Friday, February 28, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 278 - Spago Amigo Edition

Day 278 / Hat 278: White, baseball-style cap with details in light carmine pink - including the bill, a button on the crown of the hat and embroidery on front that reads: "Spago."

The final hat in the Russ Parsons series, it turns out I truly did save the best for last. Minutes ago I asked Parsons about the provenance of the hat. He laid this awesome (and timely) tale on me:

"I got it from working on the line during Swifty Lazar's Oscars party." Parsons said, "I served pizza to Jimmy Stewart and George Burns and  made a special fresh tomato pasta for Audrey Hepburn."

Parsons explained that it was in service to a story he wrote for the Los Angeles Herald-Examiner. "It was the year that Sean Connery won his first Oscar -- for a movie like 'Russia House' or something."

That would actually be Connery's only Academy Award win to date -- in 1988 he took home the Oscar for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for "The Untouchables" (1987) -- but we're giving Parsons the pass for the awesome back story. (Not too mention that we'd have gotten things all jumbled up too if we'd had the honor of preparing particular pasta for Ms. Hepburn.). Based on my sleuthing, that would have been the evening of April 11, 1988.

Irving "Swifty" Lazar, for those of you unfamiliar, was an agent and Hollywood deal-maker of legendary caliber. His Oscar-night soirees were equally legendary -- and the hardest-to-score A-list bash around. A three-decade-long tradition that had started in Beverly Hills, had called Spago home on Academy Awards night from 1985 until 1993 (Lazar died, at the age of 86,  in December of that year).

Although not as star-studded, I have my own memories of the original Spago which was perched above a car rental place at the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Horn Avenue in West Hollywood. When the future Bride and I moved to town in '95 (or was it '96? That part's hazy), we lived one block west -- on Larrabee Street -- and memorably dined there with the in-laws.

I put two things in my mouth that night that I will never ever forget -- and probably fork-stab a family member for. One was Puck's smoked salmon pizza with dill crème fraîche and caviar and the other was the little ice-cream-cone-shaped miso comes filled with spicy tuna tartare.

(The restaurant's name is explained this way in a 2013 Departures article by Kevin West: "The word 'spago' means 'string' in Italian, and Puck has explained its almost mystical personal significance, evoking the way that a piece of thread has a starting point but seems endless as it unspools continually from a bobbin.")

Hats off to you Mr. Parsons for a hat-tale with some serious legs - you get a deep bow as well as a hat-tip -- with the assist to Wolfgang Puck for decade-plus of delicacies I've digested at his Hollywood parties and restaurants from Malibu to Las Vegas.

PC 277: Lax Attitude
PC 276: Herald and the Hot Dog Hat
Lights out on the best party in town (L.A. Times)

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 277 - Lax (Helmet) Attitude Edition

Day 277 / Hat 277: White plastic lacrosse helmet with black metal face mask and silver-colored chin-strap snaps. Additional details include foam lining and black printing that reads: "Cascade," and: "Cascade Lacrosse, the official helmet of major league lacrosse."

Loaned to the Project by co-worker Lisa Boone, she says it's one that he's outgrown (or no longer finds stylish enough  - apparently kids are designing their own protective helmets these days -- who knew?). She tells me he's on a local youth hockey team called the Hollywood Bears.

While I never played lacrosse, when I was back at Vermont Academy all the cool kids did and even those of us that were too spindly, easily bruised or horridly uncoordinated (I was definitely in the last category) somehow managed to have a lacrosse stick and a couple of lacrosse balls in our possession.

A hat-tip to Boone (by my reckoning this is at least her second helmet - yes, I said helmet -- to be featured) for the loan.

If the team ever needs someone to dress up like a bear and fall out of a tree onto a trampoline (if you haven't seen the video I'm referring to, you can watch it here) for pre-game mascot-like entertainment, at least one player's mom knows who to call.

GO YOU BEARS!

