Courage to Wear a Fedora

[Brother cavefish]

well let be honest, one does not want to be a sterio type, if you wear a INDY hat you may get a laugh or two, when the movie came out every mam wanted the "look" so it was a wanna be look - my opinon is find your own look, and bash and rake then it looks more natural

 

[tropicalbob]

I do. I recall going to baseball games at Yankee Stadium and every head in the place had a hat on it. We have to remember that the last fifty years or so have been the great exception to the rule: guys have always worn hats for both style and protection against the elements.

 

[fedoracentric]

Who here was around in the early 60s and remembers when it used to take courage to not wear a hat?

I would guess few. That would make the person in his 70s or so and I don't think we have many members in that age category, do we? I think our oldest members are in their early 60s, aren't they? Most of us are under 60, right?

It would be interesting to know the age range of members, though.

 

[ltedge]

Well, I don't post a lot but this is one I can't ignore. Don't take any chances with skin cancer. Wear sunblock EVERY day, regardless of sun/clouds, and seek out shade whenever possible. Hats are part of it. There are 3 types of external skin cancers (basal, squama and melanoma). Melanoma is the most dangerous and will spread the quickest. Many people don't realize that Melanoma will spread to any internal organ in your body. Cutting a melanoma out doesn't make it go away. Mine showed up on my small intestine (6 years after having a skin tumor excised and getting the all clear) and once it goes internal it's stage 4 and more or less terminal. I've been fighting it for nearly 3 years (docs gave me 6 months at diagnosis) and still doing well thanks to lots of new treatment options that have emerged in the past 5 years. Some of it is genetic but you can't discount UV exposure. Start your kids early on getting used to sunscreen and the dangers of over-exposure, tanned skin is already damaged.

Sorry for the thread jack, back to the subject of hats.... find a hat shop and try out different brims, crowns, colors ribbons etc until you find one that fits your style, particular facial features and gives you more confidence. Other than that, wear it as much as you want and forget about what other people think.

 

[RJR]

I'm fairly new and am 72.I had an eye issue and had to deal with glare.I don't like baseball caps so fedoras and caps from several of our FL members.

 

[Hal]

Who here was around in the early 60s and remembers when it used to take courage to not wear a hat?

I was around in the early 60s (though not "around here"). In the UK then, hatlessness was near-universal among those less than 40 years old and frequent among those in the 40-50 age group. Discarding the hat had started by the middle 1930s on this island.

 

[fedoracentric]

Lots of young Americans by the 50s stopped wearing hats, too.

 

[skydog757]

I'm 57 and I live in the Thumb Area of Michigan; not too many jazz clubs hereabouts. I was diagnosed with skin cancer about six years ago, of course it was in the very center of my nose. When I went in for surgery they had to perform six separate operations to remove all of the cancer. I had a huge wad of gauze and tape covering an area roughly the size of a fifty cent peice in the center of my face for about a week, after that I had to use a silicone patch and tape for about two months. Did I mention that I work in a county jail? Everyone who saw me assumed that I had gotten my *ss kicked by an inmate, including the inmates. I was fortunate to have caught the cancer when I did; don't let anyone tell you that skin cancer is no big deal.

Obviously, I am now a big proponent of wide brimmed hats and better sunscreen. I jokingly mention jazz clubs because the first places that I started testing the waters for fedora wear was at concernts. They're not uncommon in the types of concerts that I go to (I wouldn't recommend them for AC/DC) and I very seldom run into anyone that I know. I also wore them on vacation so I got used to them in public that way.

Now, work was a different deal; Law Enforcement Officers tend to be very conservative, conform to an unspoken dress code and are merciless when seeing an officer whose appearence is even a little different. As I said, I'm 57 - the majority of my co-workers are in their twenties and thirties. That actually made it easier for me; being an older guy (and a senior officer) gives you some lattitude for eccentricity. I got used to wearing fedoras outside of work, picked out the one that I was most comfortable with, then wore it in knowing full well that I'd catch some flack. Which I did initially, however since my facial scar is never going away (no, I'm not hideously disfigured but there is an obvious mark) the guys laid off fairly quick.

