Zephyr Hats: Retrospection 2014

Well, here are some of my thoughts. Most everyone who reads my blog knows me as a hat guru and enthusiast, or just a crazy kid with an obsession. I guess my writing this isn't just to prove to you that I am more than what you consider me, but to prove to myself that I am more than a hat addict.

I used to walk down my street every single morning in high school to catch the community bus so I could get to school. While walking down the street, I made a habit of saying in my head, "Here I am, in 2009..." and finish the phrase differently depending on what I had to do that day, or felt about a current event, or sometimes just a "crazy how times flies" after thinking how old I was. It's 2014 now, and I have had a few occasions that I get to walk down the same street and say the same words. I have noticed I do more retrospection than looking at current or future events. I finished the phrase a few times with "look at where God's taken me" or  "I wonder what God's doing with some of the things that have happened." These thoughts were usually in consideration of something work or family related.. so hopefully I can prove my point to you (and myself) by some of the family/work events that have happened.

My family is an odd bunch. I think we all say that at some point about our families, and I think it's true. We all can get really preoccupied with our own "something": with my oldest brother, Jason, it's bikes. Dom and Ninnah are both computer nerds, and my little sister Nat is Taekwondo crazy. Over the last year or so, there have been points of time where I really undervalued and forgot my family. I prioritized work, friends, and other things ahead of them. One situation after another eventually lead to arguing, fighting, avoiding each other, and I started to try to start "life" over by making my coworkers family... I adopted their ideologies and beliefs - which led to more problems. Let me tell you, that didn't work... and I am still a little frustrated that I spent so much time trying. In some sense, they are family, but never will it be like the relationship of my blood-related family. Thankfully, God used one of my coworkers to show me that the family aspect of work shouldn't replace the home. She probably doesn't know that God used many of our conversations to provoke thoughts and ideas to get me where I should have been and doing what I should have been doing. There may have been an eight month period of confusion, but God used it to get me where I am today.

I was about to say that if I had to give a personal example of the Gospel, it would be this. I can only say that because now I see the whole picture again. I was sinning, avoiding family, getting myself in trouble; God opened my eyes to see all my problems and shortcomings - this was painful and frustrating. But fortunately the Gospel doesn't end with me seeing all my mistakes. God forgave my mistakes by having Christ die for them (Christ's righteousness is mine now). I still have consequences of the things I've done, but God gives me a new heart and mind, the Holy Ghost, and the Bible to deal with them... I can start a fresh new segment of life. I am a work in progress. I have potential. I have opportunity and ability to do great things. I couldn't have done anything for this; God just did it.

I think home is also where you get some motivation. Not having my family really affected me. I can relate to LeBron James going back to Cleveland. "If I had to do it all over again, I’d obviously do things differently, but I’d still have left. Miami, for me, has been almost like college for other kids. These past four years helped raise me into who I am. Before anyone ever cared where I would play basketball, I was a kid from Northeast Ohio. It’s where I walked. It’s where I ran. It’s where I cried. It’s where I bled. It holds a special place in my heart. People there have seen me grow up. I sometimes feel like I’m their son. Their passion can be overwhelming. But it drives me. I want to give them hope when I can. I want to inspire them when I can. My relationship with Northeast Ohio is bigger than basketball. I didn’t realize that four years ago. I do now."

Since I have been back to who I should been, where I should have been, I feel so different. I can be me again. I can think for myself. I feel like a contributor at home, work, and society. While hats are a part of my life, I've learned that there is way more to life than that.

For those of you who are wondering what my hat life has been like, let's just say it's been a quite a journey. As most of you know, I started working at Zephyr the summer of 2012; I have been able to help in different areas, from the warehouse to office, and have thoroughly enjoyed them. There have been challenges in each position I worked, and I am thankful for that. Work, and life for that matter, would never be the same without challenge. I started in the warehouse, where I learned first and foremost never to waste time. I can never express how thankful I am that I was taught diligence and focus from my warehouse managers. I got to help out in the sampling process after my first 4 or 5 months working there, organizing and shipping prototypes of new hat designs. Shortly after that (beginning of 2013), I was able to help with running national programs and ordering inventory. I really REALLY love looking at numbers and analyzing that data. We were blessed at the beginning of that summer with a new database called Everest, which started a domino effect of changes to increase efficiency. We are still making our way up the Everest of the headwear industry. I was able to work in customer service that summer as well, which taught me patience and always being cheerful. When our sales started to outgrow our manpower that fall, I started working closer with our IT department to try and iron out some wrinkles in our system and learn about how the system worked, helping in the licensed approvals and quality control. We ran such a big national prebooking that fall that we didn't catch up until May of 2014. We also launched a new product that was prebooked in May 2014, this product being license Mission belts. These will drop September 2014. Amid all of this, I was able to tag along and attend some tradeshows in different states. This gave me a small introduction into sales, but as of July 2014, I will start a transition into a full time sales coordination position. I can't wait to see what God has planned for Zephyr, my coworkers, and myself in the future. I'm excited to see more numbers in running reports, the opportunity to represent the company, and encourage and help my coworkers.


