Canyon Sunset Trout Trucker Hat

Last light, and the river jumps.

A painterly scene of a trout leaping a green canyon river under a sunset sky, in rust red, river jade and peach, for anglers who love desert water.

A trout leaps from a jade river winding through a red rock canyon at sunset. The scene is coloured in rust red cliffs, sage brush, mustard yellow flowers and a peach and rose sky.

Trout leaping clear of a jade river
Rust red mesas and buttes
Peach and dusty rose sunset sky
Sage brush with mustard yellow flowers
River winds down to the lower edge

The cap

One design, four caps. The front panel is what the paint or the dye sits on, so it changes the hat.

Trucker
The house cap — structured mid profile, foam-and-mesh back, snapback.
Specs
Profile
Mid profile
Build
6-panel · Structured — buckram behind the front
Crown
3½ in (8.9 cm)
Visor
Pre-curved, 2¾ in (7 cm)
Closure
Snapback
Adjusts to
21½–24 in (54.5–61 cm)
Airbrushed on
Natural cotton twill
Sublimated on
White polyester foam
Rope cap
Structured five-panel with a near-flat brim and a cord across it.
Specs
Profile
Mid-high profile
Build
5-panel · Structured
Crown
4 in (10.2 cm)
Visor
Near-flat, 2⅞ in (7.3 cm), contrast rope
Closure
Snapback
Adjusts to
21½–23¾ in (54.5–60.5 cm)
Airbrushed on
Stone cotton twill
Sublimated on
White polyester twill
Dad hat
Soft, low and unstructured — washed cotton with a strap back.
Specs
Profile
Low profile
Build
6-panel · Unstructured — soft front
Crown
3¼ in (8.3 cm)
Visor
Curved, 2¾ in (7 cm)
Closure
Strap back, brass buckle
Adjusts to
21–23½ in (53.5–59.5 cm)
Airbrushed on
Washed khaki cotton
Sublimated on
White polyester twill
Five-panel camp
Flat brim, low crown, packs flat in a vest pocket.
Specs
Profile
Low profile
Build
5-panel · Unstructured
Crown
3¼ in (8.3 cm)
Visor
Flat, 2½ in (6.4 cm)
Closure
Strap back, side-release clip
Adjusts to
21½–23½ in (54.5–59.5 cm)
Airbrushed on
Field olive nylon-cotton
Sublimated on
White polyester

Fit

A cloth tape measure around the crown of a blank cap

Cap	Profile	Crown height	Visor	Adjusts to
Trucker	Mid profile	3½ in (8.9 cm)	Pre-curved, 2¾ in (7 cm)	21½–24 in (54.5–61 cm)
Rope cap	Mid-high profile	4 in (10.2 cm)	Near-flat, 2⅞ in (7.3 cm), contrast rope	21½–23¾ in (54.5–60.5 cm)
Dad hat	Low profile	3¼ in (8.3 cm)	Curved, 2¾ in (7 cm)	21–23½ in (53.5–59.5 cm)
Five-panel camp	Low profile	3¼ in (8.3 cm)	Flat, 2½ in (6.4 cm)	21½–23½ in (54.5–59.5 cm)

One size per cap. Run a tape around your head just above the ears, keeping it level — anything inside the range above will close on it.

Two finishes

The same design, made two ways. Pick one in the panel; the cap and the quantity are yours to choose too.

Hand airbrushed
$85 for one hat, on a trucker
Painted to order — would ship in about 2 weeks
How it is made
How it is made
Sprayed by hand through this design's own stencils, one layer at a time, each left to dry before the next mask goes down.
How it looks
Soft gradients and hand-cut stencil edges. Every cap is a little different.
What it sits on
On a natural cotton twill front.
Durability and care
Water-based paint, heat set and sealed. It takes rain and a season on a boat; spot clean with cool water, never a washing machine.
Sublimation printed
$32 for one hat, on a trucker
Printed to order — would ship in 5–7 business days
How it is made
How it is made
The design is printed in dye onto transfer paper, then pressed with heat so the dye soaks into the polyester fibres.
How it looks
Full colour edge to edge, and identical every time.
What it sits on
On a white polyester foam front — sublimation only takes on white polyester.
Durability and care
The dye is in the fibre, not on it, so it will not crack or peel. Gentle wash, air dry.