Related:
PC 276: Herald and the Hot Dog Hat
PC 275: Diplomat Hat
PC 274: Citrus Lid
Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 276: Hark the Herald-Examiner Edition

Day 276 / Hat 276: Black and yellow five-panel cap. The back two panels are the kind of mesh you'd find in
the back of a trucker cap, the panels on the left and right side are black (my guess is acrylic or polyester) with yellow contrast stitching and the front double-sized panel is yellow -- printed with the words: "Los Angeles Herald Examiner" in black.

The hat's head-scratching details -- besides wondering what thought process went into (or didn't go into) the design -- include a black fabric pompom up top and a bill that's a perfect semicircle of stingy brimness ranging from 1/2-inch  wide at the temples to 1 3/4-inches wide in the middle.

Another loaner from the Russ Parsons BOH, it's a hat that's been striking a chord with folks in the office as a fair number of them (Parsons included) once worked at the Herald-Examiner, which at one time was the largest afternoon paper in the country.

Wikipedia has a pretty comprehensive entry on the Her-Ex, which was formed in 1962 by the merger of two Hearst-owned papers -- the Los Angeles Examiner and the Los Angeles Herald-Express and published its last edition on November 2, 1989.

In typical L.A. fashion, while the paper is long gone, its building at 1111 South Broadway in downtown L.A. (at the southwest corner of Broadway and 11th streets) lives on as a filming location.

If anyone has the back story on the Her-Ex hat that looks like it was inspired by the Hot Dog on a Stick uniform, drop me a line or post in the comments.

Related:
PC 275: Diplomat Hat
PC 273: Red Rider
Herald-Examiner's last man standing (Los Angeles Times)

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 275 - Russian Diplomat's Black Broner Edition

Day 275 / Hat 275:  Black Russian diplomat hat with faux Persian lamb exterior, diamond-quilted interior lining and fold-down ear flaps. Interior tag reads: "Broner."

Although there is no fabric content tag (it's a loaner from The Headwear Association sample closet),  a quick web search of the style number written on the attached tag -- 59-701 -- reveals t to be a style called "Vladimir," and composed of 100% acrylic material.

Close followers of the Project will know this is the second time this month I've popped a Broner on my head (the first was PC 251 --  the Glam White Trapper) back on Feb. 1.

Although it was listed on the packing slip as a "diplomat hat," it is also referred to as an "ambassador hat" and a "cossack hat" and usually identified with Russian culture. It closely resembles the "karakul," which, as my fellow cube farmer Chris Reynolds hopefully points out is traditionally made "from the fur of aborted lamb fetuses."

To out it diplomatically, that's the kind of thing that makes me wish I'd put my ear flaps down just a tad bit earlier.

Related:
PC 274: Citrus Squeeze

PC 273: Red Rider
PC 272: Mime in the Mirror

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Commodore Perry's Battle Flag: Words to Live By

 

It's rare that I get a chance to post anything here that's not related to Project Cubbins, but since most of you won't be visiting the Garlodge any time soon, I felt it on;y right that my newest vexillological acquisition be unfurled to flap in the cyber breeze.

Hoisted into place a few days ago, it consists of white text on a blue background and reads: "DONT GIVE UP THE SHIP." The version I have was made by Annin Flagmakers.

Here'as a brief history plucked from "The Naval War of 1812: A Documentary History. vol.2," (William S. Dudley, ed., Washington, DC.: US Government Printing Office, 1992):

"'Don't give up the ship!'

Tradition has it that Captain James Lawrence said these heroic words after being mortally wounded in the engagement between his ship, the U.S. frigate Chesapeake, and HMS Shannon on 1 June 1813. As the wounded Lawrence was carried below, he ordered "Tell the men to fire faster! Don't give up the ship!"

