water. The process of making the Montecristi Hats are far more careful and better than the Cuenca hats.
The Montecristi Hats can be custom made to suit the taste of the buyers while the Cuenca hats are not. It is as impossible to tell the difference between a Cuenca hat or a Montecristi Hat unless you are not a hat expert. But one easy thing can help you out is the color and that is the price. The Cuenca hats are mainly white and a lot cheaper. If you find a Montecristi Hat being sold in less than $60 dollars, beware, as no Montecristi Hats are found at this price. With their fine quality, the Montecristi hats are more expensive.
An interesting part of making the Panama hats is the blocking. So, what really is the blocking. This is a process where a Panama hat is given its final shape. This method of hat blocking was done by hand but it is vanishing into extinction. But most of the Montecristi Hats are hand blocked unlike the Cuenca hats that are done through machinery.
