This hat had quite the July adventure.
I finished this hat just barely in time for the release of Little House on the Prairie. I shipped it on July 6th, thinking it would arrive July 8th, in time for the owner to have it in the 9th.
It seemed to be moving as expected, arriving in the destination state’s distribution center the morning of the 8th. Then it just stopped. For the next 3 weeks, there was no movement on tracking.
Nothing.
This morning, while dropping off other packages, my Post Master had a very sad looking box for me. Somehow, the shipping/postage sticker printed at the PO fell off at some point.
I had purposefully switched from Priority Mail boxes to these brown cardboard boxes for many if my hats & bonnets because I had issues with the free PO boxes getting damaged, particularly in one region. This was the first time I had one of these brown boxes get damaged like this.
I surmise a heavy box, or multiple heavy boxes were placed on top of this box, crushing nearly directly down.
Seeing how crushed the box was, I was hesitant yet still hopeful.
I opened the box right at the Post Office, just in case. I was pleased to see the straw hat inside withstood the box being crushed around it.
No straw was broken.
No stitches were broken.
There was minimal misshaping, all of which could be fixed with re-blocking. Re-blocking happens to be a common practice in the 19th-century.
The front right of the brim pushed down, creating a small concave.
The whole brim flattened bit. I suspect the box was crushed somewhere where it was humid, which allowed the straw to soften while crushed.
All in all, I am glad the hat wasn’t completely lost or destroyed. This goes to show just how durable well-made straw hats can be.
If I Had My Own Blue Box: 
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