NY DAILY NEWS

Manhattan man Seth Mosler's 'Yamulkap' takes an unorthodox approach to tradition

This baseball cap is totally kosher.

A Manhattan man has invented what he calls the "yamulkap," a yarmulke with a brim like a baseball cap so religious men can get some shade.

Seth Mosler, 59, who is Jewish but not strictly observant, was walking through Central Park two summers ago when inspiration struck near the Great Lawn's ballfields.

He saw Orthodox kids throwing frisbees and tossing softballs, all wearing yarmulkes that offered no shade from the sun.

"I noticed they were hot and getting sunburned," said Mosler, a charter school business manager who lives on the upper East Side. There must be a way to wear a yarmulke and sun-shading brim at the same time, Mosler said he thought.

He cut up an old baseball cap as a prototype, then searched for a manufacturer.

"It could be a trendy thing to wear, but I think it will probably appeal to people who are already wearing yarmulkes," Mosler said. "Hopefully, word of mouth will get it going."

To make sure that the cap met religious standards, he consulted with two rabbis, one Orthodox and the other conservative. Both gave him the go-ahead.

"When you're talking about yarmulkes, you are talking about thousands of years of tradition," Mosler said. "But this has a practical purpose."

The yamulkap business has been a family affair. Mosler's 28-year-old daughter, Rachel, and her boyfriend, Nick, helped set up his Web site, www.yamulkap.com.

Mosler began selling the caps for $12.99 online about two months ago and has sold about two dozen so far, he said.

Reviews around the city were mixed. Manhattan mom Lea Haron said she thought the yamulkap was a little silly, since religious rules say wearing a baseball cap is fine, just so one's head is covered.

"I feel bad," Haron said. "I hope he didn't put too much money into it."

But others thought that the invention was great.

"It's a cute idea. For kids, it's wonderful, I think," said upper West Side Orthodox mom Chassida Landy, 32, as she tried the cap on 6-year-old son, Tzvi.

Landy said Tzvi's yarmulke can get in the way when he plays baseball or tag in Riverside Park.

"Sometimes when you play sports, it always falls off," she said. "It's just not comfortable; sometimes it slips."