On the coast of Ecuador, exists a small village where every family that lives there knows how to weave hats. They have mastered the craft of creating the finest straw hats in the world that resemble fabric using only their hands in a process that can be easily compared to a meditation. In the heart of the Andes of Ecuador there's another small village where artisans, who are mostly women, can be seen walking around town as they hand-weave their next hat. They have specialized in making colorful hats interweaving colored straw to create unique patterns inspired by the beauty of their surrounding nature. In both of these regions artisan’s livelihoods and their families depend on this craft. 

The name Panama Hat originated back during the California gold rush in 1850. As hundreds of thousands of people were drawn to the west from the East Coast cities in the United States and most of them came from the northern states, where felt hats were part of the dress code for cooler weather, they found the heat of the south quite unsuitable for these kind of hats. A visionary businessman from Ecuador spotted the opportunity that this represented and brought the straw hats made in Ecuador to Panama, the busiest point of travel for this particular time. Everyone that went through the Isthmus of Panama found the hats as the perfect accessory for their destination and could not resist buying them. Many bought hats for themselves and many bought hats to take back home as souvenirs. When people would ask about the distinctive hat and where about they got it, the answer would naturally be Panama. It is so that so many more people were suddenly found saying: "I want a Panama Hat". Add to this the fact that when the construction of the Panama Canal started, all the workers were seen wearing one of these hats to get the benefits of sun protection from this lightweight, breathable hat. When US president Theodore Roosevelt visited the construction site of the Panama Canal he was photographed wearing one of this unmistakable hats and the photograph made global news, enforcing the infamous Panama Hat name on this Ecuadorian gem around the world.   

What makes these hats so special is their lightness and elegance. The natural straw which is manually processed from mature leaves of Carludovica palmata is characterized by its softness, flexibility and durability. Before each hat is weaved, the straw is boiled, dried, bleached or dyed. Each hat is started and finished by the same person. It can take a couple days or even a few months to finish a hat depending on the thickness of the straw and the tightness of the weave. The finer the straw, the finer the weave and the better the quality of an honest-to-goodness, hand-woven natural straw hat.