Courage to Wear a Fedora

[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.

Opps! I'm sorry, friends. I thought I could reply individually to each thoughtful post but it seems my replys appear in the end of the thread – which is totally cool but I can't be so long-winded, I guess. Like I said, I'm still learning and learning how to post, etc. on this forum is all part of my journey so I'm sorry for the double posting. Chock it up to a noob acting like a noob.

Wow. So many great comments that is truly helping me not feel so alone. I wish I could reply to each of you but it would make my post way too long. Here's a few quick thoughts at the moment, but thank you all for taking the time to share with me your experience. I truly couldn't feel more welcome and I hope to contribute later as I grow in my own “hat wisdom”.

Thanks to “The Good” for the reminder about hat etiquette as I can see how that little bit and help in my confidence. I'm recalling my old navy days when we never went anywhere “uncovered” and I'm just acting accordingly with my new cover, as it were. Tough part now is what to do with the hat when at a restaurant where there is no place to hang a hat. I've taken to carrying a hanky/pocket square with me to lay down on the booth next to me and set my cover there. But you are, of course, spot on correct about etiquette. I've read a lot in the forum about Akubra's Fed IV so I think that may be in the cards. Your suggestion of the color “moonstone” hasn't fallen on deaf ears

I love the “not to stand out is much worse than standing out”. Thanks for that “Classic Gangster”. For the record, I got my first “Nice hat” comment from an older gentlemen today. I just beamed and said “Thank you”. And yeah, it did feel good. I'm not a very tall man (5'8”), but I sure felt a little taller then.

The thin ribbon suggestion by “Rick Blaine” (I just watched Casablanca again last night) is a good one. Thing is I'm having trouble finding hats with such a thing and I'm not quite ready to try changing ribbons, but I'll keep a sharp eye out nonetheless.

“Big J”, thanks for the sage words. I always considered myself a confident man but I'm learning that, at some deep level, I do actually care what others may think of me and I guess I do let fear get in the way sometimes. So reading about confidence in the self as an extension of the hat (and not vice versa) is right on. I knew that, of course, but some days are better than others, right brother? It was good to read again, as I do need it.

I'm going to continue reading (I couldn't get to the forum until about 2030 my time) and maybe post some more replys later. Like I said, I don't want to make this too long but I feel I should reply to each. Not realistic, I'm sure, but again, thank you all for the kind and encouraging words.

 

[Quetzal]

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 -

If you watch the 1950 film "D.O.A.", one of the mugs is small (even for then) and is wearing a huge hat (normal for us, cartoonish for him). He looked even smaller beneath that lid!

-Quetzal

 

[skydog757]

If you belong to a church, start wearing it to services. No matter where you live, wearing a dress hat to church has been an accepted, long standing tradition. Plus if you have some elderly members you won't believe the number of positive comments you'll get. When I was a kid no one went to church wearing a t-shirt, shorts and sneakers; I know that times have changed and the most important thing about church is attending, but I still feel that one should make an effort to dress "proper" for worship.

 

[Joao Encarnado]

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.

I have to say I never did that. I like cowboy hats and still stick with them.
I bought my first hat (a Resistol cowboy) 10 years ago!

 

[frussell]

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 -

Eric - you are one of those guys who can pull off just about anything. I don't think you're in any danger of the mushroom/tack syndrome. I also agree with fedoracentric about face shapes. Those charts can be excellent, but nothing beats an experienced hatter's opinion. I think there's some truth to the "crown height to lower face length" formula posted here in the past. After a while, it becomes something you just see immediately. I'll wear a tall crown cowboy hat, or a porkpie, but I definitely look best in crowns that balance with my face shape. Frank

 

[hatsRme]

Jimmy Cagney was 5'-4". No mushroom there, either!

 

[Big J]

OddHatter, some days sure are better than others!

I feel fine wearing a fedora most anytime now. My stetson with the cattleman crease, well that's a different story. Ever since I wore it one time with a flight jacket, and my friend said I looked like Slim Pickens in Dr. Strangelove.

 

[Big Man]

... I'm sure this timidness will pass as this becomes a part of my daily routine ...

I've been wearing a fedora as a regular part of my dress for close to 40 years. It's been so long that I feel "funny" without a hat on my head.

 

[GregNYC]

Wow, 40 years! I really like that one sharp fedora you posted that has gone through years of sweaty outdoors work with you. One of my favorite on the Lounge!




