Why This Hatmaker Sets Fire to His $950 Felt Masterpieces

Nov. 10 -- In Venice, California, Nick Fouquet designs and builds custom headgear from raw materials. He makes each by hand, as requested by a client roster that includes celebrities like Pharrell and Anne Hathaway. No two hats are the same, but each is made with the best materials, using techniques that have been perfected for centuries. (Video by Zach Goldstein and Brian Schildhorn)
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[@michaelc.gilbert6770]

I was going to buy one of these, but Fouquet.

[@brianda5793]

Michael C. Gilbert 😂

[@Solo-yi3bm]

😂😂

[@bobdylanreimagined6150]

Took me a minute 😄

[@carloscarias6276]

😂

[@phillykiki7320]

Try Thunder Voice Eagle. He has better quality hats

[@RenegadeTimes]

Nothing is more satisfying than an artist satisfied and fulfilled with his art. Beautiful.

[@AbdullahQ1993]

To all the people calling this overrated and overpriced: there are many people, like myself, who choose to own a few handcrafted, high quality pieces over many mass-produced cheap products that deteriorate fast and don’t quite fit perfectly. So if you’re a craftsperson who has a passion for making anything, please do, because I, and many others, will find value in your work.

[@johncenarockz]

Abdullah I completely agree

[@matthoward5886]

Being someone who makes hats I can agree with you..but when you are doing a show piece on a video you should make sure the ribbon covers the sweatband stitching. You also make the sweatband fit the customers head..not just wrap it around inside a blocked hat. This was laughable at best

[@adamnagy1832]

Paying the extra bucks for better quality, custom fit and handcrafted is justifiable. In this case you're paying extra because it's art.

[@beccareul]

It just makes you sound pretentious because frankly there’s no reason on gods green earth why a hat should cost $1000 ever, well unless perhaps you’re having one made for a royal wedding or going to the Kentucky derby.

[@Murtagh653]

akubra and other large scale manufacturers such as stetson have the same or better quality and theres the added bonus that they cost a fraction of the price, you could just buy one from a company and customise it yourself for 5 bucks or less. this guy is lucky that people are dumb and lazy enough to think setting an average hat on fire and sticking a match on it somehow makes it worth more.

[@GlenCocopuffs]

“Hats are the pinnacle of elegance” - guy wearing a wifebeater

[@HoustonWadeCompton]

Is he about to wear a three piece suit in a workshop or??? 😂

[@blahblah60]

Theyre comfy no denying that

[@LamVanDam]

@@HoustonWadeCompton Hannibal Lector wears a three piece suit under his murder suit.

[@elcatrinc1996]

what the fuck is a wifebeater ¿?

[@gustavogonzalez5815]

I’ll excuse myself thank you very much though “wife beater?” It’s called professionally as an athletic, sleeveless, A-shirt, tee, or tank underwear. How non-knowledgeable.

[@gristlevonraben]

They had to age the hat and jacket of Harrison Ford for the Indiana Jones movies. Ford found and helped to create his hat, but forgot to age it. Once on set, he was told it needed to look used, so he crushed it into the white sands under his feet, and then rolled it up a few times, dusted off, reshaped it and was ready to go. The sweat stains came quickly due to the actual weather being warm and standing out in the sun. Though they used three different hats for the movie series, the first movie used the same hat, all stuntmen had hats made into the style Ford helped to create, people who ordered replica hats were very upset that their hats were so much darker than the one in the movie scenes. The actual fix is to literally crush the hat into fine white sand, not cornstarch, sugar or flour, which can rot your hat and destroy it, but instead to take it to a nice white, dry beach, and roll it in the sand, then rub it out and gently put it on, and wear it. Indy's original hat was a darkish brown, turned tan by having fun with it.

[@albusdumbledore2279]

Gristle Von Raben I

[@Shottyshotgun1]

Jake Alamo what the fuck is wrong with you mate

[@Shottyshotgun1]

Jake Alamo with the current state of the world, its always best to be naive. im not sure who the director was but im also not sure what the director has to do with ford

[@leonardusdesignleonardusde3479]

Gristle Von Raben m

[@Panda74gofaster]

Gristle Von Raben it would be kooler if HF told this story... rather from a third party snitch...

