Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Making a Printer's Hat



Long ago at a newspaper near you the pressmen would create paper hats to keep the ink mist from their heads by folding a newspaper into a hat. The picture above (modeled by Woody J. from L.A.) shows what the hats looked like.

With the printers now behind glass barriers the hats are no longer needed, but many long for days gone past and we are starting to see the paper hats reappearing once again.



Just click on the picture below for a larger version, and you too can wear a printer's hat.




Step #1. Lay a four-page section of your Los Angeles Times down with the fold at the top. Fold the top left corner down to the center line. Do the same with the right top corner.

Step #2. Fold up the edge of the top sheet to the base of the triangle and crease.

Step #3. Fold the entire flap as far as it will go and crease.

Step #4. Turn the hat over and fold the right edge to the center line for an average head size. For a smaller size, overlap the center line by 1/4 inch. Fold the left side in the same manner toward the right edge.

Step #5. Fold the lower right and left corners to the bottom of your hat band.

Step #6. Fold the entire lower flap above the hat band.

Step #7. Now fold the top of the flap down and tuck into the hat band.

Step #8. Fold the peak down to the bottom of the hat band and tuck it under the band.

Step #9. Position the hat upright with the brim up. Pull the sides open and flatten into a diamond shape. Crease all edges.

Step #10. Tuck the corners into the brim.

Step #11. Open the hat and crease the corners square on all four sides.

Pictured in diagram, the late Keith Pratt.

8 comments:

Kanani said...

Hey, that's da bomb!

Anonymous said...

Nice!!!!

Old school is the best school!!

Anonymous said...

That was fun! I printed out the directions to save them for when I have little ones around. . .my kids are 10 and 13 and weren't especially impressed with my printers hat!

Unknown said...

For many many years before my dad became a rep for the IPP&AU (later the ICGU), he was a pressman for the Atlanta Constitution (the morning paper - the evening paper was the Atlanta Journal - but they have long since merged to be known as the Atlanta Journal Constitution). In fact, I was about 6 years old when he became a rep in the mid-60s and vividly remember going with him for his last trip to the pressroom as a pressman - I had on a pretty pink dress and my Sunday-best black patent leather shoes (and don't you know this story is NOT going to end well). Yep, sure enough my pretty little shoes combined with the inky stuff on the floor and made for a disaster! I slipped and slid on my backside and royally ruined my pretty little pink dress and tights! What was my dad thinking??? LOL! :-D I didn't care too much, I remember getting to see the presses running, the men working and smoking their cigarettes, and even getting a printing plate - BUT every single one of one of my dad's co-workers was wearing a pressman's hat! Of course, my dad got no rest until he taught me how to make my very own .... I'd long since forgotten how to make a pressman's hat until I found this website and I just made my 5-year old son his first one! My daddy would be so proud ... Thank you!!!

Sam Rackham said...

Huh? I tried to do it but I get confused at the 5th step. The photo is not clear and the directions don't seem to match the photo. Perhaps a film showing this being done would help.

Sam Rackham said...

Huh? I tried to do it but I get confused at the 5th step. The photo is not clear and the directions don't seem to match the photo. Perhaps a film showing this being done would help.

Sam Rackham said...

Huh? I tried to do it but I get confused at the 5th step. The photo is not clear and the directions don't seem to match the photo. Perhaps a film showing this being done would help.

Sam Rackham said...

Huh? I get confused b'cuz I do fine on steps 1-4 but on step 5 what I have looks nothing like the photo. Isn't the hat band at the bottom? If so, How can I fold lower corners to the bottom? It's unclear and makes no sense. HELP!!!