Hat bars have started to become quite popular recently — and for good reason. It’s a unique night out: Go with friends, design your own hat and maybe have a drink in the process.

Stacey Felton went to a few hat bars with friends and really got into the creative element of it. After a while, she thought this was something she could try on her own. “I fell in love with the crafting aspect of it,” she says. “I just dove right in.”

Originally from Michigan, Felton has called Fort Myers home for the past 15 years, and now Felton Hat Co. hosts private hat bar events throughout Southwest Florida — and Felton is ready to take the next step up. 

Typically, hat bar events are more popular in cities such as Nashville or Dallas, places where a good cowboy hat is practically essential. But Felton has found a similar interest in Florida, especially when she introduced straw hats or beachy headwear more common to the Sunshine State.

She’s hosted about 40 events, including at breweries and country clubs. She brings the hats (cowboy, fedora, etc.), the decorations (feathers, ribbons, etc.) and even a soldering iron for personal branding. The customers make their selections and leave with their own nifty hat.

And over the two years since she started, her business has started to grow beyond just events. Her next step is creating her own custom hat line. She already has a base of clients who’ve visited her hat bars, and she’s looking to build on that with retail sales online (feltonhatco.com).

Felton has been making her custom hats out of her house, finding time when her two young boys are otherwise occupied. It started as a hobby business, something she could do in her spare time. As her kids got older, it quickly evolved into something more — though she doesn’t want to lose sight of the reason she got started in the first place.

“I really enjoy just playing with the hats,” she says with a laugh. “I’m a crafty person, and that’s why I got into it.”