The artwork

Red cliffs step back toward a peach sky streaked with rose cloud. The river bends through them, jade green and calm, until a spotted trout breaks the surface in a burst of white spray. Sage brush and yellow flowers crowd the near bank.

Wear it on a dry-country float, a dusty trailhead or a long drive between rivers. People see the canyon first, then catch the fish mid-air and lean in for a closer look.

Cream white comes last and works best in small doses. A few flecks for the splash, a thin line of glare on the water and a touch in the sky gap are enough to make the whole scene glow.

What arrives

The hat
A care card
On a hand airbrushed hat, a numbered tag naming the water it was painted from, when the design names one

A cap being spot-cleaned with a soft brush

Looking after it

Hand airbrushed

Spot clean with cool water and a soft brush. Never a washing machine.
Keep it out of a hot car for long stretches — heat-set paint is tough, but a dashboard in July is not a test worth running.
Reshape the brim by hand while damp.

Sublimation printed

Spot clean, or gently hand wash in cool water. No bleach.
Air dry. Do not iron the print.
Reshape the brim by hand while damp.
The dye is in the fibre, so the print will not crack or peel.

Details

Airbrush palette

Colours: sunset peach, dusty rose, rust red, umber, river jade, sage green, olive, mustard yellow, cream white

Details

Subject: leaping trout in a red rock canyon
Style: painterly landscape

Make it yourself

A hat-painting bench with a blank cap, stencils and an airbrush

AdvancedAbout 4½ hours at the bench, plus curing9 layersYou'll need an airbrush, a cap jig and 9 colours

The palette

Sunset peach
Dusty rose
Rust red
Umber
River jade
Sage green
Olive
Mustard yellow
Cream white

The layers

9 layers, in this order. Each mask comes off and the paint has to dry before the next one goes down.

Sky
Clouds
Canyon walls
Rock shadows
River
Brush
Trout
Wildflowers
Highlights

The kit's stencil set is cut from these layers; with the cutter (12 hats and up) you cut your own from this design's layer files.

How to mix each colour

Sunset peach
Mix by eye against the photograph; test on the card first
Dusty rose
1 part red to 4 parts white, a drop of blue if it looks salmon
Rust red
2 parts orange, 1 part brown, a drop of red
Umber
Equal parts red, yellow and blue, then a drop of black to deepen it; or burnt umber straight from the bottle
River jade
Mix by eye against the photograph; test on the card first
Sage green
2 parts green, 1 part white, a drop of black to dull it
Olive
2 parts yellow, 1 part black, a drop of red to warm it
Mustard yellow
2 parts yellow, 1 part brown, a drop of black
Cream white
White with a drop of yellow and the smallest touch of brown

Setup

Ventilation or a spray booth. Water-based paint still throws a fine mist, and you will be breathing it for hours.
A half-mask respirator rated for paint mists. A dust mask is not one.
A compressor with a moisture trap, set and tested on a card before you start: wet air spits water into the paint.
Reducer and a cleaning pot within reach, so a clog is a ten-second fix instead of a ruined panel.
Spray a test card for every colour before it touches the cap. Colour reads differently wet, dry and on twill.

Prep

Lint-roll the front panel. Every fibre left on it prints as a speck in the paint.
Mask the mesh, any seams you want clean and the whole visor, underside included, with low-tack tape and paper.
Stretch the crown over the cap jig so the front panel is taut and curved the way it will be worn. Spraying a slack panel flat distorts the design when it is worn.
Spray one light coat of transparent base so the colour sits on the fabric instead of soaking into it.

