The Craft · How it’s made
One hat.
Ten stages by hand.
From the first spiral at the crown to the final press, a Montecristi passes through ten stages — every one worked by hand, and by a single weaver.
It begins with the crab
A spiral, at the centre.
Every hat starts at a single point — the “crab”, the tight spiral start native to Pile. It is the technique that lets a weaver reach more than sixty points to the linear inch, the supreme fineness of an extra-fine Montecristi.
The ten stages
From the crown to the finish.
01
The “Crab”
The spiral start at the very centre of the crown — the technique native to Pile that sets a hat’s fineness.
02
The “Plantilla”
The first rows fan out from the centre, forming the flat of the crown.
03
Crown & Brim
The weave grows down the crown and out across the brim, row after row.
04
Double Locking Point
Where crown meets brim, the straw is locked twice for a clean, lasting join.
05
“Despeluzado”
Every loose end of straw is trimmed away by hand until the surface is clean.
06
“Azocado”
Each strand is drawn tight, closing the weave to its final density.
07
Steaming & Beating
The hat is steamed and gently beaten to even and compact the straw.
08
Tumbar “the Brim”
The brim is laid down and its edge worked to its final line.
09
Blocking & Pressing
Shaped over a wooden block and pressed by hand with the charcoal iron.
10
Customization
Sized, shaped and finished with its ribbon — made to order.
More than sixty points to the inch — a technique found nowhere but Pile.
