How to Crease a Palm Leaf

September 12, 2016 by ~The South Dakota Cowgirl~ Leave a Comment

Palm leaf hats are a popular hat for summer. Favorited among cowboys, cowgirls and those who’ve never set foot near a horse, they’re durable, flexible, easy to keep nice and they last a long time. I live in mine come summer (like everyday live in them), and this was the first year in the last six that I finally had to buy a new one because my other one had given up the ghost.

Palm Leaf Hats are versatile, easy to shape and last a long time. — Photo by Kristina Barker

One of the best things about a Palm Leaf, is that you can change the look of it daily, if you like. They’re easy to shape. Dunk them in a water tank, the kitchen sink, the bathtub, or hose them off, and you’re ready to get down to business.

In the video below I show you how to crease one. Don’t be scared to get in there, and try.

These hats are made by Sunbody, but you can also find handmade Palm Leaf Hats through Big Bend Saddlery in Alpine Texas. I’ve owned hats from both places. And they’re equally awesome!

Best of luck in your hat-creasing endeavors!

About ~The South Dakota Cowgirl~

Jenn Zeller is the creative mind and boss lady behind The South Dakota Cowgirl. She is an aspiring horsewoman, photographer, brilliant social media strategist and lover of all things western.

After a brief career in the investment world to support her horse habit (and satisfy her mother, who told her she had to have a “real” job after graduating college), she finally took the leap and stepped away from a regular income; trading the business suit once and for all for cowgirl boots, a hat, and jeans. She has not looked back.

When Jenn first moved to The DX Ranch on the South Dakota plains, she never imagined she’d find herself behind a camera lens capturing an authentic perspective of ranching, and sharing it with others. Jenn has always been called to artistry, and uses music, writing, images, home improvement, and her first true love of horses to express her ranching passion.

Horses are the constant thread and much of her work centers around using her unique style of writing to share her horsemanship journey with others in publications such as CavvySavvy, the AQHA Ranching Blog, the West River Eagle, the family ranch website, and her own website.

Using photography to illustrate her stories has created other opportunities -- Jenn’s brand “The South Dakota Cowgirl” has grown to the level of social media “Influencer”. This notoriety has led to work with Duluth Trading Company, Budweiser, Wyoming Tourism, Vice, Circle Z Ranch and Art of the Cowgirl, to name a few. She also serves as a brand ambassador for Woodchuck USA, Arenus Equine Health, Triple Crown Feed and Just Strong fitness apparel. Her photography has been featured by Instagram, Apple, TIME Magazine, The Huffington Post, and Oprah Magazine. Jenn’s work has been published internationally, has been seen in several books and has graced the covers of several magazines.

Jenn became a social media influencer by accident when she started to explore Instagram as a way to share her life on the ranch with folks that don’t get to experience it. It’s grown into an incredible platform that she uses to empower women, create an environment for self improvement and share life on the ranch.

When she’s not working, she loves to drink coffee, play with her naughty border collie named Copper, start ranch colts, and run about the country chasing cans. Her mother still thinks she doesn’t have a “real” job.