Grass Blade Hopper Trucker Hat
by @dekasso
Late summer, one jump from the water.
A detailed grasshopper perched on curving grass blades, in khaki, olive drab, umber and bone, for hopper season on the bank.
A grasshopper clings to a bent stem, legs cocked and wing folded along its back. It is coloured in khaki and olive drab, with umber veins and bone highlights.
- A grasshopper poised on a bent stem
- Khaki body with umber vein detail
- Olive drab grass blades curling upward
- Bone highlights on wing and knees
- Five stencil layers, shadow to highlight
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
| 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
A grasshopper rests on a slanted stem, hind legs folded high and ready. Every band on the abdomen shows, and the long wing carries fine umber veins. Grass blades curl up behind it and fan out underneath, pale at the edges where the light catches.
Wear it on the August bank when the grass is dry and loud with hoppers. From across the river it reads as a quiet khaki shape. Up close, people lean in to count the leg spines.
Umber linework carries this piece. Keep the vein and band lines thin and crisp so the khaki body still glows between them, and let the bone highlights sit only on the raised edges.
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
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
- khaki, olive drab, umber, bone
Details
- Subject
- grasshopper
- Style
- detailed naturalist illustration
Make it yourself
The palette
- Khaki
- Olive drab
- Umber
- Bone
The layers
5 layers, in this order. Each mask comes off and the paint has to dry before the next one goes down.
- Undershadow
- Grass blades
- Grasshopper base
- Detail lines
- 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
Khaki
4 parts white, 1 part yellow, a drop of brown; a drop of green for khaki
Olive drab
2 parts yellow, 1 part black, a drop of red to warm it
Umber
Equal parts red, yellow and blue, then a drop of black to deepen it; or burnt umber straight from the bottle
Bone
Mix by eye against the photograph; test on the card first
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 · Undershadow — 0.5 mm · 25–30 PSI
umber — a dark silhouette beneath the grasshopper and along each grass blade
Mask None on the panel itself: the mesh and the visor are already masked from the prep.
Colour Umber — Equal parts red, yellow and blue, then a drop of black to deepen it; or burnt umber straight from the bottle
- Needle
- 0.5 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 · Grass blades — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
olive drab — long curving blades sweeping up the right side and fanning low under the insect
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Olive drab — 2 parts yellow, 1 part black, a drop of red to warm 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.
3 · Grasshopper base — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
khaki — the full body, folded wing, long jumping legs and antennae
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Khaki — 4 parts white, 1 part yellow, a drop of brown; a drop of green for khaki
- 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 · Detail lines — 0.3 mm · 18–22 PSI
umber — abdomen bands, wing veins, leg spines and the eye
Mask The hand-cut subject stencil, inner pieces first, then the outline piece.
Colour Umber — Equal parts red, yellow and blue, then a drop of black to deepen it; or burnt umber straight from the bottle
- Needle
- 0.3 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.
5 · Highlights — 0.2–0.3 mm · 12–15 PSI
bone — the ridge of the thorax, the top edge of the wing, the knees and the bright edges of the blades
Mask None: freehand, with a shield card held against any hard edge.
Colour Bone — Mix by eye against the photograph; test on the card first
- 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 the undershadow stencil and spray umber at about 20 PSI with a 0.3 mm needle from 10 cm. Keep it soft and thin. These settings are a starting point; adjust to your paint and surface.
Let the shadow flash dry for a few minutes before lifting the mask, then check the edges for bleed.
Mask the grass blade stencil and spray olive drab at about 18 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 8 to 10 cm away. Build two light coats so the blades taper cleanly.
Mask the grasshopper base stencil and lay khaki at about 20 PSI with a 0.3 mm needle from 10 cm. Cover the body, wing, legs and antennae evenly.
Let the khaki dry fully. Any tack left now will pull when the detail mask goes on.
Mask the detail stencil and spray umber at about 15 PSI with a 0.2 mm needle from 5 cm. Short passes keep the vein and band lines fine.
Mask the highlight stencil and touch in bone at about 15 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 5 to 6 cm away, on the thorax ridge, wing edge, knees and blade tips.