Although Chesapeake was forced to surrender, Captain Lawrence's words lived on as a rallying cry during the war. Oliver Hazard Perry honored his dead friend Lawrence when he had the motto sewn onto the private battle flag flown during the Battle of Lake Erie, 10 September 1813."

It's worth noting that Perry was famously victorious in the Battle of Lake Erie. The original flag is still in existence and is apparently among the holdings of the U.S. Naval Academy Museum in Annapolis, Maryland.

A banner of buckle-down tenacity if ever there was one, I hoist these colors in specific honor of my family, the stubbornest tribe that SNAFU Hollow ever turned out.

Related:
Oliver Hazard Perry (from Biographies in Naval History)
"Don't Give Up the Ship" (from U.S. Naval Institute blog)
A Flag Bears Witness (from Pennsylvania Heritage Magazine)

Monday, February 24, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 274 - My Cat On My Hat Edition


Day 274 / Hat 274: White, 100% cotton, baseball-style cap with turquoise-colored embroidery on front that reads: "Citrus." Interior tag reads: Nova, one size fits all, a tradition in headwear for over 60 years, made in China."

A loaner from the Russ Parsons BOH, it references Citrus, Michel Richard's long-shuttered L.A. restaurant, which, from 1986 to early 2001 occupied the Melrose Avenue space that's currently home to Hatfield's.

This isn't a totally random grab from the grab bag, though. I chose it as today's hat in honor of our cat -- also named Citrus -- who joined the family a year ago this week. (I remember it well -- being Pirate Season and all -- she didn't come out from under the bed for nearly a week).

That's her on the upper right above the closeup of the Citrus logo embroidery. That was the name she came with and we decided to keep it -- though in truth she sometimes moves through the house at such a high rate of speed we sometimes refer to her as "Butterscotch Lightning."

The Cat in the Hat I am not.
But a Cat on a Hat? That I've got.

So a kitty hat-tip to the Lady Citrus and bolts of butterscotch lightning -- or butterscotch dust mops as the case may be - wherever we may find them perched and purring.

PC 273: Red Rider
PC 272: Mime in the Mirror
PC 271: Mountain Hat Edition

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Sunday, February 23, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 273 Red Rider Edition


Day 273 / Hat 273: Red wool felt outback-style hat with black leather hatband and three round, silver-colored buckles. Oval-shaped tag on interior of crown reads: "Silverado," and hatband tag reads: "Made in U.S.A., large, WPL 4284, 100% wool."

This is the penultimate loaner to the Project from The Headwear Association's sample closet and Silverado is a brand made by the folks at F&M Hat Company (the same ones who made PC 265).  According to the attached tag it's a style called "Addison" and the wool fabric is something called "Dri-Lex Eco," which means it's "made with recycled, renewable or sustainable yarns." I'm guessing this qualifies as sustainable due to the fact that sheep can be sheared and sheared again year after year.

That is as long as you don't leave the barn door open so they can have free and unfettered access to 50 pounds of grain and overeat themselves into an early woolly grave -- a lesson I keenly learned early in my rural Vermont sheep-raising childhood.

Carry that with me a long time? Yes, I guess I did.

Related:
PC 272: Mime in the Mirror
PC 271: Mountain Hat Edition
PC 270: Rockin' the Fish Knits

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Saturday, February 22, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 272 - Mime in the Mirror Edition


Day 272 / Hat 272: Black beret, interior stamp reads: "Betmar New York, 100% pure new wool, pure laine vierge, reine schurwolle, rein neu wolle, 81108," accompanied by the Woolmark logo.

Graciously loaned to the Project by The Headwear Association. According to the "About Us" section of Betmar's website, the company has been around for some eight decades. Here's an excerpt:

"Betmar's history goes back to the depths of the Great Depression. The year was 1933 - The hat business was flourishing in spite of the difficult economic times. Betmar was in need of a strong factory. They then partnered with a skilled manufacturer, an old-line cap maker with roots dating back to 1911.

