Greenwater Stonefly Nymph Trucker Hat
by @dekasso
Down where the current goes quiet.
A stonefly nymph on mossy riverbed stones under slanting green light, in painterly underwater realism, for a trucker hat.
A stonefly nymph crawls across a bed of mossy river stones while shafts of light slant down through the water. It is coloured in deep bottle green, mossy olive and sandstone tan, with sunbeam cream catching the edges.
- Stonefly nymph on mossy river stones
- Light shafts through bottle-green water
- Sandstone tan body, umber brown segments
- Six-colour painterly underwater realism
- Sunbeam cream glints on stone and shell
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 stonefly nymph grips the top of a round, moss-skinned stone. Its legs splay wide, antennae reaching forward. Above it, pale rays fall through bottle-green water and land on the rocks in soft patches.
It reads well from a few steps away: a dark green field, a tan bug in the middle, light coming down from the top. Wear it to the river, the fly shop or the tailgate. The people who know will spot the wing pads.
Sunbeam cream is the layer that makes it. Keep it to the nymph's back, the crowns of the stones and the cores of the rays, and let the greens do the rest of the work.
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
- deep bottle green, sea-glass green, mossy olive, sandstone tan, umber brown, sunbeam cream
Details
- Subject
- stonefly nymph
- Style
- painterly underwater realism
Make it yourself
The palette
- Deep bottle green
- Sea-glass green
- Mossy olive
- Sandstone tan
- Umber brown
- Sunbeam cream
The layers
6 layers, in this order. Each mask comes off and the paint has to dry before the next one goes down.
- Water
- Light shafts
- Stones
- Shadows and body
- Nymph
- 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
Deep bottle green
1 part yellow to 1 part blue; more yellow for a warm green, more blue for a cool one
Sea-glass green
1 part yellow to 1 part blue; more yellow for a warm green, more blue for a cool one
Mossy olive
2 parts yellow, 1 part black, a drop of red to warm it
Sandstone tan
3 parts white, 2 parts yellow, 1 part brown
Umber brown
Equal parts red, yellow and blue, then a drop of black to deepen it; or burnt umber straight from the bottle
Sunbeam cream
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 · Water — 0.5 mm · 25–30 PSI
deep bottle green — the full background, darkest at the edges and corners
Mask None on the panel itself: the mesh and the visor are already masked from the prep.
Colour Deep bottle green — 1 part yellow to 1 part blue; more yellow for a warm green, more blue for a cool one
- 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 · Light shafts — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
sea-glass green — slanted rays fanning down from the top through the water
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Sea-glass green — 1 part yellow to 1 part blue; more yellow for a warm green, more blue for a cool one
- 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 · Stones — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
mossy olive — rounded riverbed rocks filling the lower half
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Mossy olive — 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.
4 · Shadows and body — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
umber brown — undersides of the stones, the gaps between them, and the nymph's dark segments
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Umber brown — 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 · Nymph — 0.3 mm · 18–22 PSI
sandstone tan — the segmented abdomen, wing pads, six jointed legs and long antennae
Mask The hand-cut subject stencil, inner pieces first, then the outline piece.
Colour Sandstone tan — 3 parts white, 2 parts yellow, 1 part brown
- 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.
6 · Highlights — 0.2–0.3 mm · 12–15 PSI
sunbeam cream — glints along the nymph's back, rim light on the stone tops and the brightest cores of the rays
Mask None: freehand, with a shield card held against any hard edge.
Colour Sunbeam cream — 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 off the art panel edges and fill the whole field with deep bottle green. Start around 20 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 15 cm away; treat these as a starting point and adjust to your paint.
Cut a loose ray mask and mist sea-glass green in narrow fans from the top edge downward, about 18 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 12 cm away. Fade each ray out before it reaches the stones.
Lay a stone mask over the lower half and spray mossy olive in rounded shapes, around 20 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 10 cm away. Build the tops a little heavier than the sides.
Shade the undersides of the stones and the gaps between them with umber brown, freehand or with a soft shield, near 15 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 5 to 8 cm away.
Place the nymph mask and fill the body, wing pads, legs and antennae with sandstone tan at roughly 15 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 6 cm away.
Return to umber brown for the dark bands between abdominal segments, the leg joints and the shadow the nymph casts on its stone. Drop to about 12 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 3 to 5 cm away.
Finish with sunbeam cream: thin glints on the nymph's back, rim light on stone tops and the brightest cores of the rays. Around 12 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 3 to 5 cm away.
Let the panel dry fully, then heat-set the paint following your paint maker's directions.
Seal with a fabric-safe clear topcoat in two light passes, and let it cure for a full day 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
- Spraying sunbeam cream everywhere flattens the light. Limit it to the few places the rays would actually hit.
- Lifting the nymph mask too early smears the tan into the olive. Wait until the layer is dry to the touch.
- Holding the brush too far off for fine work gives fuzzy legs. Move in close and drop the pressure instead.
- Skipping the umber brown shadow under the nymph makes it float. Ground it with a soft dark patch beneath its body.
Tips
- Keep the rays transparent. Two light passes of sea-glass green read as light; one heavy pass reads as stripes.
- Thin the paint for the legs and antennae so the fine lines stay crisp at low pressure.
- Test each colour on a scrap panel first; the greens shift once they dry.
- Leave a sliver of dark green between the stones so each rock keeps its own shape.
Every kit size
Trucker · kit for 1 hat
$218
Bought separately $243 · you save $25
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 — 6 layers$18
Paint & masks
- Water-based textile airbrush colour, 2 oz — one per colour in this design$36
- 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
$1,061
$88.42 a hat
Bought separately $1,206 · you save $145
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$84
- 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
$3,083
$21.41 a hat
Bought separately $3,628 · you save $545
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$288
- 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
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.
- stonefly
- stonefly nymph
- nymph
- trucker hat
- fly fishing
- river stones
- underwater
- green
- riverbed
- light rays
- trout stream
- painterly