[@sudonim7552]

"Yeah can I get my hat uhhhhh medium rare please"

[@JeremyTalksWitU]

His hats are thousands of dollars. I just realize that i had no clue what hats cost

[@Luftbubblan]

Very uncommon with hats where i live atm. An old friends grandpa made a fortune selling hats back in the days :D

[@ChapuleTaylor]

You see, hats in TF2 actually aren't that expensive

[@keshlalish5586]

like anything custom handmade. from tuxedo to the hat but you do get a lot more for the price imho

[@barberman1087]

If you buy a hat for that price, ether you are insane or you got to much money.

[@gytisdramblewolfskis8521]

if you search in like a supermarket or smth you can probably get really cheap. The ones I find in hat specific, quality shops are minimum like 80.(EU)

[@helsinki]

This is so hipster, I grew a twirly mustache watching this.

[@natedill9180]

Why is this hipster? Why can’t a white person live and work like he is doing?

[@elcatrinc1996]

i know, i low how hipster it is

[@sophiew1967]

Me too and I'm a woman ;)

[@ashleyspiano]

The beauty of patina is that it's earned through time. Intentionally distressed art annoys me because it's a statement of impatience. It feels so fake.

[@dobypilgrim6160]

I hate fake "distressed" anything. You are right. Patina cannot be faked. Truth can't be faked either. These seem like very nice hats. Distressing them - well...

[@strongyang]

That's hippie for ya!

[@brandonkey181]

Its no, its a style. The compromise of materials, time, and or effort is simply a benefit, and not the purpose.

[@TheRoadOfLoading]

actually, distressing with fire to achieve a patina is quite common in shoes, called burnishing. I think a little bit of burnishing on the edge of that hat looks awesome, but a bit too much on the crown

[@shadowblack1987]

Absolutely clueless comment. lol

[@kasseen]

The hat looked perfectly fine before he went ahead an burnt the shit

[@Ketutar]

Not really. Had he not burned it, people would see that it's not perfectly fine. Now "it's supposed to be".

[@DredPirateRoberts]

Theatrics, hollywood isn't that far from Venice

[@khestal]

I've no idea what you said, Ketutar.

[@mikewolf3686]

Way better before the fire.

[@mrvk699]

Killed that hat. One could argue that nothing beats time.

[@OMGWTFLOLSMH]

Huh? Celebrities don't have time. They gotta look cool NOW, for 15 minutes, then on to the next thing.

[@rosemarybloom9851]

What an inspiring Craftsman! It takes a lot of courage to strike out on your own and start a business like this. I personally love the look of his hats and I like knowing the products he uses are sustainable.

[@miike111]

That was a beautiful video about a guy that make hats and with his own style!!! Great work to Zack and Brian, I wish BloomBerg would show more videos like this!!!!!!

[@jacquinorcross-edwards1861]

I have a collection of hats from ladies leather to wool, casual and dress. Each one is a part of me and I can't think of anything else that is more personal in my wardrobe. This video is so cool I loved watching you work.

[@roycehellion]

You need a life

[@SamWinderlich]

yep, looks like a burnt hat

[@treatb09]

my thoughts too. it was a nice hat, but then you lit it on fire...

[@GraphicArtist115]

@@treatb09 lol

[@jameskann951]

Now with so many Hatmakers out there you can get a Custom Fur Felt Hat for $400-$500 not $1200.-$2000 for this Guy's Hats. However in Southern California there are a lot of wealthy People who will gladly pay $1500. for his Hats and of course his association with Neiman-Marcus Stores helps too probably Macy's too. His Family financially helped Nick get started and they are a Fashion Family so it wasn't that hard for him to become a Custom Hatmaker. The Rich get richer!

[@blastermaster5039]

Thats the nature of human ever since the dawn of time. Flexing wealth and acquiring wealth to flex more is a proven strategy not only to qcuire power but also to reproduce. I am just glad we as a species evolve to have sympathy with each other and learn to help the poor of our kind - but yeah, we still need to evolve more. 😅

[@BonkMachine]

4:25 Imagine walking around like that

[@jimking4141]

I happen to appreciate the craftmanship Nick Fouquet puts into each of his hats. It's quite remarkable actually. Good on you.

[@gregoutcalt6773]

Out of the hundreds and hundreds of videos I’ve watched on KZbin this is in my top 2-3 all time favorites..... and I don’t even wear hats.

[@phillykiki7320]

Check out Thunder Voice Eagle

[@surfgal77]

😱 This is craftsmanship at its best!!! Amazing 😍 It’s soooo beautiful what he’s doing and I love, that art like this will survive because of people like him 🙏🏻

[@sunflower-oo1ff]

Wow Nick , you do awesome work! Thanks for this video !