From this Betmar was born. The name chosen was taken from 'Betty Marks' who was the first designer for the hat company. Within six months Betmar blossomed at key department stores around the country. Betty Marks continued making great designs into the 1950s, and her protégé, Miss Arleen, carried the name and reputation forward for many years. Betmar is sold today in more than 15 countries and is a leader in women's headwear fashion."


Related:
PC 271: Mountain Hat Edition
PC 270: Rockin' the Fish Knits
PC 268: Lubbock Avalanche
Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Friday, February 21, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 271 - Go Tell it on the Mountain Hat Edition


Day 271 / Hat 271: Camel-colored felt Vivienne Westwood "Mountain" style hat, handmade in England. Interior details include white, padded cotton sweatband lining with allover print of arrowhead and three dots in red and white tag with turquoise-colored lettering that reads: "World's End, Vivienne Westwood, 430 N. Kings Rd. London," with a scimitar-bearing arm in silhouette in the background.

This, of course, is the same style of hat that Pharrell Williams wore on the 2014 Grammy Awards red carpet spawning a millinery meme that nearly hijacked the show (You can read my story about it here) and the minute I saw it I knew I had to have one included in the Project.

Post-Grammys, the shop posted to its blog a little bit of the background on the high-profile piece of headgear, which has apparently been on offer for the last 32 years. Here's an excerpt:

"First produced in 1982 for the ‘Nostalgia of Mud’ fashion show, the hat has been part of the regular look at the World’s End shop.

Made to look like a bashed in hillbilly’s hat it was worn by Malcolm in his Buffalo Girls music video & on the back of his Duck Rock album. ... The look of the ‘Nostalgia of Mud’ collection including the mountain hat had been inspired largely by imagery of Peruvian women whose indigenous outfit is to wear knee length circle skirts which swing when they dance, short jackets, blankets around them which they can use to carry things in & felt hats."

The best part? According to the post, there are more outsize lids in the pipeline -- a giant pilgrim hat is due out this summer and a towering top hat will be dropping in the fall. (I don't know who's more excited about this -- me or Pharrell.)

Oh, and if you want Pharrell's actual hat -- the selfsame one he wore to the Grammys (and not just a cousin to it like mine which can be ordered by calling the Melrose Ave. boutique),the Los Angeles Times reported today that the musician is auctioning it off on EBay to benefit his education-focused From One Hand to Another charity.  But have your giant change purse on hand -- as of this writing, the top bid is currently higher than the crown on this critter -- $10,500.

Today's hat-tip goes to the fine folks at Vivienne Westwood for crafting such an eye-catching hat -- with the assist to Pharrell Williams for bringing it to pop culture's center stage.

Related:
PC 270: Rockin' the Fish Knits
PC 268: Lubbock Avalanche
PC 267: French Laundry List

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 270 - Fancy Fish Knits Edition


Day 270 / Hat 270: Multicolor-striped knit wool fish cap. Details include knit dorsal, caudal and pelvic fins and white and black knit eyes.

Graciously loaned to the Project by my favorite shepherdess Natalie Redding of Namaste Farms in Temecula. (This is the second hat she's contributed -- she also set PC 57) it's had me laughing heartily ever since it flopped out of its envelope and onto my desk.

"You keep getting hats from other people so NOT TO BE OUTDONE, I sent you a totally hand knit hat. A [Facebook] follower knit it and it's a big favorite of my family," Redding wrote.

Of this piscatorial pleasure's provenance Redding says: "The lady's name is Stephanie Buford Stratton of LunabudKnits. The yarn is Noro brand ....  I commissioned her to knit me a couple because they are so radical."

I wholeheartedly agree with Natalie's assessment and thought the hat was so awesome I wanted to make sure I included a photo of it that didn't have my fat head stuffed inside it.

In doing a quick search of the interwebs to find out where LunabudKnits hangs her knitting needles (Nicholasville, Kentucky, apparently) I ran across a fun blog post in which she discusses knitting this bad boy (or one very similar to it).