Layer by layer

1 · Sky — 0.5 mm · 25–30 PSI
sunset peach — a warm glow low over the canyon rim
Mask None on the panel itself: the mesh and the visor are already masked from the prep.
Colour Sunset peach — Mix by eye against the photograph; test on the card first
Needle
0.5 mm (a 0.35 mm works, it just takes longer)
Pressure
25–30 PSI
Distance
6–8 in from the panel
Passes
3–4 light passes, building the colour
Dry
10 minutes, or 60–90 seconds with a heat gun on low, before the next mask goes down
Tip Fade wet to dry and never lay one heavy coat: twill wicks paint sideways and the edge blooms.
2 · Clouds — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
dusty rose — soft streaks of cloud drifting across the sky
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Dusty rose — 1 part red to 4 parts white, a drop of blue if it looks salmon
Needle
0.35 mm
Pressure
20–25 PSI
Distance
4–6 in from the panel
Passes
2–3 passes
Dry
10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
3 · Canyon walls — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
rust red — mesas and buttes lining both sides of the river
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Rust red — 2 parts orange, 1 part brown, a drop of red
Needle
0.35 mm
Pressure
20–25 PSI
Distance
4–6 in from the panel
Passes
2–3 passes
Dry
10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
4 · Rock shadows — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
umber — shaded faces, ledges and cracks in the cliffs
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Umber — Equal parts red, yellow and blue, then a drop of black to deepen it; or burnt umber straight from the bottle
Needle
0.35 mm
Pressure
20–25 PSI
Distance
4–6 in from the panel
Passes
2–3 passes
Dry
10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
5 · River — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
river jade — the water winding from the far canyon down to the lower edge
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour River jade — Mix by eye against the photograph; test on the card first
Needle
0.35 mm
Pressure
20–25 PSI
Distance
4–6 in from the panel
Passes
2–3 passes
Dry
10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
6 · Brush — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
sage green — spiky desert shrubs and grasses along the banks
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Sage green — 2 parts green, 1 part white, a drop of black to dull it
Needle
0.35 mm
Pressure
20–25 PSI
Distance
4–6 in from the panel
Passes
2–3 passes
Dry
10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
7 · Trout — 0.3 mm · 18–22 PSI
olive — a spotted trout leaping clear of the water
Mask The hand-cut subject stencil, inner pieces first, then the outline piece.
Colour Olive — 2 parts yellow, 1 part black, a drop of red to warm it
Needle
0.3 mm
Pressure
18–22 PSI
Distance
3–4 in from the panel
Passes
2–3 passes per tone, light to dark
Dry
10 minutes between tones
Tip Light tones first: a light colour over a dark one needs many coats, a dark one over a light one needs two.
8 · Wildflowers — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
mustard yellow — clusters of small blooms among the brush
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Mustard yellow — 2 parts yellow, 1 part brown, a drop of black
Needle
0.35 mm
Pressure
20–25 PSI
Distance
4–6 in from the panel
Passes
2–3 passes
Dry
10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
9 · Highlights — 0.2–0.3 mm · 12–15 PSI
cream white — the splash, glints on the river and the bright sun gap
Mask None: freehand, with a shield card held against any hard edge.
Colour Cream white — White with a drop of yellow and the smallest touch of brown
Needle
0.2–0.3 mm
Pressure
12–15 PSI
Distance
1–2 in from the panel
Passes
Freehand, in short controlled strokes
Dry
10 minutes, then check it before you cure
Tip Low pressure, close in and moving: stop the stroke before you release the trigger.

Step by step

Mask everything below the canyon rim. Spray sunset peach across the sky, brightest near the centre gap. Start around 20 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 15 cm away; treat these as a starting point.
Keep the sky mask. Lay dusty rose in soft horizontal streaks for clouds at about 18 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 8–10 cm away, letting the peach show between them.
Mask the sky and river. Spray rust red over the canyon walls on both banks at around 20 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 10–12 cm away, building colour in light passes.
With a cliff-detail stencil, add umber to shaded faces, ledges and cracks. Try 15 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 5–8 cm away for crisp edges.
Mask the cliffs and banks. Spray river jade along the winding water from the far canyon to the lower edge, about 20 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 12 cm away, darker near the banks.
Use a brush-shape stencil for the shrubs. Mist sage green in short upward flicks at roughly 15 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 5–8 cm away.
Place the trout mask over the river. Fill the body with olive at about 15 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 6 cm away, then add a few umber spots and a rust red blush along the side.
Dot mustard yellow flower clusters among the sage brush with a small flower stencil at 12–15 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 4–5 cm away.
Finish with cream white for the splash, river glints and the sun gap, at 12 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 3–5 cm away, in short taps.
Let the paint cure fully per the paint maker's guidance, then seal with a thin, even fabric-safe topcoat and cure again before wearing.

