|
Sharon Sullivan is the imaginative milliner behind Dream Hats. Fascinated by all things hat-like, she can often be found working with her QA specialist, Hobbes
The Bowler hat, also known as a coke hat, derby (US) or billycock, is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown. The Bowler hat was devised in 1849 by the London hatmakers Thomas and William Bowler to fulfill an order placed by the firm of hatters Lock & Co. of St James's. Lock & Co. had been commissioned by a customer to design a close-fitting, low-crowned hat to protect his gamekeepers' heads from low-hanging branches while on horseback. The keepers had previously worn top hats, which were easily knocked off and damaged. When Coke arrived in London on 17 December 1849 to collect his hat he reportedly placed it on the floor and stamped hard on it twice to test its strength; the hat withstood this test and Coke paid 12 shillings for it.
