Black or Brown?

[ether823]

I`ve got a great taupe jacket which I am going to wear with a pair of plain black trousers. What colour fedora should I go with? Possibly a black or a brown?. Peter

 

[57plymouth]

Brown

 

[Neophyte]

I'd say with the black trousers, a black hat would work. A sufficiently dark brown hat, however, will look just as good. Honestly, I myself would go for dark brown.

 

[BanjoMerlin]

Which shade of "taupe" is the jacket?

If the jacket looks good with black trousers then it will look good with a black hat. A brown hat might work depending on the shade of brown and the shade of taupe in the jacket.

 

[indycop]

I have brown with a black ribbon that I like to wear with black sometimes.

 

[danofarlington]

I have brown with a black ribbon that I like to wear with black sometimes.

That's a thought. I had not considered that.

 

[Jeff M]

Dark brown.
Much more versatile than black.

 

[ether823]

black or brown

Thanks for the replies, I think I`ll go for a brown hat. This gives me an excuse to buy another one. Peter

 

[danofarlington]

Thanks for the replies, I think I`ll go for a brown hat. This gives me an excuse to buy another one. Peter

I think that's a good move. Wear a black one when you get your undertakers' license.

 

[Pilgrim]

Thanks for the replies, I think I`ll go for a brown hat. This gives me an excuse to buy another one. Peter

 

[Spatterdash]

I'd agree with the others. The modern idea that "black goes with everything" really isn't true.
Black is too harsh a choice, and should be reserved for the moments when one would wear black, i.e., funerals or semi-formal events... and of course, Halloween. It's an elegant choice with a black suit and a coppery orange tie on the 31st.

There are far more color choices than simply brown. There are hats that are tan, camel, fawn, taupe, sand, bone and light wood colors that would look much better and have more options for wear.

In fact, I think the lighter browns and tans give the wearer more options than dark brown.

I firmly believe most any hat situation can be covered by two colors - a medium-to-light brown/tan, and a gray hat.
Those, in my opinion, should be the cornerstones of a hat collection. Get more colors only after those two hang on your hooks.

 

[James71]

If it is during the day i would suggest either an earth tone. In my case its often the fern green akubra CEO.

After 6 black is acceptable.

 

[BanjoMerlin]

Since black is technically the absence of color, black does indeed go with everything. Or, more properly, black does not clash with any other color.

Black is not "harsh", it is vivid. Fewer men than women are aware of the concept of color "seasons." Based mostly on the skintone of your face, you are a winter, summer, spring or autumn. (It is possible to be winterish-summer or springish-autumn but not possible to be springish-winter.)

Winter colors are cool, vivid. Summer are cool, muted. Spring are warm, vivid and Autumn are warm, muted. Colors worn near the face are much more important than those worn away from the face.

Black, white, navy, dark brown and a host of other common colors in the man's wardrobe are Winter (cool, vivid) colors. If you don't happen to be a "winter" those winter colors will seem harsh and will wash your face out and make you look pale.

If you look good in a black hat, in daylight, you are quite probably a "winter." If you don't look good in a black hat you probably are not a winter. You will be much better off using the proper shades of gray - dark gray instead of black and lighter gray most of the time. There are "warm" grays and "cool" grays so you need to be sure you get the proper shade.

"Taupe" has become one of those undefined colors. It was originally a warm brownish-gray but now covers a broad gamut of warm and cool colors with pink, violet, blue or other undertones. Many now consider taupe to be a neutral color, but only some of the "taupes" are neutral.

A cool brown will clash with a warm taupe and a warm brown will clash with a cool taupe. Take the jacket with you when you select a hat.

 

[Spatterdash]

BanjoMerlin,

I'm gonna agree and disagree here. This is merely my opinion.

Black is harsh and vivid, depending on the beholder and the setting. It's a personal thing.
The general view among most these days, however, is that black is a formal choice, and it rarely compliments the other clothes as much as it overcomes them or clashes with them. Casual usage of black when compared to other color options usually looses it's charm. Often, charcoal, navy and chocolate will be better visual choices for an item than black.
Black tends to work in small doses - shoes, belts, gloves, ties, ribbon on a hat, velvet collars on a coat, buttons, that sort of thing.

