Greetings! A little help? :)

[EvilDmitri]

Hello everyone I'm Dmitri, and this will be my first post here in these forums.. I was awfully suprised to find such a community devoted to something as simple and yet elegent as a good hat. I'm an 18 year old student in Michigan and have always loved the style of the first half of the 20th Century. I recently came across a wonderful find at a local Salvation Army outlet; a rather expensive Polo trench coat in perfect unworn condition for $60! It was mistakenly placed in the Women's section so it wasn't snatched up, and just happened to fit

Anyways, i've always wanted to get a nice Fedora and a long coat to match it. I have the coat now, and was hoping this community here could help me find the right hat.

I'm 6'3" and slender, so long coats look good on me. Here are some pictures of me in the coat:

The scarf is Cashmere, and I would probably wear it with the hat and all. I really wasn't sure what to go for, and am open to any suggestions on color and style really. I found Akubra had a lot of nice hats, but they don't sell them directly, so i'm really not sure where to even find a quality hat for sale. I'd spend $150-200 on a hat if it was PERFECT for me, but i'd rather keep it under $150. Color wise, anything that matches the coat. Not black obviously, or white, but a shade of khaki, tan, or brown.

So, since you all seem to be the people to ask, what do you think?

 

[DOUGLAS]

Well, let me tell you that my friend is a great looking coat. Just about anything will look good with it. For $150 you can get an amazing vintage with money left over or you can look at some of the venders we have here. A fedora would look best in my opinion. The coat has a Forties military feel to it with a large collar so I would go for a brim width of at least 2-5/8".
Many Vendors here sell Akubra and they are very popular and made well. There is also Beaver Brand Hats,they will make you a hat to spec. Look around and see if there is a style that you like.

 

[EvilDmitri]

Ahh thanks for the tips!

Been looking around.. a few that I like so far are:

Stetson Temple

Biltmore Eleganza C-Crown

Akubra Stylemaster

I do think a wider brim would be better, and color wise I think Brown would be best, or maybe a Dark Khaki. The Eleganza seems a bit formal with the feather and all, but i'm guessing that is removable.

Does anyone have any of these hats or know of any similar looking ones that might match my coat well?

 

[BigSho]

The feather is definetly removable on the biltmore. I do have to say taht the finish on that hat is really nice and would go with the jacket well. Biltmore also makes a hat called the Canadian Suede that come ins Black oak and what they call coffee which is a very nice brown.

Jeremy
http://www.hats-plus.com

 

[Dinerman]

what size head you got?
if it's not super huge, I'd go vintage. you get a lot more hat for your money.

 

[EvilDmitri]

what size head you got?
if it's not super huge, I'd go vintage. you get a lot more hat for your money.

About 23 1/4 inches circumference, so 59 cm. Not sure what that translates to for hats

 

[Feraud]

Welcome to the Lounge. You can add gray as an option when looking for a fedora to wear with your new trench.
Don't forget to correct how you have it closed before wearing it out. It is currently in female (right over left) mode.

 

[Dinerman]

so- that's a 7-3/8. Not that hard to find a nice old hat in that size on the bay or in vintage shops.
look around some.

 

[EvilDmitri]

Welcome to the Lounge. You can add gray as an option when looking for a fedora to wear with your new trench.
Don't forget to correct how you have it closed before wearing it out. It is currently in female (right over left) mode.

Gah xD yeah I just quickly threw it on and had my brother snap pics so I didn't really pay attention to that lol. Same with the scarf looking all weird in back.

Never thought of matching Grey with the coat.. think a darker, or lighter shade would be better?

 

[Dinerman]

whichever shade floats your boat.
or- get one of each.

 

[jake_fink]

I would disagree with going vintage on your first hat. It takes more than "some" looking to find a good hat and you might end up with some goofy looking old moth-bitten piece of crap on your head that you hate. You might go through ten of those before you find one you like, and you'll be wasting valuable hat-wearing time while you do.

Of the new hats you're looking at the Stetson Temple is a good colour, but may not be as weather proof as you'd like. If you're wearing it with a rain coat I assume you intend to wear it in the rain, and Stetsons have been known to lose their shape with a bad soaking.

