Skye Weavers - Tweed, scarves, throws and clothing woven by pedal-power on the Isle of Skye

Woollen scarves, throws, tweed and more woven on a bicycle pedal-powered loom on the Isle of Skye.

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Caps on the catwalk

January 19, 2019 by Christine

You are here: Home / Blog / Caps on the catwalk

While the rest of us were taking down the Christmas tree and planning our Veganuary menus (you weren’t?), the country’s dedicated style-setters had other things on their mind. Because the first week of January is also London Fashion Week Men’s – the bi-annual menswear showcase that reveals what’s going to be hot next season.

And the big news – caps are on the catwalk. One leading label presented an entire collection inspired by Peaky Blinders, the cult BBC drama about peaked flat-cap wearing gangsters. Style-watchers at GQ report that David Beckham, no less, is a big flat cap fan. And as British Fashion Council ambassadorial president, Beckham should know a thing or two. We’re sure he would love our own version of the classic eight-piece design, made naturally from 100% pure new wool Skye Weavers tweed.

Skye Weavers Baker Boy caps
Skye Weavers Baker Boy Caps

Our own caps are sewn for us by traditional British company Olney Headwear. The firm has been making hats and caps for more than 100 years and is owned by the fourth generation of the Olney family. They are based in the Bedfordshire town of Luton, the centre of UK hat making for nearly three centuries. Making headwear is a skilled and specialised business, and we wanted to choose the very best professionals to work with. We were really impressed by Olney’s craftsmanship and eye for detail when we went to visit them.

Detail of two hands cutting a pattern on tartan fabric
Skilled pattern-cutter at work, Olney Headwear
Eight piece cap pattern at Olney headwear factory on table
Pattern template for our Baker Boy Caps
View of factory interior showing hat templates
Moulds used to make felt hats. It was fascinating to have a look around the workshop.

All this got us looking into the history of the cap. We call ours a baker boy but the eight-piece is known by various other monikers including the newsboy, paperboy, cheese-cutter, Gatsby, Irish and cabbie cap, as well as the peaky blinder. The cap might be a modern classic but it’s been around for hundreds of years. It’s said that caps derived from the Scots bonnets and the flat caps worn by Irish farmers in the 14th century. Mass immigration to North America in the 19th and early 20th centuries helped popularise the cap in the USA. In Britain it became part of the working man’s uniform but was also adopted by the aristocracy for hunting and shooting on their country estates. And it seems the cap also came in handy in the days before motorcycle helmets!

Black and white photograph of a man on a Raleigh motorcycle and another in a sidecar, from the 1920s. Both appear to be wearing tweed caps.
The Raleigh Round the Coast Reliability Trial stops outside Inverness Station Hotel, 1924. (Photo: Highland Photographic Archive, High Life Highland)

In our more gender fluid age, our tweed caps are great for both men and women. Fully lined with a curved peak brim, they’re available in Moss Check or Silver Birch. Check them out in our online shop.

baker boy cap silver birch tweed
Skye Weavers Baker Boy Caps

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Address: Skye Weavers, 18 Fasach, Glendale, Isle of Skye, IV55 8WP, United Kingdom
Telephone: +44 (0) 1470 511201

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