Craft:

The neighborhood where I live in Williamsburg, Brooklyn has a really high concentration of crafty people and shops. I started visiting these people so I can share their stories and work with the readers of the Craft blog. Last time was Lisa Levine from Lisa Levine Jewelry. This week we are going inside Victor Osborne's amazing hat store.

Victor opened his store and design atelier in Williamsburg in August of 2006. Victor Osborne's hats are made on location and the store is a place for neighborhood locals to drop in on weekends to buy a hat or watch the design process. During the week, Victor sells his hats to stores and designers for fashion shows.

Victor got interested in hats from an aunt he describes as "very Breakfast at Tiffany's." He attended FIT for women's wear and majored in knitwear, but found that he kept gravitating towards accessories and hats. His favorite hats to work on are blocked hats because they are very sculptural. Blocked hats are made by using steam to mold felt to wooden hat blocks. According to Victor, only one major hat manufacturer in the US still uses this traditional technique.

Inside the store is a mix of Victor Osborne's current designs, unique vintage hats and tools of the trade like wooden hat blocks and books. It would be hard to walk around without trying on a few hats. I have to admit that I bought 2 hats before I left.

Victor Osborne
364 Leonard St
Brooklyn, NY
victorosborne.com

• See all my Flickr photos from Victor Osborne - Link.
• Victor Osborne's Flickr - Link
• How to Block a Felt Body on a One-Piece Block - Link