Outside of work, I have been playing soccer, working out, and going on adventures with friends. I live in Colorado, so camping and hiking are some of the obvious things that go along with the adventures. Some of the other highlights have been shooting guns, line dancing, watching movies, and painting. I have surprising become interested in politics (you may want to watch out for me now) and reading (crazy, right?).

Ultimately, I have to give all the credit to God for turning my life around.

Zephyr Hats: Xline Edition

Hey everyone, sorry I haven't posted in a while.. You are probably wondering what this "Xline Edition" is going to be.. well, all the exclusive graphics that Zephyr has design and put on snapback hats, most of them will be here! Check out all the other posts in the "A-Z Series!" Chose from the following: Auburn, BYU, CU, Detroit, Edmonton, Florida, GT, Hawaii, Iowa, Kentucky, Kansas, Louisville, Michigan, North Carolina, NDSU, Oregon, Penn State, Quebec, Rutgers, Stanford, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Whalers!

There was a series of hats that Zephyr released around March 2012 that consisted of a college's mascot with a snapback; with Arizona State, Zephyr was able to redesign Sparky as well, which is seen in all three colorways here. Want to buy one? Find them on Hatmonster based off crown color: maroon crown, black crown, and yellow crown. All have green under-brims, contrast button and eyelets, and dual-colored snaps.

To the right is another example of a Zephyr Exclusive Graphic Design, Nebraska's "Mad Kernel," as featured on a Grey Refresh. Zephyr's "Mad Kernel" can be seen on the X-Ray, Refresh, Game Changer, Front Runner, and Animal Style. All those snapback designs have square brims; however, the under-brim color will vary. The Animal Style has a grey under-brim, while the rest have the common Kelly-Green. This Xline from Zephyr is probably one of more eye-catching designs out of all of them.


Left, the Notre Dame X-Ray snapback, with the exclusive graphic of a leprechaun. Eric Johnson, the Zephyr Graphic Artist who designed this logo, has a blog post about this very logo. Like Johnson says, "Zephyr makes many different variations of hat styles with this logo," which you can see on Hatmonster in the Notre Dame section.

Below, is a Xline of Zephyr's for he Pittsburgh Penguins, which is seen on the Zephyr Refresh snapback, as well as on the Grey Refresh snapback. What is more unique than an angry penguin with a hockey stick?

Towards the right is the Penn State Nittany Lions Refresh snapback, another Zephyr-designed logo with a fierce lion tearing across the front two panels. The picture answers any questions about construction or colors on this snapback hat. Isn't this Zephyr-designed Penn State logo is so much more appealing than the other one the school frequently uses? This design was also placed on other hat styles, like a knit hat, as well as a multiple curved-bill hats including a white extreme, a twist flex, and a blue dhx. As far as I know, the only snapback with the Xline Lion is the Refresh.

Both the Syracuse Orange and Tennessee Volunteers have exclusive graphics from Zephyr as well; Syracuse even adopted Zephyr's logo they created as their primary logo! Both hats shown are the Front Runner snapback design.

Lastly, Michigan and Zephyr's "M Paw" design, which was one of the first XLines that was made; it is seen below on numerous Zephyr hats. From left to right: the Hype, Grey Refresh, Front Runner, and X-Ray snapback hats. Check out the Michigan section on Hatmonster to see a greater variety!

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Zephyr Hats: Rutgers Edition

This week: Rutgers Scarlet Knights! The following have been done so far: Auburn, BYU, CU, Detroit Red Wings, Edmonton Oilers, Florida Gators, Georgia Tech, and Hawaii, Iowa, the "J" Edition, Kentucky, and Kansas, Louisville, Michigan, North Carolina, Oregon, Penn State, and the Quebec Nordiques.

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights Flashback Snapback

Left, The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are featured in the snapback design called the Flashback. This wavering script across the front is accompanied by the Scarlet Knights logo, both of which are finely and regularly embroidered. On the side of the crown is the "R" logo, and on the back is the word "Rutgers" in the same wavering font. Also exclusive to this design is the "Z" is not embroidered, but placed on a tag near the snap. This design was made with round brims and green under-brims, one-colored snaps, and definite uniqueness.

 Above are three shots of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights Superstar snapback. The stellar raised-embroidery is shown on the word "Rutgers," and the Scarlet Knights logo on the side. This snapback design is by far Zephyr's most popular hat. Superstar snapbacks are now made solely in square brims, green under-brims, contrast button and eyelets, and one-colored snaps. See more: here.

