Decorating Cowboy Hats 101

[Dr2bKay]

I need the assistance of True Texans fans. This football season I would like to sport a pretty and colorful cowboy hats to rep the Texans...the issue..I don't know a thing about cowboy hats or decorating them....

My questions:
1. Where do you even buy a hat in Houston? What are the price ranges?
2. How do some of you paint them and design them? Do you use something that you trace the logo with???

Thanks

[Double Barrel]

Might I suggest a nice hardhat instead?

[Scooter]

there are tons of western wear places around houston ... cavender's and boot town probably being the biggest. straw hats should probably run for around $20-40, but i'm guessing someone around here knows of a better deal.

cant help ya with the decorating part.

[Yankee_In_TX]

Since it is summer, you can find $25.00 straw hats. Buy a style you like. I didn't use any primer and it worked fine. I used the cheap spray paint from Home Depot: General interior/exterior, glossy. It worked well, except the black for some reason was extra thick and bled through my masking. I need to touch it up

[Yankee_In_TX]

Psst, why is my image not displaying?

[DiapHer]

You might get in contact with Jeff, Dean or Andy about hats and painting but I'm not so sure they know anything about "sports pretty"

[Buffi2]

If painting isn't your thing...it isn't mine......

You can find non-straw cowboy hats on sale at Cavenders for less than $40 most of the time. I've decorated two -one black, and one pink. I have a red hat sitting in a closet that needs some decoration before next season.

You can buy red or blue beads and put them around the rim as in a band. I've taken an old lanyard and used the ribbon part to put around the rim.

I took an old cap that had seen better days and cut the logo off of it, sewed around it to keep it from fraying, and hot-glued it to the front of the cowboy hat. I've also stuck an "I'm A Texan" pin on the front of a hat.

I just wandered around Academy, FanAttic, and my house looking for little things I thought I could put on a hat. Sortof surprising what you can find and stick on a hat with a little glue gun.

[Vinny]

Originally Posted by Yankee_In_TX

Psst, why is my image not displaying?

use a different path....I believe you caputured the wrong one. I've done that a few times with photobucket.

[DiapHer]

His picture came up for me.

[Vinny]

Originally Posted by DiapHer

His picture came up for me.

you can only see if if you click the link. That path is set up with % characters so it can't show in a thread....I think that is what he meant.

[DiapHer]

I should have known Yank "really" meant something else

[Dr2bKay]

Thanks for the hat store info...I will start looking this week....

Now is any kind of paint ok? What brand is best?

I should have this be an extra credit assignment for my students...lol, but I don't want to be on Fox 26.

[Hagar]

I wear a straw hat to the majority of games, especially when its hot outside. I bought mine from Cavander on 610 near Reliant.

I didn't buy the nicest hat Cavander's had because I knew it would get ratted out tailgating. Good thing is, it gets alot of character during the season. As far as decorations, I don't do much along those lines but I collect the Verizon Game pins.

Here's a good reason to wear a cowboy had vs. a baseball cap: Buy the hat with the most gallons as posible. When its really, really hot out side and your sweating up a storm anyway, fill the top of your hat with ice and put it back on your head. Works wonders.

[texanskan]

I rep with a cowboy hat most games

[Scooter]

Originally Posted by Buffi2

You can find non-straw cowboy hats on sale at Cavenders for less than $40 most of the time. I've decorated two -one black, and one pink. I have a red hat sitting in a closet that needs some decoration before next season.

cowboy hats are basically either straw or felt, i'm not sure felt (fur) would paint nearly as well and very few are under $40 (hell my resistol was around $180). as buffi said however, you'd be suprised with what you can find around the house to decorate with.

somewhere else to try is spencer's gifts. they usually sell several beer related straw cow"girl" hats for $20 or less that would probably make good decorating hats.

[jjjezebel]

Originally Posted by DiapHer

You might get in contact with Jeff, Dean or Andy about hats and painting but I'm not so sure they know anything about "sports pretty"

Do you really think Andy did his own hat? HAH!

I agree with using a straw hat, it's much cooler. For painting the hat I used Krylon exterior spray paints, and for the detailing I used acrylic craft paint, then I used a coat of spray polyurethane over the whole thing to protect it.

If you want to do stenciling of the logo or anything, contact paper works really well, as it sticks to the hat just enough for you to trace around, but is easy to remove, and won't take off any paint that's underneath it. Sticky backed craft felt also works well for more permanent logos, and the colors won't run. I used it on my first hat, and it worked really well.