So a hat-tip (and tail flip) to Natalie -- whose new reality show "Shear Madness" is set to debut March 1 on Nat Geo Wild, btw -- with a much-appreciated (if unwitting) assist to Lady Lunabud for her fantastical fish and fiber creativity!

Related:
PC 269: Crossed Paddles
PC 268: Lubbock Avalanche
PC 267: French Laundry List

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 269 - Crossed Paddles and Personal Heroes Edition

Day 269 / Hat 269: Black, baseball-style cap with black, oval-shaped embroidery on front of two crossed light blue paddles against a black background with a white border. Additional embroidery on back reads: "Blue Paddle Bistro" in light blue.

This hat was plucked at random from the SJTBOH this morning and the logo and name reference a restaurant on Route 2 in the village of South Hero, Vermont (slogan: "Love many, trust a few, but always paddle your own canoe").

For those of you who were tromping about Burlington back in my college days who might remember JM Noonies Deli, apparently the Blue Paddle traces its origins back to that eatery -- and the women behind it -- Phoebe R. Bright and Mandy Hotchkiss.

Located on a peninsula that juts out into Lake Champlain, the town of South Hero takes its name from (and was once once owned by) a couple of my personal heroes -- Ethan Allen and his brother Ira Allen (the latter of whom also founded UVM).
Here's an excerpt from the town's website:

"The Town of South Hero, located in Grand Isle County in Northwestern Vermont, lies on the Southern half of South Hero Island in Lake Champlain. The area which now encompasses South Hero, Grand Isle, and North Hero was given to Ethan and Ira Allen on October 27, 1779 as a reward for their services to the state."

In fact, according to most accounts, it was after a visit to South Hero ("with one of his workers to visit his cousin, Ebenezer Allen, and to collect a load of hay," notes Wikipedia ) that, on the return trip, the great agitator apparently suffered an apoplectic fit, fell unconscious and died a short time later -- on Feb. 12, 1789.

A hat-tip to sister Sue and a hearty "huzzah" to the brothers Allen!

Related:
PC 268: Lubbock Avalanche
PC 267: French Laundry List
PC 266: One Shade of Gray

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!



Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 268 - Lubbock Avalanche Edition


Day 268 / Hat 268: Trucker-style cap with red foam front and white mesh back with printed circular patch detail with blue embroidery around border. Patch includes white silhouette of the state of Texas  against a red background with a blue star. Words surrounding it read: "Lubbock Avalanche-Journal."

The sophomore piece of headgear from Los Angeles Times Food section editor Russ Parsons' BOH (that's "bag o' hats," don't forget),who tells me that the LAJ was the first newspaper he worked at after college -- from 1979 to 1981.

"I covered high school sports -- for towns like Muleshoe and Punkin Center," he told me, "and  I covered country music."

Reminds me of my days back at the Manchester (Vermont) Journal. While I never covered country music, we did have a running joke about a moose in the boiler room.

We were curious about the name of the paper -- as Lubbock didn't strike us as a particularly avalanche-prone part of the U.S. -- and according to the Wikipedia entry about the paper (which was founded in 1900 by by John James Dillard and Thad Tubbs), "the name "Avalanche" was chosen due to [Dillard's] desire that the newspaper surprise the citizens of Lubbock."

So a second hat-tip to Russ for the loaner lid - and a peek back toward the early days of  his 35-year career slinging ink and pixels.

Related:
PC 267: French Laundry List
PC 266: One Shade of Gray
PC 265: Harley Hat

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Monday, February 17, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 267 - French Laundry List Edition

Clockwise from left: me (obvi), front embroidery detail, back embroidery detail. 

