North American hatters have been importing European berets for centuries. The term “Basque Beret”, once an indication of the best quality berets in the world, is today used rather carelessly and often is nothing more than marketing lingo – a disingenuous sales gimmick capitalizing on the term’s cache. The berets may not even have come from Basque country. Even the best known imported European-made beret slowly eroded in quality over time. The sweatband is now vinyl and not leather, the sizes are inconsistent, the label is glued to the interior and not sewn, etc. Jaxon Hats set out to reverse this trend and to reintroduce to the N. American market a true, highest-quality, Basque beret. The result is their Jaxon Basque Beret. Don’t be fooled by the price, Jaxon is the direct importer, no middlemen, and the objective is to compete with the popular European import alluded to earlier that has kept its price in the forties and fifties by lowering the quality over the years.
Here are the specifications: A 148-year old beret manufacturer makes this highest-quality beret in the heart of Basque country in the Pyrenees Mountains. The material is pure virgin wool, impermeable (waterproof), and is made of the finest quality European-made felt (felt quality and weight is a huge factor in hat making – a hat can only be as good as the quality of the material that is starts with). The sweatband is genuine leather. A satin lining is sewn at the interior tip (not on the sides so that the felt will not suffocate your head – breathing combined with warmth is the objective here). A label that includes the Jaxon logo “ and reads “Authentic Basque Beret” and “Impermeable Pure Virgin Wool” is sewn (not glued) to the lining. The beret comes in either black or navy blue. The sizes run small, medium, large, extra-large, and double-extra-large.
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