To the right is the Rutgers Upshot snapback. This snapback design has the slanting, cursive script in raised-embroidery along with regularly stitched logos and related phrases. This hat has contrast button and eyelets, square brims, GREY under-brims, and one-colored snaps.

Because of the lack of Rutgers hats made, this is the last one I will be covering: the Scarlet Knights Black Headliner. As many of you know, there are three different versions of the Headliner. From the picture, one can tell why this is called the "Black Headliner." Also featured on this snapback hat is contrast button and eyelets, dual-colored snap, square brim, green under-brim, and raised, cursive embroidery.

Below, is the Rutgers Refresh snapback hat, which features the Scarlet Knight in raised embroidery, as well as the word "Rutgers" on the back in raised embroidery. A key characteristic is the dual-colored snap and the contrast button and eyelet.

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Zephyr Hats: Oregon Edition

Last week's North Carolina Edition was awfully long; I'll keep this one a bit shorter. :0 This team-oriented series included: Auburn, BYU, CU, Detroit Red Wings, Edmonton Oilers, Florida Gators, Georgia Tech, and Hawaii, Iowa, the "J" Edition, Kentucky, and Kansas, Louisville, and Michigan.

On the left and right are two views of the Oregon Ducks Blockbuster 2 snapback. In contrast to the original Blockbuster, the second edition featured square brims and a filled-in font. The Oregon "O" is raise-embroidered.

Above are two color-ways for the Oregon Ducks X-Ray snapbacks. This is one of the most popular designs from Zephyr on the market, so hurry up and get one! To the right is the Oregon Ducks Hype snapback; what's unique about this hat is the contrast stitching on the brim, and the white "piping" around the panel with webfoot. Both the word "Oregon" and the webfoot logo have raised embroidery. This design also features green under-brims, square brims, and one-colored snaps.

Above is one of multiple colorways for the Oregon Ducks in the popular Superstar snapback design. This shows raised embroidery at its best; the "O" logo on the side is also raise embroidered; all the new Superstars are made square brims. To the left is an Oregon Ducks White Upshot, a line Zephyr released during the summer of 2012. The cursive lettering is raise-embroidered, while the word "Oregon" and the webfoot logo are regularly stitched. Square brims, green under-brims.

Above, the Oregon Ducks Front Runner snapback. Essentially, this is similar to the Refresh, except with the alternate Oregon colorway. Behind the webfoot logo are three lines; the middle line highlighting the word "Oregon." The pictures clarify the contrast button and eyelets, brim shape, under-brim color, and snap color.

To the right, and below, are examples of the Ducks Refresh snapback. The one below was made with a unique material similar to fleece, while the one to the right was made with the usual 35% Wool and 65% Acrylic. Both have the raise-embroidered webfoot logo on the front, as well as the word "ducks" in the back. Typically, the Refresh snapbacks have dual-colored snaps, but the one below does not. Both of these hats have square brims, green under-brims, and contrast button and eyelets.

Once again, two different colorways for an Oregon hat; this two-tone snapback design is called the Rally, and features raised-embroidery for the word "Ducks." Both versions have contrast button and eyelets, square brims, green under-brims, and a large amount of attention-grabbing swag! There are a couple of snapback designs for Oregon as well; such as the multiple colorways for the Shadow Script, the Headliner, Flashback, and more. The issue is that most of the designs have all been purchased and finding pictures and sites that sell them are rare.

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Zephyr Hats: Florida Gators Edition

This post should be fun! I could be considered a Gators fan, but the main reason I like these hats is that I love the orange and blue colors Florida uses. This is part of a series I have done that included Auburn, BYU, CU, Detroit Red Wings, and the Edmonton Oilers.

To surprise my readers, I want to start off the post with a rare snapback that has been on the market for a while, but just recently has gained more attention: the Rally snapbacks. The embroidery on these hats are completely jaw-dropping. The detail and precision of the embroidery is just incredible, almost flawless. Another great thing about this style is that it features a two-colored snap in the back. This design has green under-brims and square brims as well. The design on the front of the crown mimics a flag that has the word "GATORS" on it. Exceptional Zephyr hat.

To the right and left are Blockbuster 2 snapbacks. The one on the right is an additional concept because of the white crown, which allows for variety as well as color coordinating with clothing. These are quality and beautiful snapbacks.


The Hype snapbacks that Zephyr makes are interesting. The whole right side of the front of the crown features the logo of the teams mascot while the other simply has the raise-embroidered words for the team or mascot. The reason why I say these are interesting is that the stitching is not a straight as usual. From what I know, this design was made in China, as opposed to Bangladesh (where most Zephyr hats are made). The stitching on the hats made in Bangladesh are flawless in comparison to those made in China. I am sure Zephyr is working on addressing this issue.