Day 267 . Hat 267: Black baseball-style cap with embroidery detail of a white clothespin, the blue capital letters "F" and "L" to the left and right respectively against a circular embroidered background of gray. Additional detail includes the words: "The French Laundry" in white embroidery on the back of the hat and an interior tag that reads: "Headmaster, Inc. one size fits all (59 cm), 100% cotton, made in Bangladesh."

This is from a fresh-from-the-oven (OK, they're not really from an oven) bag o' hats (BOH) that I found sitting on my desk when I returned from NYFW, courtesy of Food section editor Russ Parsons,
The French Laundry, as foodies the world over know, is chef Thomas Keller's famed Yountville, Calif., restaurant (so named because it had been, back in the 1920s, a French steam laundry).

I had the good fortune to dine there once and have been a fan of Keller's restaurants ever since. The Bride took me to his New York City restaurant Per Se for my 40th birthday and it was such a gastronomic high point for me that ever since I've been slowly trying to eat my way through the remainder of Keller's edible empire. To date I've added Bouchon  restaurants and Bouchon Bakery locations in Yountville, Calif., Las Vegas and New York City to my Keller dance card.

(I did not know this, but apparently he is the only American chef to have been awarded simultaneous three star Michelin ratings for two different restaurants.)

By my reckoning, that leaves just one restaurant -- ad hoc in Yountville -- to go. And if the restaurant's got hats for sale I can probably kill two squabs with one pizza stone.

Road trip, anyone?

Related:
PC 266: One Shade of Gray
PC 265: Harley Hat
PC 264: Vermont Bucket

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Sunday, February 16, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 266 - One Shade of Gray Two-Tone Fedora Edition

Day 266 / Hat 266: Gray, 100% wool Scala brand fedora with black stingy brim with bound edge in gray chevron fabric, the same fabric used in the hatband -- though bisected there by a black grosgrain ribbon.

Additional detail includes red satin herringbone-pattern. Interior tag reads: " Dorfman Pacific Company, Genuine Scala Classic, hand made since 1921."

Another loaner to the Project from the kind folks at The Headwear Association.

Yes, you've seen gray fedoras featured in the Project before (see PC 74 and PC 115), but this bad boy has it all going on with the mismatched top and tails so to speak. I was trying like the devil to get a bead on the style name on this one (the DF110-ASST and RN31905 numbers on the back of the interior tag turn up nothing on the interwebs) so it'll just have to remain a mystery lid unless the good folks at Dorfman-Pacific can float me some intel.


Related:
PC 265: Harley Hat
PC 264: Vermont Bucket
PC 263:Snow Pirate Pax


Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Saturday, February 15, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 265 - Hog Head Edition

Day 265 / Hat 265: Black, 100% wool, made-in-the-U.S.A.. size large Harley-Davidson Outback hat with crystal and metal embellished black leather hatband, the details of which include the Harley-Davidson shield logo rendered in metal and crystals. Attached tag says: "Manufactured by F&M Hat Co/., Inc. under license from Harley Davidson Motor Co."

This crushable and water repellent (according to the printing on the interior sweatband) is one of the loaners to the Project from members of the The Headwear Association. According to its website, F&M, which dates to 1912, has offices and a factory in Denver, Pennsylvania, and makes hats for  range of brands (including Jack Daniels, don't you know).

Have you ever wondered why Harley-Davidson motorcycles are called "hogs"? I have -- and today I found out (at least according to Wikipedia). Here's the part of the Harley-Davidson entry titled for Origin of "Hog" nickname:

"Beginning in 1920, a team of farm boys, including Ray Weishaar, who became known as the "hog boys," consistently won races. The group had a live hog as their mascot. Following a win, they would put the hog on their Harley and take a victory lap."

Apparently Harley-Davidson created a  club for Harley owners in 1983, dubbing it the Harley Owners Group (HOG, get it?) and would eventually try to trademark the word but in 1999 it wqs ruled that "hog" had become a generic term for large motorcycles and was therefore unprotectable as a trademark. (That didn't stop the motorcycle maker from changing its NYSE ticker symbol to HOG (from HDI) in 2006.)

