[July 29, 2011] Hat, belt and boots make the cowboy cool Tweet Jul 26, 2011 (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- SAN ANTONIO, Texas If you've ever put on a pair of cowboy boots, you know there is an instant uptick in your cool factor. Add a hat and a one-of-a-kind belt buckle and it becomes abundantly clear how the West was won and why the cowboys will beat the aliens every time. Like putting on a superhero costume, the three cornerstones of authentic Western wear -- the hat, the boots and the buckle -- have the power to put a swagger in your step and steel in your spin. There are plenty of places in this country where these are staples of everyday wardrobes, but you don't have to be a cattle wrangler to wear them. "My hats are worn by lots of celebrities," said Abe Cortez, third-generation owner of Paris Hatters, custom hatters since 1917. Located in San Antonio a block or so from the Alamo, the shop hasn't changed much over the years, with every available space used to display some of the 300 dozen toppers in stock. If you buy on the premises, they ring up the purchase on the old hand-cranked register. The lack of a modern habitat for the hats is much of the appeal for the regulars and greenhorns who stop in. Mr. Cortez counts country singers Dwight Yoakam, Merle Haggard and the late Johnny Cash among his clients, but presidents and a pope all have been crowned with one of his hats as well. Pope John Paul II and U.S. Presidents Harry Truman, Lyndon Johnson, Dwight Eisenhower and George H.W. Bush are among them. Big-name buyers also include Paul McCartney, Matt Damon and Eric Clapton. "We made one for Tommy Lee Jones of cashmere and ermine for $7,500. We do so, so many. Dwight must have 100 of my hats," Mr. Cortez said. Western straws are popular in the summer, but cowboy hats made of beaver, wool and buffalo felts are always popular. "ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons lost one of my hats in a Vegas card game to Robert Duvall," he laughed. Can't get to Texas? No problem. They ship all over the world. The famous custom boot maker Lucchese was once a neighbor of Paris Hatters. The brand began in San Antonio in 1883 by 20-year-old Sam Lucchese. Today it costs more than $1,000 to have your "last" made. That is the mold of your foot that your custom boot will be built around. The late John Wayne's last, signed by the actor, is on display in the San Antonio shop. From the design to the materials -- ostrich, alligator, buffalo hide and more -- a Lucchese boot is unique from the sole up. Naturally there is a huge stock of off-the-rack boots available, ranging in price from a few hundred to thousands of dollars. Real boot makers understand that comfort, fit and durability keep customers coming back. The ability to create unique designs with a variety of heel heights, toe styles and hands-on craftsmanship is all part of the attraction. Lucchese moved its headquarters to El Paso in the 1980s, when the family sold the business. Today, the handmade boot business is booming with lots of small custom boot makers scattered throughout Texas and other Western states. Handcrafted belt buckles can cost a lot -- often more than a great pair of boots. Clint Orms Engravers & Silversmiths has showcase buckles that go for nearly $30,000. The Presidio 1811 is a 1-inch buckle set in a 14-karat yellow filigree with 18-karat-gold flowers and rubies. It goes for $29,890. Made of gold, silver and precious gems, these buckles are museum-worthy. If you desire a less polished piece of the West, Mr. Orms makes buckles in the thousand-dollar range. Comanche 1801 is a rectangle with a Native American Indian chief in full headdress. It's made of silver and gold and costs $1,430. He also does custom buckles with your monogram or ranch logo. Hy O Silver is another maker of unique belt buckles, spurs, hat bands and jewelry. It is the official buckle maker of Championship Bull Riding, which promotes competitions and gives cowboys a chance to make a living in the bull ring and at rodeos. So popular are these athletes that they have groupies called "buckle bunnies" -- girls who really want the buckles the rodeo stars are wearing. Hy O Silver is also the official buckle maker of the National Bucking Bull Association. It has made buckles for George Strait and Tanya Tucker and made an inaugural buckle for the first President Bush. NFL player Jeff Zgonina of the St. Louis Rams had a Super Bowl buckle made when his team won in 2000. Prices for solid sterling buckles start at $600, but the makers also offer plated buckles starting at $200. Semi-precious stones can be used but generally they go with cubic zirconium in the buckles. The company was founded by former Miss Rodeo Australia Joanne Symons, just another of the many who have fallen for the charms of dusty, little Bandera, Texas, Cowboy Capital of the World. Patricia Sheridan: [email protected] or 412-263-2613. To see more of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.post-gazette.com. Copyright (c) 2011, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]