[@billruber2861]

, I have worn hats my whole life my grandfather was also a hat man I guess I got it from him .Your right you have to own the look

[@ricdonato4328]

All too common spelling or word choice error: It should read you are or you're, not your. That which follows your belongs to the person you are conversing with.

[@Cowboyup938]

Nice ! Good work, very good Congratulations!

[@alltraveler]

My 8 year old grandson loves. Real. Hats. He saves his money and buys at the hat shop in Disney springs. He bought a black felt top hat that he wears all the time. He wears an Irish style cap with his family emblem on it. He definitely owns hat wearing. I can’t wait for him to grow into my dads Stetson . Beautiful.

[@20vK]

Awesome crafter, awesome filmmaking. I loved everything about this.

[@hugavet3049]

Great video. Great hats too. Love the artwork of both Nick and filmmaker.

[@Finkardop]

I'm glad the hat community is so small and not being ruined by society for money and quantity.

[@jesusr.trevino6996]

Most amazing thing ive ever seen its always important for a hat to match you

[@brandonkey181]

More people need to see this video. This video is awesome.

[@onecatsopinion]

Very nice... Love to see the process.

[@davidr6026]

Amazing! Terrific.

[@TheMjj164TibBitsFromTheAttic]

Beautiful work

[@TsetsiStoyanova]

I am fascinated by this hat-making process!

[@princesunil26k]

Ohhh

[@shineliofficial9099]

👍

[@dolcinafletcher5030]

You have to rock hats with confidence no matter the cost. Its like a piece of unique jewelry added to your outfit.

[@angelamarques3708]

Just amazing!

[@Venomthegr8]

How to abuse the slo-mo button.....dam ....the whole video was slowed down ....thought I was having a stroke

[@suzannebeyer5369]

The hat on fire, so beautiful!

[@joshuagarcia7791]

My respect to your art. My hats off to you.

[@anichoubouk9367]

Fabulous work and video.

[@djordjeblaga7815]

Love the synthesizer work around 5:00

[@j.dtruths5577]

That was awesome!!!

[@lamar3448]

Stunning!

[@KVandendriessche]

He keeps saying “we” but there’s no one else there 😳

[@civicspikes]

Loved the video!!

[@DredPirateRoberts]

Rare field trip for Bloomberg to see how the middle class makes a living.

[@nadiar.7788]

The guy makes minimum $1K US a hat. He's not middle class.

[@dwcannabisgrower8445]

Gotta own it! Totally rad dude👍.

[@emilismelnikavicius503]

//QUESTION FOR HAT MAKERS// Does anyone know if you can do the sanding process like Nick does with any sort of felt, or just top-notch? Thank you in advance for the answer!

[@ahmadfadzel7089]

Why it always in slow motion?

[@antonhelsgaun]

It makes it seem like he's doing a lot, while he isn't actually doing $1000's work

[@darrenernest]

Really cool hat he’s wearing with the curvy brim

[@theedelluis]

Wow... very artistic...

[@garyrifat2917]

lot of Haters out there, his hats are cool if you cant afford one and I cant, please admire the work,effort,craftsmanship and quality without the negative comments. I don't know of another hat maker in LA that can make you a bespoke custom hat. My mother taught me if you don't have anything nice to say about something perhaps you should not say anything never has this been more true in the age of the internet. Im thankful craftsman like this guy are still making things that you can treasure for a life time it costs more but it is worth it. Way to go Nick ignore the haters and hopefully when I can afford one of your hats you will still be making them.

[@marcoscunha2115]

buy an Akubra for 1/10 of the Nick´s hat price

[@nintendolover114]

Akubras are bonza

[@heinzguderianbutmoreyounge9659]

Nah,i love stetson more,don't have enough money buy vintage

[@leslieboles6439]

Awesome, I have to come and meet you sometime! I love hatmaking.

[@securit7590]

Amazing hats. Cool dude.

[@ljc6141]

Fire resistant hats, for the classy fireman

[@kairon156]

Very interesting video. I had no idea there were so few hat makers. Though I suspect a large part is many people are against furs and leather in general.

[@nahimnalieldelacruzdelfin]

Nice job . Congratulations nick. Saludos desde mexico de un aprendiz de sombrerero. Mi linea de trabajo son los sombreros de charro.

[@exquisitelyelizabeth6531]

Love it!

[@varun009]

Customer: well, it doesn't fit and it has a huge hole in it not to mention it's fucking burnt! Hipster: **sweats nerviously** the beauty is in the mistakes.