And now you know!

Related:
PC 264: Vermont Bucket
PC 263:Snow Pirate Pax
PC 262: Tartan Trapper

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Friday, February 14, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 264 - Vermont on my Mind Again/Still Edition


Day 264 / Hat 264: Olive drab colored bucket hat with green, oval-shaped "VT" embroidery.  Interior
tag reads:"Pierce Dist. S. Burlington, VT 05403, 100% cotton, made in Hong Kong." 

Another loaner from the SJTBOH, I'm not sure of the ultimate provenance of this bucket hat but the interior tag makes me think it either had something to do with the annual Vermont Grocers Association tradeshow or, more likely, ended up in sister Sue's possession by way of my parents' store as they stock all manner of Vermont-related souvenir (and it would make sense that the souvenirs would be wholesaled through Pierce). 

I picked this hat because, once again, Vermont has been very much on my mind so putting the 802 on my mind symbolically just seemed right. 

And because the hat's donor, my baby sister Sue, deserves a bucket load of hat tips for doing serious yeoman's duty on the family front. 

Seems like just the other day we were kids, horsing around and pushing each other through glass doors (OK it was just me who pushed her, but you get the idea) and now we're all grown up and trying like the devil to keep the Tschorn ship ship-shape (try saying that five times fast!). 

So here's to you, Sue!

Thursday, February 13, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 263 - Snow Pirate Pax Edition

Day 263 / Hat 263:  Black knit hat with red skull and crossbones on one side and red and black mohawk-like fringe. Handmade in Nepal, sold by Nirvanna Designs and sourced by the Bride in NYC. Exterior is 100% wool and interior polar fleece lining is 100% polyester.

I took this photo at about 10:30 a.m. EST today in the full-on midst of Winter Storm Pax. I like to think of it as my snow pirate look. With any luck, this pirate will be back in his regular Subtropical-Mediterranean climate zone shortly.

Oh, and just so you know (as I do now) we're just six short winter storms away from Winter Storm Vulcan!

Live long and prosper!


Related:

PC 261: Apple Hat
PC 260: We Ballin'
PC 259: Sock it to Monkey

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 262 - Brooks Bros. Tartan Trapper Edition

Day 262 / Hat 262: Red Brooks Brothers tartan and fleece trapper hat from the Fall and Winter 2014 collection, generously loaned to the Project by the folks at Brooks Bros.

You read that right -- this is a hat from the future. It won't be available for purchase until about nine months from now. That's how damn ahead of the curve I am.

And when I say it's the Brooks Brothers tartan I mean its their pattern -- made from combining elements of the label's BB#1 repp stripe tie pattern with those of the traditional Scottish Campbell tartan (according to this description, it's even registered with the Scottish Tartans Authority). The hat I'm wearing in the above photo is a version with a red background.

So a sincere hat-tip to my sources within the company (who shall remain nameless) for the momentary loan.

As for the rest of you -- this is what the future looks like. Get used to it.

Related:
PC 261: Apple Hat
PC 260: We Ballin'
PC 259: Sock it to Monkey

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 261 - Not Adam's Apple Edition

Day 261 / Hat 261: Black, baseball-style cap with white Apple logo embroidery on front. Interior tag reads: "Yupoong, 100% cotton, one size fits all, made in Dominican Rep."

This was a random grab from the SJTBOH (Susan J. Tschorn Bag O' Hats) and knowing my brother-in-law's love of all things Apple computer, I'm going to take a wild guess that today's hat-tip is due to one Mark S. McClary of South Burlington, Vermont.

I so did not realize this until I started posting today's hat, but January 24, 2014, marked the 30th anniversary of the introduction of the Apple Macintosh computer.

If he was indeed the original source of said lid, this would mark Mark's very first  ... bite at the apple.