A wide variety of people use the seasonal color chart for clothing choices because they find it makes some things easier.
A wide variety of people don't use the seasonal color chart because we've seen winter people and summer people pull off the "wrong" colors and shades with great success, and consider the system a hinderance to developing proper style.
It isn't a proven system with no flaws or exceptions, but it's worth looking into on your way to building a decent wardrobe as a suggested series of guidelines, not a law of fashion.

I am a big believer in matching the hat to trousers or outerwear (suit coat, sports coat, blazer, overcoat, etc.). Granted this was not as big a concern in the twenties, thirties and the forties, as gray hats sometimes sat on brown and tan ensembles, and brown/tan hats found their way onto navy, gray and black ensembles.


But if the poster is wanting a match to the coat, I agree with your suggestion; find a hat that matches or, more likely, compliments the coat.
And the notion of warm and cool tones has validity, but even that rule can easily be bent.

 

[danofarlington]

BanjoMerlin,

I'm gonna agree and disagree here. This is merely my opinion.

With any style, some people can pull it off and others might make a thudding mistake. It's hard to set general rules in many cases. But whatever you decide to do, it sure is conspicuous!

 

[BanjoMerlin]

The "general view among most" what?

Of course some people ignore good taste in favor of creating a "style" of their own. They are indeed memorable, much like my mother-in-law's cooking!

 

[Spatterdash]

The "general view among most" what?

Of course some people ignore good taste in favor of creating a "style" of their own. They are indeed memorable, much like my mother-in-law's cooking!

You had a number of reasonable and civilized options for defending/supporting either the wearing of black or the seasonal color chart without making a snide comment about ignoring good taste.

 

[BanjoMerlin]

You had a number of reasonable and civilized options for defending/supporting either the wearing of black or the seasonal color chart without making a snide comment about ignoring good taste.

A wide variety of people don't use the seasonal color chart because we've seen winter people and summer people pull off the "wrong" colors and shades with great success, and consider the system a hinderance to developing proper style.

The choice of the phrase "pull off" shows that this is simply a situation of people getting away with something that is indeed not "proper".

Whether people use the seasonal color system or not, they tend to wear clothing that makes them look good. They also tend not to combine colors that are not complementary. If you look in people's closets you tend to find that the clothing that is worn most often matches their seasonal colors whether or not those people are aware of the seasonal color charts. You also find unused clothing that they thought looked good in the store and then realized did not look good when worn because it isn't the proper shade for them.

But you STILL didn't answer who "most" is. A simple question that really needs an answer since you are citing some unknown majority without attribution.

 

[danofarlington]

Whether people use the seasonal color system or not, they tend to wear clothing that makes them look good. They also tend not to combine colors that are not complementary. If you look in people's closets you tend to find that the clothing that is worn most often matches their seasonal colors whether or not those people are aware of the seasonal color charts. You also find unused clothing that they thought looked good in the store and then realized did not look good when worn because it isn't the proper shade for them.

My take-away from all this is that it's a tricky issue, not given to a pat solution. At the least, people are thinking about the matchups, which is better than them not thinking it through. Different color tenets and different conclusions can be espoused, without necessarily solving the central issue. There should be some fashion principles, I've concluded as I've debated in these fora, but I'll be darned if you can get agreement on what they are. Some combinations are naturally good; others are what people can get away with; and some are deliberately off kilter as a fashion statement. Some combinations are just not thought through and don't come off well. So personally, I leave it to my eye, which tends to be conservative in an effort to not look silly.

 

[Spatterdash]

The choice of the phrase "pull off" shows that this is simply a situation of people getting away with something that is indeed not "proper".

That was my wording, and I have yet to read that the seasonal chart, though useful, is accepted widely enough to be considered officially proper.

But you STILL didn't answer who "most" is. A simple question that really needs an answer since you are citing some unknown majority without attribution.

No, I don't owe an attribution when sharing my opinion, which I specifically said my comment was.
The "Most" would be the majority of those who concern themselves with mens fashion, not the majority of the population in western civilization.
I can reference Flusser, Browne and the more popular mens fashion forums online as places that encourage the avoidance of black in general, but I wasn't interested in arguing from authority, especially since black does have some supporters and detractors alike.
You dismissed my personal opinions in an insulting fashion, on a topic as subjective as fashion. Good taste means more than wardrobe choices.

You now have a partial explanation and you're welcome. You were not owed one, especially after your condescending tone and patronizing remarks.