Hat Conformateur, Darmstadt, around 1900

Hat Conformateur
Darmstadt
Ca. 1900
Plaque "Engelhard Darmstadt"
Metal and wood
32.5 x 30 cm
Height 18.5 cm
Cf. Hat Museum Nuremberg

This mechanical moulding tool is used in the manufacture of custom-made hats. The invention was patented in France in the 19th century and is still used in a similar form today. The device was of great importance for hatmaking: the hat opening on the band could be adjusted so that the hat fitted the customer's head perfectly. After being put on, the 60 movable twigs adapt to the shape of the head. A sheet of paper is then inserted in the centre above the pins and the lid is closed. The pins now punch holes in the paper, creating a template that represents the circumference of the wearer's head. This is then fitted into a so-called formillion, a mould block, and the heated hat fabric is inserted, which shrinks as it cools and adjusts to the formillion.