If you need fabric or ribbon, Jo-Anns or Hancock Fabrics usually has some really cute red, white, and blue patterns around the fourth of July. (If you want to decorate with beads, PM me. I've got a TON of pony beads left over from my last hat that you can have if you want them).

If you want to go sparkly, you can also find the plastic flat backed rhinestones at craft stores. (Just a note: I found that blue is really difficult to get a hold of).

[OrangeLotPole8]

Do we have to use the term "cowboy" hats? Can't they be "Texan" hats?

[Dr2bKay]

Originally Posted by jjjezebel

Do you really think Andy did his own hat? HAH!

I agree with using a straw hat, it's much cooler. For painting the hat I used Krylon exterior spray paints, and for the detailing I used acrylic craft paint, then I used a coat of spray polyurethane over the whole thing to protect it.

If you want to do stenciling of the logo or anything, contact paper works really well, as it sticks to the hat just enough for you to trace around, but is easy to remove, and won't take off any paint that's underneath it. Sticky backed craft felt also works well for more permanent logos, and the colors won't run. I used it on my first hat, and it worked really well.

If you need fabric or ribbon, Jo-Anns or Hancock Fabrics usually has some really cute red, white, and blue patterns around the fourth of July. (If you want to decorate with beads, PM me. I've got a TON of pony beads left over from my last hat that you can have if you want them).

If you want to go sparkly, you can also find the plastic flat backed rhinestones at craft stores. (Just a note: I found that blue is really difficult to get a hold of).

Katie,

Thanks a ton...I will print this out for when I go shopping...

[Dr2bKay]

Originally Posted by jjjezebel

Do you really think Andy did his own hat? HAH!

I agree with using a straw hat, it's much cooler. For painting the hat I used Krylon exterior spray paints, and for the detailing I used acrylic craft paint, then I used a coat of spray polyurethane over the whole thing to protect it.

If you want to do stenciling of the logo or anything, contact paper works really well, as it sticks to the hat just enough for you to trace around, but is easy to remove, and won't take off any paint that's underneath it. Sticky backed craft felt also works well for more permanent logos, and the colors won't run. I used it on my first hat, and it worked really well.

If you need fabric or ribbon, Jo-Anns or Hancock Fabrics usually has some really cute red, white, and blue patterns around the fourth of July. (If you want to decorate with beads, PM me. I've got a TON of pony beads left over from my last hat that you can have if you want them).

If you want to go sparkly, you can also find the plastic flat backed rhinestones at craft stores. (Just a note: I found that blue is really difficult to get a hold of).

Can you post a few pictures...I am off now to buy the hat and paint...Thanks a bunch. I hope to see you Sat with my new hat.

Updated: I went to two stores. I first went to Cavender's Boot City on 610 and I went to Boot Town on 45. I got hats from both places. I took pics of each hat...hopefully they will show up below. The first one is the darker one- it is more bendable and more straw like. The second one from Boot Town seems to be more like Yank's hat. It is a hard straw hat. It seems like that one is more easy to paint one.

Which one is the better hat...

Now with the paint. I went to Home Depot on 45 and the man that worked in the paint area didn't know what "Krylon exterior spray paints" were, but he did have the finishing paint..I got glossy and I hope that is cool...

[jjjezebel]

The guy at Home Depot didn't know what Krylon Exterior Spray Paint was? Good Lord, now I've heard everything!

Go to Michael's. That's where I found it, and the acrylic craft paints, brushes, rhinestones, and beads. And glossy polyurethane should be fine. Whatever your preference.

As for which hat, it kind of depends on what you want to do. I don't have a facebook account, so I can't see the pictures you've posted. But if you're painting the whole thing, then the stiffer hat will probably be better. If it's got a shine to it, you might want to knock down the shine with some really fine sandpaper or steelwool first, then wipe it with a damp paper towel to get the dust off, and let it dry thoroughly before painting.

If you're just going to decorate, then either should be fine.

As for a picture of my first hat, here it was in it's most pristine state, right after I finished it. (But now it's even more special to me, as it's slowly being covered in autographs)



I'm sure you've already seen Andy's. Pretty much painted like the team helmets, dark blue background with the logos on either side, and "Texans" painted on the front in the "official" font.

Let me know if you have any other questions!