Anyway, health is paramount but style is a consideration also. Just be true to who you are.

 

[Short Balding Guy]

Odd hatter; I tip my hat in welcome from Minnesota. Fedora wearing is not commonplace, but neither is it completely forgotten or a style NO.

Why wear a hat today? For me because I like the style and it gives me distance. I look from under the brim and view the world from a distance. Much of the day/week/year I am close, intense, expressive and detailed in my work/play. The fedora has provided me a place to watch the world from under. I believe it works with me in portraying an aura of confidence and class in an attempt to honor public situations. My hats have flown on airplanes on my head to many countries, traveled all over, gone from city to country comfortably. We travel and live well together.

Why did I choose to wear a fedora? For me I thought that wearing the hat would be "cool" and work well when I played my guitar out and about. I play 1900-1940's blues/show-tunes and jazz on an acoustic guitar. The folks whose music I borrow or use for inspiration wore them as a part of their everyday attire. Did I feel self-conscious, yes. But it went away quickly. Wear the hat and do not let it wear you was advice I heeded from this forum.

What type? What I started out with has changed lots. At this point I enjoy the variety. My confidence in wearing a hat is very high and I can wear all the many hat styles I have acquired over the past years. The same hat can cover all situations, but variety adds a distinct spice that is fun to use.

Oldhatter, OLD GUYS RULE! Make your style your normal and rule it!

 

[frussell]

Turned 50 this year, and have noticed that I give less of a shiite every year what reaction people have to my hat wearing. When I was younger, I definitely felt a little odd with a fedora, because most of my family wore cowboy hats when they wore hats at all. Nowadays, it's not just fashion for me. I was a lifeguard for many years in high school and college, before sun screen was used by most people, and all my family were big on having a good tan, so I can't even count the times I burned and peeled, or just got so brown my teeth looked flourescent. Having had all that overexposure in my past, and with a family history of skin cancers (lots of golfers and ranchers on both sides), I try to limit my exposure. 80+sunblock and a long sleeved rashguard if surfing, long sleeves and a cowboy hat if riding, and a good fedora if out walking for long. As I've stated before, I'm a large human, at six foot five, 300 lbs, give or take, I don't get a lot of disrespectful comments, unless they are directed from a fast moving bicycle or car. If I get skin cancer, the people with snarky comments are not going to matter much, so I wear what I like. Just takes time, and experience with what looks good on you. If you're a tiny guy, don't wear a huge, wide-brimmed hat, or you'll look like a mushroom or a tack. Frank

 

[Short Balding Guy]

If you're a tiny guy, don't wear a huge, wide-brimmed hat, or you'll look like a mushroom or a tack. Frank

Frussell; Now that is a quote!! As a short guy, 5'3" at 135#s, I need to be really careful. I do not wish to look like a mushroom or a tack!

Thinking mushrooms, Eric -

 

[ingineer]

The problem you will face is not what people think of your hat wearing, but rather one hat will never be enough.
You will find you need a straw for summer days.
A hat for formal occasions.
A beater for rain and snow.
Hat for the garden.
Hat to pack in your luggage.
One for hunting fishing
I could go on Colours, other purposes.
Remember this it is not a 80/20 Pareto , most are so so terribly self absorbed in this culture with their cell phones ipods et.al. That you will only get negative comments from the 1%.
Most likely positive from 9%.
Plus the 1% will soon be wearing or did wear orange.

Richard

 

[Lt.hats]

Oddhatter,

Welcome to the Lounge and +1 to the comments above!
As a new to fedoras 47 year old myself, I also know what you are going through. I started wearing fedoras in the beginning of the year and I did feel a little strange at first, wearing one in public. However, it only took a little while of wearing my fedoras everywhere, before I began to feel strange if I wasn't wearing a hat (outside). I very rarely get any negative comments from strangers, but I do get the occasional strange look. On the plus side, the overwhelming majority of comments that I receive are positive. In my experience, once people who know you get "used" to you wearing a hat, they will begin to comment when you aren't wearing one.
I think the central theme in most of the comments above is that once you get used to the hat and wear it with confidence, then most people will react positively to that confidence. Of course, you will always get the odd stranger who will want to make a negative comment or "make fun" of your hat, but that’s just life. Keep wearing that hat, and before you know it, you will be researching new purchases to add to your collection.

