The Lost Art of Haberdashery

folks, i've found myself in somewhat of a 'quandary.'

(if i even spelled that right.)

you see, about a month ago, i inherited a bunch of my grandfather's old hats. some fedoras, several old derby and slouch hats, etc. - most of them from the '60s - '90s. now, the derby hats are fine the way they are - they just need to be handwashed and air-dried and they'll be good as new. the fedoras, on the other hand, have brims that are bent out of shape from years and years of being stuffed in a closet. i suppose an experienced hand in the art of hat-bending would be able to bend these old hats back into their original shape and form; alas, i have no such experience.

so my dilemma, as it were, is this: in 2008, where the hell does one find a hatsmith?!

i can't find one. anywhere. ever since hats (real hats, that is) went the way of the dinosaur (thanks a lot, JFK), hatsmiths the nation over have been driven into obscurity - forced to scrape a living off of rocks on the edge of civilization. sounds crazy, you say? well then, friends, answer me this: when's the last time you drove past a hattery on your way to target? or, perhaps, a habberdasher? or a whatever-the-hell-they're-called? you haven't, because they probably don't exist anymore.

but, if they do, this is one guy who's determined to find 'em. this is one guy who has some hats that deserve to be worn.

...help me out here, folks.

- brian