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[Big Man]

Wow, 40 years! I really like that one sharp fedora you posted that has gone through years of sweaty outdoors work with you. One of my favorite on the Lounge!




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks.

 

[Bad Co]

I'll have to second that thought
it does have character

 

[Matt Crunk]

Maybe it's because I grew up around my grandfather who always wore hats, or maybe I just enjoy standing out from the crowd a little bit, but I have for some reason never felt self-conscious about wearing a fedora. Usually I'll put one on and within minutes I've almost forgotten it's there.

 

[frussell]

Jimmy Cagney was 5'-4". No mushroom there, either!

Cagney typically wore a tall crown, small/medium brim. I've never seen a photo of him in a 4" brim cowboy hat. Then again, like Eric, he probably could have pulled it off. Some folks just look good in any hat. Alan is another good example of this. Not the typical cowboy, (although with his astronomical photography, some people may call him a Space Cowboy) but he looks comfortable in a big cowboy hat. I wear what I want, but I'm fully aware that anything under 2 1/2" will make me look like Magilla Gorilla. Frank

 

[1961MJS]

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

Ugg, I found Dad's from back then in the garage. I'm not planning on saving it. Even he didn't like it. He had a gray stingy brimmed piece of ugly. He said his Mother-In-Law made fun of it and he quit wearing hats. Grand Daddy still wore a really crapped out cheap Fedora until he died in 1979.

I started wearing them because I burnt the back of my ears at a ball game. I now have too many hats, but have three fedoras, three rough rider cross over hats, and three cowboy hats. Living in Oklahoma, the cowboy hats get worn quite a bit. I also have a few Sun Body hats, and straw hats.

For a first hat, I'd recommend getting a Federation, but in any color except Indiana Jones Brown. Good size, good shape, wide enough brim to be protective, small enough to not be too gangster. My second hat was a Stetson Temple, and it's o.k., but not great.

Later

 

[1961MJS]

OddHatter, some days sure are better than others!

I feel fine wearing a fedora most anytime now. My stetson with the cattleman crease, well that's a different story. Ever since I wore it one time with a flight jacket, and my friend said I looked like Slim Pickens in Dr. Strangelove.

Well, there are much worse people to be "mistaken" for. Love that movie, and Slim Pickens. I can never decide if I liked him best in Dr. Strangelove, 1941, or Blazing Saddles.

Later

 

[tuco1963]

odd hatter welcome to the lounge,
when i started wearing fedoras full time two and a half years ago i was the only one in town .
now im seeing straw and fur felt fedoras more and more.
ive gotten most of my collection from ebay .
lately im getting more and more into akubras a very good hat no matter the model .
and as far as wise ass remarks dont worry about them at 47 youve earned the right to wear what you want im 50 and wear what i want.
BUT as mentioned earlier you will have more fedoras than you know what to do with they are addictive
charlie

 

[tmal]

I think that the first thing new hat wearers need to do is check out those face-to-hat guides.

If these are on the internet can anyone give me a link? I've been looking for something like this but don't know what they are called. Thanx.

 

[OddHatter]

Thank you all for your kind replies and sharing of experience. I have to say that I guess I'm getting more "courageous" or just less self-conscious, but lingering in the lounge reading the threads and looking at the pics of members wearing their favorite hat du jour has done wonders for me and my hat-wearing self-confidence. I've been "lounging" so much lately my wife just laughed "Looking at hats again? You and your hats." I like the sound of that: me and my hats.

And you're so right, tuco, I have earned the right to wear what I want - so why not, right? We only go around once so might as well live it up! I have to also agree with the addictive nature of fedoras. I've been fishing around in the bay for more and have hauled a few more in - to my wife's dismay. "Isn't one (two... three... ) enough?" said the woman with more pairs of shoes than I have fingers and toes. Not that that arguement will get me anywhere. But you all understand.

Besides, I got an empty hook on my hat tree.

Dan

 

[fedoracentric]

We used to link to Millers hats hat-to-face guide but it is no longer on the web, so does anyone else have a good one?

 

[ingineer]

We used to link to Millers hats hat-to-face guide but it is no longer on the web, so does anyone else have a good one?

Well here is one:
http://www.artofmanliness.com/2008/05/28/the-perfect-hat-for-your-ugly-mug/
But i'd ignore it and go with your instincts
Richard