Snowfall River Trout Trucker Hat

A trout breaks the cold water

A trout leaping a snow-banked river below red rock cliffs, in slate blue, rust red and golden olive, for winter days on the water.

A trout leaps clear of a snowy river, with red rock cliffs and dark pines behind it. The scene is coloured in slate blue water, rust red stone, forest green pines and a golden olive fish with a rose pink blush.

Golden olive trout mid-leap
Snow on rust red cliffs
Slate blue river with charcoal stones
Forest green pines on both banks
Falling flakes across the scene

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

A golden olive trout twists out of slate blue water, spray flying off its tail. Snow sits on every ledge and pine bough. Red rock walls fade into a grey winter sky, and flakes drift across the whole scene.

It suits the short days: frozen guides, thermos coffee, a quiet run with no one else on it. People see the fish first, then the snow, then the cliffs. It reads clearly from across a parking lot.

Snow white is the last colour and the one that sells the cold. Keep it in light, broken passes on the ledges and spray, so the rust red and slate blue still show through underneath.

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: pale grey, rust red, snow white, forest green, slate blue, charcoal, golden olive, rose pink

Details

Subject: trout
Style: painted landscape scene

Make it yourself

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

AdvancedAbout 4½ hours at the bench, plus curing10 layersYou'll need an airbrush, a cap jig and 8 colours

The palette

Pale grey
Rust red
Snow white
Forest green
Slate blue
Charcoal
Golden olive
Rose pink

The layers

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

Sky
Cliffs
Snow
Pines
River
Stones
Trout body
Blush
Spots
Splash

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

Pale grey
4 parts white, 1 part black; a drop of blue for cool grey, a drop of brown for warm stone
Rust red
2 parts orange, 1 part brown, a drop of red
Snow white
Opaque white from the bottle; two thin coats cover better than one thick one
Forest green
2 parts green, 1 part black, a drop of blue to cool it
Slate blue
White with blue and a touch of black, about 4 : 1 : ½
Charcoal
1 part white to 3 parts black, a drop of blue
Golden olive
2 parts yellow, 1 part black, a drop of red to warm it
Rose pink
1 part red to 4 parts white, a drop of blue if it looks salmon

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
pale grey — a misty winter haze across the top
Mask None on the panel itself: the mesh and the visor are already masked from the prep.
Colour Pale grey — 4 parts white, 1 part black; a drop of blue for cool grey, a drop of brown for warm stone
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 · Cliffs — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
rust red — red rock walls and ledges in the distance
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.
3 · Snow — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
snow white — snow on the ledges, banks and pine boughs
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Snow white — Opaque white from the bottle; two thin coats cover better than one thick 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.
4 · Pines — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
forest green — stands of pine on both sides of the river
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Forest green — 2 parts green, 1 part black, a drop of blue to cool 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.
5 · River — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
slate blue — cold water running toward the viewer
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Slate blue — White with blue and a touch of black, about 4 : 1 : ½
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 · Stones — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
charcoal — river rocks, bank shadows and depth in the water
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Charcoal — 1 part white to 3 parts black, a drop of blue
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 body — 0.3 mm · 18–22 PSI
golden olive — the leaping fish from nose to tail
Mask The hand-cut subject stencil, inner pieces first, then the outline piece.
Colour Golden 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 · Blush — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
rose pink — the gill plate and the band along the flank
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Rose pink — 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.
9 · Spots — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
charcoal — dark spots across the back, fins and tail
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Charcoal — 1 part white to 3 parts black, a drop of blue
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.
10 · Splash — 0.2–0.3 mm · 12–15 PSI
snow white — spray, foam around the fish and falling flakes
Mask None: freehand, with a shield card held against any hard edge.
Colour Snow white — Opaque white from the bottle; two thin coats cover better than one thick one
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 outline of the panel, then lay pale grey across the top for the sky. Start around 20 PSI, 0.5 mm needle, 15 cm away. These settings are a starting point; test on scrap first.
Cut the cliff mask and spray rust red for the distant walls, darker at the base of each ledge. Around 18 PSI, 0.35 mm needle, 10 cm away.
Lift the cliff mask edges and dust snow white along the ledge tops and banks in light passes. Around 15 PSI, 0.35 mm needle, 10 cm away.
Mask the pine shapes on each side and spray forest green, building the dark centres first. Around 18 PSI, 0.35 mm needle, 8 cm away.
Mask the river channel and spray slate blue, deeper toward the foreground. Around 20 PSI, 0.5 mm needle, 12 cm away.
Use a rock mask and freehand shields for charcoal stones, bank shadows and depth lines in the water. Around 15 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 6 cm away.
Cover the scene and cut the trout mask. Spray golden olive across the whole fish, lighter on the belly. Around 18 PSI, 0.35 mm needle, 8 cm away.
With a gill and flank stencil, mist rose pink over the gill plate and the band along the side. Around 12 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 6 cm away.
Dot charcoal spots over the back, fins and tail with a spot stencil or close freehand work. Around 12 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 4 cm away.
Remove the trout mask. Spatter and spray snow white for the splash, foam and falling flakes. Around 10 PSI for spatter, 0.3 mm needle, 10 cm away.
Let the paint cure fully, at least 24 hours at room temperature, before handling.
Seal with two thin coats of a fabric-safe clear sealer, letting each dry before the next.

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

Heavy snow white flattens the scene into grey. Build it in thin, broken passes and stop early.
Pink spread across the whole fish looks muddy. Mask the gill and flank band tightly before spraying.
Spots placed in rows look stiff. Scatter them, denser toward the back and tail.
Sealing too soon traps solvent and clouds the colours. Wait for the full cure before the clear coat.

Tips

Keep the far cliffs softer and lighter than the foreground so the scene has depth behind the fish.
Spray the trout's belly lighter than its back in one pass; it makes the leap read as round.
For flakes, lower the pressure and tap the trigger so the paint spits into small uneven dots.
Test every colour on a scrap of the same fabric; slate blue and charcoal can dry darker than they look wet.

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 — 10 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