[@Optimusprimerules1]

Are they $950 before or after the burning...?

[@sixpotshot]

Cool craft

[@diamondlouie5585]

How long does it take you to make a piece a art? How many steps does it take to make a hat without machines?

[@lostinspace1719]

Legend has it after 2 years hat still sits there ..

[@GraphicArtist115]

Lol

[@dinkerz]

That dude was really cheesy but major props to the cinematographer. Those were some gorgeous shots!!

[@shineliofficial9099]

👍

[@MrCoursair77]

Super outstanding Bro…!

[@adiroxstr]

This was beautiful! Love the process and the crafters vision. Thanks for sharing!

[@goutambag7213]

hats off

[@MrHodgeon5th]

I respect the craft..

[@sayankumardas2911]

Awesome

[@eytanmerkier7861]

lovely video, really did enjoy it, was pleasantly surprised this came from Bloomberg though hahah

[@marcecobaya]

Eytan Merkier the way that their videos are edited.....on point

[@rosemarymccarter1596]

I would really love ❤️ to learn how 🤔 because I love wearing hats!

[@lincolnhare7766]

Nice. VERY nice.

[@sethaldarith6778]

How do you burn the fuzz off of things without burning them up like this? Is he spraying it with something?

[@robertrichter7702]

I’d love to have one of his hats , but I could get a custom for that much

[@jackjill3205]

Headwear is very personal a crowning accoutrement to what ever you are wearing, Hudhuds are the pinnacle of elegance and style individually created to cater for your desired dress sense to wear fashionable clothing .

[@Misterrocckettaro]

Does anyone know what does he use to set the hat on fire? 🔥 (I suppose rubbing alcool?)

[@sloppynig1]

this guy is a boss i need a hat from him

[@sandrarodgers5440]

I love what you do

[@drewfriesen9025]

This guy just gave a bunch of more talented desperate artists the fundamentals of hat making. I think there’s gonna be a few for hat makers in America.

[@OMGWTFLOLSMH]

There's a reason there are so few hat makers.

[@HomikaGaming]

Well I'm down to learn. I collect tons of hats ^^

[@LuCas-bf6si]

What a nice guy

[@liposchak]

You people do not understand what goes into a handcrafted product. Handmade anything is top quality and would probably end up being an heirloom. Mass produced hats fall apart. I make everything and just started making felted hats by knitting them first then hand felting them. Itsa lot of work and the public just doesn't realize it.

[@antonhelsgaun]

Not really true though. The fact that something is mass produced doesn't make it worse quality, quite the contrary. I have only bought one handmade thing, and it broke

[@the.magnus]

Love me some Beaver felt

[@jambajoby32]

Lol

[@the.magnus]

@@jambajoby32 yay, finally someone got the joke 😹

[@nicholaslandolina]

He should do a car interior for the truck

[@user-hw6hh3wu3z]

Britain is great .I love Britain

[@SUPERSCUMDK]

Check out Hornskov Hats from Denmark. They have some pretty awesome videos here on KZbin aswell

[@keshiamills5717]

Great job! I would really live to design and make my own hats one day. Lol Keshia

[@tashawood4657]

As someone who works in a hat shop everything he says is stuff I say to my customers everyday haha

[@nattybushdoctor9021]

This video should be titled .. why this hat maker glues in his liners instead of sewing it in?? 7:57

[@shena1256]

Of course he drives a old pickup 😂❤️

[@johnschriber5077]

Where do you get the base felt dome?

[@tsu1951]

spent the last 5 hours making my first hat. and right as I finish this video popped up :) mine was just a simple wet felted hat about doll size. absolutely nothing like he makes

[@arcana830]

What a cool

[@Finke.]

A very talented creative artist ...

[@thecitizenjoan]

Wow everyone is sleeping on how gorgeous he is

[@nemphis95]

That nigga is ugly af

[@carmenmcallister5222]

I thought he looked a little like Brad Pitt.

[@GraphicArtist115]

@@nemphis95 lol

[@Brownpenguin115]

Nothing will ever beat Stetson

[@noway234]

Except a Resistol Hat!!

[@Brownpenguin115]

@@noway234 True true

[@zk7by53msp]

I don’t like to wear hats but he’s hats I really want them 🎩

[@tinalaugel3259]

wow

[@user-my9be8qn7k]

mm, but what does he use for sanding? does anybody know?

[@gaesimmonds2165]

Where do you source your hat bodies?