I've been meaning to write about this for some time now, the ridiculous opinion of a certain type of individual that I frequently encounter both online and in public. Many times this specific comment will land under a photo of one of my hats and every time it makes me think about how much ignorance is out there. Before I get into it just know that I may be talking about you and quite frankly, I don't give a damn. The comment is this one; "I prefer to to get my hats dirty the natural way, dirt, sweat and years."
My reply to this is quite simply, "Well, good for you." Who cares? So what? So, you wear an old hat that you've had for years and it looks amazing. That's great, but does that make you a better person? Are you a true man cause you got your hat dirty on your own? Why is this a topic you need to comment about?
First of all, you have to realize that people are different and not everyone is as fortunate as you to be able to work the land, live on a ranch, be a real cowboy doing cowboy things and sweatin' up their hat all day. You have to take into consideration that people all over, in every corner of the Earth are fans of Westerns and the cowboy way of life. There are people in New York City that absolutely love Westerns and want an Ugly, worn out looking hat. Hell, there's Western fans on Islands in the Pacific! What are these people supposed to do? Buy a new hat, wear it for years in the hopes that one day before they die their hat will finally look like a character from one of their favorite Western films? Why voice your opinion with an ignorant comment online about how my hat is no good because it isn't naturally dirty?
Here's the deal, the second thing to realize is that these hats are ART. It takes time, effort and know how to get these hats to look this way. When you watch your favorite Western on television do you look at the characters and immediately say, "Oh that hat he's wearing isn't really dirty, he didn't wear it for years to get it to look like that." The answer is NO, you don't do that because you're watching a Western, the hat is informing the character, helping you to get into the story. It's the same thing with Ugly Outlaw Hats. I make hats influenced by the film industry and the history of the Old West. This is fashion, a hat that not only can help you find your character but help DEFINE your character. If you can't respect that, and the wants and needs of others then move along. No need to leave your ignorant comment on a post of a piece of art that someone else may envy and want to add to their head and home.