After the fur has been turned into fluff, a portion is carefully weighed out. The amount needed depends on the hat; a trilby would need 3 ounces. It's then poured into this machine, which has vacuum pumps that make the fur gather around a metal former in the chamber. Different hats need the hood to be thicker in different places and this is controlled by opening little hatches on the side. The front door is then opened and the hood can be taken out. Only by someone very careful and very skilled, though.
Copyright Rik Shepherd and Mr Monkey. This page last modified 18 January 2002