Jan Kleinrath, artisan and creator of All Things Canvas bags and hats

Your Fearless Roving Reporter had all but given up hope she would ever find the elusive perfect cruising hat…
This is no minor sartorial matter as any good cruiser knows.
Luckily, and logically, it took one of us to solve the problem once and for all. Enter Jan Kleinrath, a cruising sailor who was tired of buying hats that didn’t really work — too much brim, too little brim, hats that blow away, hats that fit like a vise, hats that fly off and dangle from the clip and string that you hope you attached to your shirt and not to itself…
Well, we happened to be in St. Augustine for the annual St. Augustine Art Association’s juried art festival, this year held in the Fair Grounds off West Castillo Drive. A vigorous walk from Camachee Cove or from the St. Augustine Municipal Marina, it’s a fun annual juried event with artists and artisans and a sound stage with some really fine musicians. Much to our surprise, however, among the expected potters, jewelers, wood turners, painters and sculptors, was a booth that would have been right at home in a boat show.
Women, many accompanied by bewildered men, swarmed the “All Things Canvas” display of hats which, despite this not being a boat show, clearly were ideal cruiser’s hats — hefty natural cotton duck, good size brim — just a hint of Garbo with cruising function intact. Am I hallucinating, or is that an optional chin strap and rivet puncher in the back of the booth? And wait … I am seeing some very cool purses and bags and … these colors are so familiar!
Yes, the bags — really nice bags that aren’t just open buckets — are made from Sunbrella (R) fabrics!
It didn’t take long to determine that Lady Jane’s Captain needed to be outfitted with a nifty “Jockey Red” purse that matches her bimini and dodger. Excellent purse! Purses, totes and accessory bags are available in a range of sizes and colors, one of which may match your boat’s canvas. Good strong stitching and clean designs — worthy candidates to put under that special co-Captain’s bimini or dodger during the holiday season…

Captain Jane typing this report in the forward cabin of Lady Jane, with all important thinking cap on.

But I digress, back to the hats … As Jan explained, she was tired of buying hats that didn’t do the job. She didn’t want to fry her ears on the water but she also didn’t want such a big brim she had no visibility. So she designed a hat that would work for herself and she happens to be one of us, an avid boater. She said it took her a year to come up with the hat she’d wished she could buy all these years. I’ve been wearing mine for several days now and I think this really could be the holy grail of cruising hats.
The hats come in four sizes. Jan’s advice: If you think you have a small head, you probably do — Small is your size, 21 inches circumference. If you are female and think you have a big head — Medium at 22 inches will fit. Large, at 23 inches, is for men with big heads or women with big hair (you know who you are.) Extra Small is for truly diminutive women and pinheads.
While I highly recommend calendaring your next St. Augustine stop on the waterway to coincide with Thanksgiving weekend and the art show, you don’t have to wait until next year for a hat or bag; you can order directly from Jan’s website:
http://www.jansallthingscanvas.com
Captain Jane
S/V Lady Jane