Cure

Heat set at 300°F / 150°C. Water-based textile paint is not wash-fast until it is heat set.
Cap press: 3–5 minutes with a teflon sheet over the design.
Or heat gun: 2–3 minutes per panel, keeping it moving 2–3 in off the fabric so it does not scorch.
If you have neither, air cure for 72 hours before the cap touches water.

Seal

Two light coats of matte fabric sealer, UV-resistant, from 8–10 in, 15 minutes apart.
Leave it 24 hours before the cap is worn.
Never a gloss sealer on cotton twill: it shines, cracks along the creases and looks like a sticker.

Clean-up

Flush the brush with water, then airbrush cleaner, until it sprays clear.
Strip the needle and wipe it toward the tip, never away from it.
Never soak the brush body overnight.

Common mistakes

Overloading cream white turns the splash into a blob; tap it in small bursts and stop early.
Letting olive drift into the river muddies the jade; seal the trout mask edges firmly before spraying.
Spraying too close on the sky leaves spatter; keep distance up and pressure steady for the fade.
Skipping cure time before sealing can lift layers; wait the full time between paint and topcoat.

Tips

Test each colour on scrap first; the jade and sage sit close together and need contrast to read as river and brush.
Build the rust red cliffs in several thin passes so the umber shadows stay sharp on top.
Tilt the splash stencil slightly so the spray follows the trout's leap, not a flat line.
Keep the far canyon softer and lighter than the near cliffs to give the scene depth.

An airbrush, compressor, moisture trap, six colour bottles and a cleaning pot. — The kit

Every kit size

Trucker · kit for 1 hat

$229

Bought separately $255 · you save $26

Includes Starter airbrush set · Cap jig · and 7 more

Every item in this kit · 9 items

Blanks

Trucker blank, natural cotton twill front$91

Stencils

Pre-cut mylar stencil set for this design — 9 layers$181

Paint & masks

Water-based textile airbrush colour, 2 oz — one per colour in this design$482 oz × 8
Transparent base and reducer, 4 oz$71
Low-tack masking film and ¼ in tape$81
Matte fabric sealer, 4 oz$121

Equipment

Starter airbrush set — 0.3 mm dual-action gravity brush, mini compressor, braided hose$1291
Cap jig — holds the crown taut while you spray$241

Guide

Printed step-by-step guide for this designIncluded1

Trucker · kit for 12 hats

$1,085

$90.42 a hat

Bought separately $1,234 · you save $149

Includes Dual-action gravity-feed airbrush · Quiet compressor with tank and moisture trap · Cap jig and two spare crown forms · Tabletop spray booth with exhaust fan · and 11 more

Every item in this kit · 15 items

Blanks

Trucker blank, natural cotton twill front$7812

Stencils

Desktop stencil cutter, 12 in — the "stencil printer": cuts mylar from this design's layer files$2991
Stencil mylar, 7 mil, 12 × 12 in$2210 sheets
This design's layer files, every layer (SVG)Included1

Paint & masks

Water-based textile airbrush colour, 4 oz — one per colour in this design$1124 oz × 8
Transparent base and reducer, 16 oz$161
Low-tack masking film$181 roll
Matte fabric sealer, 16 oz$281

Equipment

Dual-action gravity-feed airbrush, 0.3 mm$1351
Quiet compressor with tank and moisture trap$1791
Cap jig and two spare crown forms$641
Tabletop spray booth with exhaust fan$1491
Cleaning pot, brushes and a half-mask respirator$991
Heat gun for curing$351

Guide

Printed step-by-step guide for this designIncluded1

Trucker · kit for 12 × 12 hats

$3,165

$21.98 a hat

Bought separately $3,724 · you save $559

Includes Two dual-action gravity-feed airbrushes · Production airbrush · Twin-piston compressor with tank and two regulators · Production spray booth · and 13 more

Every item in this kit · 17 items

Blanks

Trucker blank, natural cotton twill front$756144

Stencils

Stencil cutter-plotter, 24 in — the production "stencil printer"$6491
Stencil mylar, 7 mil, 12 × 12 in$8550 sheets
This design's layer files, every layer (SVG)Included1

Paint & masks

Water-based textile airbrush colour, 32 oz — one per colour in this design$38432 oz × 8
Transparent base and reducer$491 gal
Low-tack masking film$543 rolls
Matte fabric sealer$891 gal

Equipment