Assembly Line

How felt hats are made

An Akubra hat starts as a cone of rabbit fur nearly three times the size of the finished hat.

stations
8
things upstream
29
raw sources
10
steps from the ground
8

The short version

A felt hat is made without any weaving. Rabbit fur or wool fibers are blown onto a cone, then matted together with heat, moisture and pressure until they lock into a dense felt that has shrunk to a fraction of its size. The body is dyed, stiffened, steamed over a block to form crown and brim, sanded and trimmed.

  1. Form a loose fiber cone

    Cleaned rabbit fur or wool is blended and blown onto a large rotating cone, forming a thin, loose layer. At this point it is nearly three times the size of the finished hat.

    Goes in
    Wool fleece

  2. Mat it with hot water

    Heat, moisture and pressure make the fibers shrink and interlock. The scales on each fiber latch onto their neighbors, and the cone holds together as felt.

  3. Bump the felt

    The body passes through bumping machines, worked with heat and moisture. Short fibers bind into the surface, and the felt gets denser and smoother as it shrinks further.

  4. Dye the body

    The felt goes into a heated dye bath, with shades mixed and weighed by hand. Rollers then help set the color and prepare the felt for shaping.

  5. Stiffen the felt

    A shellac or resin stiffener is worked into the body, so the finished hat will hold its shape.

    Goes in
    Lacquer

  6. Block it over a form

    The damp body is steamed until it softens, then stretched over a wooden or metal hat block for the crown and pressed onto a flange for the brim.

  7. Sand the surface

    Fine abrasives and sanding machines take off stray fibers, a step known as pouncing. Brushes and polishing wheels then even out the texture.

  8. Trim and sew

    The edge is trimmed, a sweatband is sewn inside, and a ribbon goes around the crown.

    Goes in
    Sewing thread
End of the lineFelt hat

Worth repeating

  • Akubra counts 162 steps in making one hat.
  • Wool felt is among the oldest known textiles.

Back to the ground

Follow every input upstream and felt hat starts as these 10 raw sources.

Wool fleeceWaterCornSugarcaneNatural gasCrude oilAirSulfurSugar beetLimestone

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Keep walking

Hoodie 6 stations · 9 raw sources Flag 6 stations · 21 raw sources Leather shoe 6 stations · 17 raw sources Baseball cap 6 stations · 12 raw sources Bath towel 7 stations · 14 raw sources Lacquer 8 stations · 8 raw sources

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Sources

Cite this page: "How felt hats are made." Assembly Line, 2026-11-03. https://assemblyline.org/make/felt-hat

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