Remove all masks and let the piece air dry for 24 hours.
Heat set according to your paint maker's directions, then mist a thin coat of fabric sealer from 20 cm and let it cure.
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
- Spraying the khaki base too heavy fills the stencil edges. Use two light coats instead of one wet one.
- Lifting masks while paint is wet smears the wing veins. Wait until each layer is dry to the touch.
- Holding the brush too far off on the detail layer gives fuzzy lines. Move in close and drop the pressure.
- Skipping the undershadow leaves the grasshopper looking flat. Keep that first thin umber layer.
Tips
- Thin your umber a little extra for the detail layer so the fine lines stay sharp.
- Test each colour on a scrap first; khaki can shift darker once dry.
- Burnish the edges of small detail masks with a fingertip so the leg spines do not blur.
- Keep bone highlights sparse. A few bright edges read as sunlight; too many flatten the insect.
Every kit size
Trucker · kit for 1 hat
$207
Bought separately $231 · you save $24
Includes Starter airbrush set · Cap jig · and 7 more
Every item in this kit · 9 items
Blanks
- Trucker blank, natural cotton twill front$9
Stencils
- Pre-cut mylar stencil set for this design — 5 layers$18
Paint & masks
- Water-based textile airbrush colour, 2 oz — one per colour in this design$24
- Transparent base and reducer, 4 oz$7
- Low-tack masking film and ¼ in tape$8
- Matte fabric sealer, 4 oz$12
Equipment
- Starter airbrush set — 0.3 mm dual-action gravity brush, mini compressor, braided hose$129
- Cap jig — holds the crown taut while you spray$24
Guide
- Printed step-by-step guide for this designIncluded
Trucker · kit for 12 hats
$1,036
$86.33 a hat
Bought separately $1,178 · you save $142
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$78
Stencils
- Desktop stencil cutter, 12 in — the "stencil printer": cuts mylar from this design's layer files$299
- Stencil mylar, 7 mil, 12 × 12 in$22
- This design's layer files, every layer (SVG)Included
Paint & masks
- Water-based textile airbrush colour, 4 oz — one per colour in this design$56
- Transparent base and reducer, 16 oz$16
- Low-tack masking film$18
- Matte fabric sealer, 16 oz$28
Equipment
- Dual-action gravity-feed airbrush, 0.3 mm$135
- Quiet compressor with tank and moisture trap$179
- Cap jig and two spare crown forms$64
- Tabletop spray booth with exhaust fan$149
- Cleaning pot, brushes and a half-mask respirator$99
- Heat gun for curing$35
Guide
- Printed step-by-step guide for this designIncluded
Trucker · kit for 12 × 12 hats
$3,002
$20.85 a hat
Bought separately $3,532 · you save $530
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$756
Stencils
- Stencil cutter-plotter, 24 in — the production "stencil printer"$649
- Stencil mylar, 7 mil, 12 × 12 in$85
- This design's layer files, every layer (SVG)Included
Paint & masks
- Water-based textile airbrush colour, 32 oz — one per colour in this design$192
- Transparent base and reducer$49
- Low-tack masking film$54
- Matte fabric sealer$89
Equipment
- Two dual-action gravity-feed airbrushes, 0.3 mm$270
- Production airbrush, 0.5 mm, for base fades$95
- Twin-piston compressor with tank and two regulators$329
- Production spray booth, two fans$289
- Three cap jigs$192
- Cleaning station, respirator and spare cartridges$139
- Cap heat press for curing$279
- Drying rack, 24 caps$65
Guide
- Printed step-by-step guide for this designIncluded
The creator
Remixes
Remixed from
- Grass Blade Hopper Trucker Hatyou are here
No remixes yet — make your own version.
Where this came from
trucker hat · made
0 — nothing entered the score yet, at the Derby's published weights, since . Views are not counted.
- grasshopper
- hopper
- hopper season
- grass
- khaki
- olive drab
- insect
- fly fishing
- terrestrial
- trucker hat
- summer