The Gators Zephyr Shadow Script snapback is another great design featuring the cursive "Florida" with its lingering shadow. It also has the Gator logo on the bottom right of the crown. The contrast between colors on the lettering makes the hat distinctly stand out, as well as the raise embroidery of the lettering. The snap in the back is blue, the brim is squared with a green under-brim.

 Below, a Zephyr X-Ray snapback, another incredible design that's going to hit full-stride on the market soon.

To the left is a Zephyr Black Headliner snapback for the Florida Gators. The three types of Headliner snapbacks are explained in this blog post: Zephyr Headliner Series. Most are available on Hatmonster.

Below, another recent design from Zephyr called the Front Runner, and there is no doubt this Florida Gators Front Runner is outstanding. The square brim, green under-brim, one-colored snap, and the raise-embroidered Gator logo on the front makes this design a must-have.

Be sure to check out my website, Facebook page, Pinterest, and Twitter for more pictures and news regarding snapbacks, other hats, and most of all, Zephyr!

Zephyr Hats: Colorado Edition

A weekly project I have been working on displays a variety of Zephyr hats for a specific school or team. I've done Auburn and BYU so far; this week features the University of Colorado.

The University of Colorado Zig Zag snapback (right) is unique because it is not seen very often. Zig Zags can be found on Lids.com but only come in round brims. However, the Zig Zag should not be confused with the CU Upshot snapback, above. Some characteristic of all Upshot snapbacks include the square brim, grey underbrims, and one-colored snaps. I really like the Upshot in Colorado's colors.


To the right is the original Blockbuster snapback, and to the left is the Blockbuster 2. The main difference is that the Blockbuster does not feature the  filled-in coloring or square brims that the Blockbuster 2 has.

To the right is one of Zephyr's newer design snapbacks for Colorado, called the ReVault snapback. ReVault snapbacks feature an retro logo that the school has used in the past; I am not sure how old this logo for the University of Colorado is. These snapbacks feature square brims, green under-brims, and dual-colored snaps. I really have come to enjoy the ReVault snapbacks because of their old-school designs and the incomparable quality that Zephyr makes them in. A similar style and design from Zephyr is call the Sideshow snapback, which can be found on the Fanzz website and in their stores.

Zephyr Solid Headliner snapbacks have come to be one of my favorite snapback designs because of the outlining of the raised embroidery that makes the embroidery stand out. Neatly placing the schools name in cursive, the Solid Headliner also includes the mascot above in small capital letters. Features a square brim, green under-brim, and dual-colored snap. There are three different versions of the Headliner snapbacks that are further explained and illustrated in this blog post: Zephyr Headliner Series.

One of the popular designs by Zephyr is shown on the Superstar snapback. The bold, raise-embroidered letters arch across the front of the crown. The only significant change besides colorways that the Colorado Superstars have undergone is the fact that newer Superstars have square brims. Otherwise, the Superstar snapbacks have uniform-colored snaps and green under-brims.

The University of Colorado Refresh snapback features a closer view of the Buffaloes logo, as well as a square brim and green under-brim. One popular aspect of snapbacks I have realized is the two-colored (or dual-colored) snaps in the back. This CU Refresh snapback has a yellow and black snap. Above the snap is the raise-embroidered word "buffs".


To the left is a retro-styled CU Supersonic snapback. These were only made in round brims, green under-brims, and one-colored snaps. While the design is capturing and attention-grabbing, the Supersonic is not seen very often, at least for me. The more I talk to people, the more I think that Zephyr would make another line for this style with square brims.



Lastly, the CU Shadow Script snapback is another clean design from Zephyr that has the word "Colorado" slowly decrease in size as it flows across the the front of the crown. There is also a shadowing script that flows behind the original lettering. The Buffs logo is located under the smaller part of the script. The snap in the back is black.

Because I do not post as often on this blog, be sure to check out my website for hat reviews and other Zephyr-related information.

 Above, the Colorado Equalizer snapback, features raised embroidery on the outline of the equalizer, as well as the block script underneight. As you can see, the undervisor is authentic green, the snap is one-tone.

Left, the Colorado Square Brim Fitted. This two-tone hat has the raise-embroidered standard logo on the front, and a simple script on the back. No contrast button or eyelets.

Above, the CU Buffs Predator snapback, which features a lion-like design on the brim. As pictured, the hat features a two-tone snap and raised embroidered on front and back logos. A hat very similar to this picture right, a Refresh snapback with a Xline logo of Ralphie, CU's mascot. This hat is essentially the same as the Predator except it doesn't have an animal print on the visor.

Above is another Refresh snapback featuring the exclusive Ralphie design, except this time it's in CU's vintage colorway, nuggets blue and yellow.

Left, the CU Gamechanger snapback, a design that looks oldschool because of a logo placed over a broad script. This three-tone snapback features a green under-brim, square brim, one-tone snap in the back, and raised embroidered on the Buffalo logo.

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