 

[GregNYC]

Here in NYC, I've been wearing straw Panamas and Milans, felt fedoras and pork pies. Some funny looks. But lots of respectful and positively curious looks. The only comments have been positive.

It seems that more people are wearing hats here in the city than I remember from previous years. Of course I am way more sensitized to them too!



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[fedoracentric]

I think that the first thing new hat wearers need to do is check out those face-to-hat guides to get a starting point for what hats would look good for their size and face. Then go from there to decide what hat style you like.

 

[Lotsahats]

True, it might take a little courage to start, but it doesn't last long: Before you know it, the people in the places you go to the most often will be used to you in a hat, and you'll almost never hear a word about it. And you'll get used to it, too; I often still find myself sitting around the house, still wearing my hat because I'm just hat used to having it on.

A

 

[PHIL1959]

I also at first I felt self conscious and only once got a snidely remark! but I look at it this way. I don't dress like I have I have no self respect or pride,nor do I act that way. I'm not a sheep that follows 'fashion'.Hey I'd rather see someone wear a fedora than a baseball cap any day.
just wear your hat. soon you will wear it. not it wear you!
hey-just my two pennies worth!

 

[Rick Blaine]

I was in the hardware store sometime last felt season, wearing an Open Road/Moose River thin ribbon, classic SB, 2.5" raw brim "last drop" litho liner.
I took it off whilst conversing with the clerk, watching him eyeball it during the chat. He soon worked into the conversation that, in his opinion, that "you just cain't beat a good Stetson". I think people like to see it. I think people admire it & enjoy seeing them. I'll lie & say it was my Grandfather's & more often than not I'll get "mah paw-paw had one jest like it!". At least down here, and in any rural/country-esque setting I'd guess, it evokes good memories in several generations of people, all for different reasons.

"Be the change you wish to see"
~Gandhi

 

[RJR]

 

[OddHatter]

Hello GregNYC,

First of all I'm glad to read that the cancer is fine. My father had some of his ear and nose removed which planted the seed. I have a small spot on my forehead I'm "watching" now - my wife's a nurse and says its fine but I may just pull the trigger and get a referal to a dermatologist. It did prompt me to take action and hence my regular post but, again, I'm glad to read all is well with you.

And you are sooo right about the forum! I've been lurking and learning a couple of months now and your observation of seeing men showing pics wearing thier hats also is helping me feel like I'm not alone. When I catch the smirks as I walk about town I just recall some of those pics - and my dad's warning - and soldier on. Knowing there are so many others here like you willing to share their thoughts and experiences to help me get my sea legs does, indeed, bolster my confidence.

I'm so jealous you have access to all those awesome shops! Actually, I'm happy for you as I know where I live there simply wouldn't be enough business for such a place to survive. The closest "hat store" is one in Milwaukee which is just under 2 hours south of where I live - not too far but not a place I can just stop by on a whim. My primary source of hats right now has been the internet - eBay mostly - and local thrift stores (whose supply is very scarce - I only found one hat, but its a beauty).

I second your views on the golden age of films. I'm in a noir kick now just because I'm digging the hats so much. I'm getting ideas on how to improve my daily dress in a classic style. For years I've just been a jeans and tee shirt/sweatshirt kind of guy with a ball cap (drove truck over the road until a few years ago) so I've found that wearing a fedora has "forced" me to up my style a bit which really means finally dress my age. Anyhow, I've been feeling better about myself just by improving my dress to collars only now so switching to fedoras may not only help protect my brain cap, but help my self-image as well. And I have all the pics of men like you wearing your hats to thank for that.

So again, thanks so much for taking the time out to share with me your experience. I couldn't feel more welcome. I'll try and post some pics as soon as I can figure out how to do it.