DARBY, Mont. -- When it comes to keeping the rain off your head or the sun out of your eyes, some claim no one does it better than Darby hat maker Jimmy Harrison. Harrison's known around the world for his hats. He says, "I learn a little bit every day. At least I hope I do, 'cause if I stop (learning), I'll probably stop making hats."

Some think Harrison's a legend in his own town. Not because the hats he makes have been worn by presidents, ambassadors and celebrities, but because of the people down the road who wear them everyday while working.

Harrison owns the Double H Hat Shop in Darby. It's a quaint little shop that has displays showing the different kind of hats, but the real magic happens in the back. That's where Harrison spends hours crafting his hats. He says, "I'm guessing I'll be building them forever. It's not an occupation that's hard on my body, it's something I should be able to do for a long, long time."

Harrison guesses he's made between 3,000 and 4,000 hats. He's always liked hats, even as a young buck. He knows it's something he's got to keep working at to stay at the top of his game. He says of the 17 years he's been perfecting his trade, "It's taken me that long because the next person that walks in the door is going to want something different, maybe something that I haven't done yet. Something that I have to figure out how to do."

One of the favorite hats he makes goes to the winner of the Miss Rodeo Montana each year. The latest pageant winner, Lorissa Harris, can't wait to get her custom hat. Harris says, "That's what Miss Rodeo Montana is known for to the other state queens. We always come in with a really fancy, custom-made hat, so it's really cool that we have support like that and sponsors and that's something we're known for nationally, so I'm pretty excited to show it off to all the other state queens."

All the hats Harrison has made are special to him. After all, every hat's made between his fingers - no machines. Every hat's different, that's one reason he loves it so much. Harrison says, "If I had to make the same hat over and over like an assembly line, I wouldn't be doing it. Every single hat, regardless of similarities, is a different hat."

Harrison knows he's a lucky man and takes each day as such, saying, "Not a lot of people in the world are as fortunate as I. I mean, there's a lot of people that make more money than me by a long shot, that live in fancier houses than I do, but there's not very many people that are fortunate enough to eke out a living do what they enjoy doing."