You knew I was going to go there, right?
Related:
PC 260: We Ballin'
PC 259: Sock it to Monkey
PC 258: Buttoned-Up Brainpan

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Monday, February 10, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 260 - We Ballin' Edition

Day 260 / Hat 260: White knit cap with the words: "Ballin, Paris" in black embroidery. Interior tag reads:
"BLTEE, Brian Lichtenberg," on one side and "100% acrylic, made in USA" on the other.

This hat was loaned to Project Cubbins by none other than the designer himself after were jawboning about the Ain't Ain't Laurent hat (PC 256) at his New York Fashion Week presentation last night (it was a motocross-grunge inspiration).

The "Ballin, Paris" logo, just in case you're not up on your luxury brnads, is a parody of the Balmain logo

So there you have it. I'm totally ballin' in the Big Apple. Oh wait, you think you know what ballin' means but you're not quite sure, right? According to various (and totally reliable) on-line slang dictionaries, "ballin'" refers to either 1) playing basketball, or 2) living a life of affluence and wealth (see also "makin' it rain.")

Wear ironic hats much?

A sincere tip of the parody lid to Brian Lichtenberg for his gracious contribution to the Project.

Related:
PC 259: Sock it to Monkey
PC 258: Buttoned-Up Brainpan
PC 257: Pink Nepalese Mohawk

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Sunday, February 09, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 259 - Sock it to Monkey Edition

Day 259 / Hat 259: Multi-colored hand-knit knit sock monkey hat with black felt eyes, a beige woven lining and red pompom. Interior tag reads: "Nirvanna Designs, hand knit in Nepal." Fabrication tag reads: "50% wool, 40% mohair, 10% nylon, made in Nepal."

For those who think I'd double-dipping on the sock monkey headgear front, I will clarify that the version that appears in installment PC 75 (loaned from the Noelle Carter collection) is completely different monkey. (I won't bother listing all the subtle differences, one need only look to the pompom color.)

 This is another NYC "Bride find" and, while I love it dearly, I won't be holding on to it for very long. I'm sending him to live with his Uncle Al up in Vermont. My brother's pod of sock monkeys has boomed in population lately. At the current rate of growth, I expect there to be a sock monkey to Siberian Husky ratio of one-to-one before the end of summer.

A tip of the hat to the bride for sourcing the lid, and a mid-winter shout out to my big brother Al for handling all of this monkey business like a real champ.

Related:
PC 258: Buttoned-Up Brainpan
PC 257: Pink Nepalese Mohawk
PC 256: Ain't Ain't Laurent

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!

Saturday, February 08, 2014

Project Cubbins: Hat 258 - Bangin' Buttons Edition

Day 258 / Hat 258: Black, baseball-style cap with gold metallic studded snapback brim and front festooned with gold metallic
buttons, gold metallic spikes, faux gemstones and one gold metallic jaguar head (which you can see way over on the right if you look carefully).

The Bride picked this bangin' button lid up earlier in the week at a place she stumbled across called Pinktown USA (which is located at 868 6th Ave. between 30th and 31st streets).

There's not much else to say except that all the metalwork up top makes this a heavier hat than most of the ones I've plopped atop my head to date.

Oh, and when I tried it on in the front of the Bride for the first time she took one look at me and said: "Missy Elliot!"

Related:

PC 257: Pink Nepalese Mohawk
PC 256: Ain't Ain't Laurent
PC 255: Pompom Wonderful

Q: OK, nice hat -- but what exactly is Project Cubbins, anyway?

A: One man's homage to Dr. Seuss and his second book, "The 500 Hats of Bartholemew Cubbins," which is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its publication in 2013, Project Cubbins is an attempt to document the wearing of a different hat or piece of headgear every day for 500 consecutive days. No do-aheads, no banking of hats, no retroactive entries. PC started on May 27, 2013 with Hat 1
Got hats? If you loan 'em, you'll get e'm back safe and sound!