The Biltmore may be better. Eleganza is their mid-quality felt, and although things have changed at Biltmore in the last year or two, I don't think that has changed.

The Stylemaster is a great hat. I have one and I love it. The felt on mine is very light though, featherweight, so again, maybe not suitable for rainy conditions. Akubra makes a lot of good hats. Among them the Federation, the Fedora and the Ceo, all of which have been discussed on these boards in the fairly recent past and all of which are available through hats direct and most of which are available through everything Autrailian. Both good vendors. Brown or grey are probably your best bets for colour.

Good luck.

 

[Feraud]

Never thought of matching Grey with the coat.. think a darker, or lighter shade would be better?

Once you buy a light gray you will want a dark. Start saving your money.

 

[EvilDmitri]

The coat will be my fall and winter coat basically, and I generally don't go out much during bad weather, so the hat's exposure to the elements would be minimal, i'm not too worried about that. Michigan's weather does suck, but i've learned to avoid it when possible

As for the three I was looking at, most of what I liked about the Temple was the color. As far as styling goes, I really like what the Stylemaster looks like. Does anyone have any pictures of it that aren't that color? I'd like to see it in shades of brown and maybe a darker grey.

Also, how wide is the brim on it? I think a somewhat wide brim would be nice and can't really tell from that picture.

 

[SinatraStyle]

Welcome from a fellow "Michigander"

Welcome to the Lounge, EvilDmitri. It's good to see another person from Michigan here...that almost brings us up to a handful. (What school do you attend?)

I'd agree with the advice to go with a brown hat to compliment your coat. The shade of brown is up to you, but I would try to find a shade of brown that is different than the colour of your coat.

If you get the chance, I'd suggest going to a hat shop to try on some different styles and sizes to determine what looks best on you. Then either buy a hat from the shop or look online. Trying hats on first could save you a lot of time and money. Unfortunately there aren't many hat shops in Michigan. If you live near the east side of the state there are a couple of shops in the Detroit area, but other than that the selection is limited.

Again, Welcome.

 

[EvilDmitri]

Welcome to the Lounge, EvilDmitri. It's good to see another person from Michigan here...that almost brings us up to a handful. (What school do you attend?)

I'd agree with the advice to go with a brown hat to compliment your coat. The shade of brown is up to you, but I would try to find a shade of brown that is different than the colour of your coat.

If you get the chance, I'd suggest going to a hat shop to try on some different styles and sizes to determine what looks best on you. Then either buy a hat from the shop or look online. Trying hats on first could save you a lot of time and money. Unfortunately there aren't many hat shops in Michigan. If you live near the east side of the state there are a couple of shops in the Detroit area, but other than that the selection is limited.

Again, Welcome.

Southeast Michigan, Oakland County. I haven't started classes yet but i'll most likely be attending the nearest Oakland University campus.. need to get a job and such beforehand though . I haven't heard of any places, and lucking out and finding one at a Salvation Army outlet isn't gonna happen. I'm thinking the Akubra Stylemaster is the hat to go with, I just need to see it in the Brown shades.

*Edit* The Federation Deluxe looks pretty good as well!
Can anyone who owns an Akubra Stylemaster or Federation Deluxe please post a pic or two or yours? The ones on most store sites don't show very much.

 

[deanglen]

Southeast Michigan, Oakland County. I haven't started classes yet but i'll most likely be attending the nearest Oakland University campus.

My son attends Oakland University, and I'm a class of '82 alum. Great school.
Go Grizzlies!

dean

 

[EvilDmitri]

My son attends Oakland University, and I'm a class of '82 alum. Great school.
Go Grizzlies!

dean

What hat is that you're wearing on your avatar? I like the thin ribbon on it, goes really well with it!

 

[Orgetorix]

What hat is that you're wearing on your avatar? I like the thin ribbon on it, goes really well with it!

I believe that is one of Deanglen's hats he bought for $17 at Burlington Coat Factory. Not a bad place to check out for entry-level hats. I have one myself, of which I posted pictures on another thread.

 

[EvilDmitri]

I believe that is one of Deanglen's hats he bought for $17 at Burlington Coat Factory. Not a bad place to check out for entry-level hats. I have one myself, of which I posted pictures on another thread.

Ah. Looks nice for a cheap hat!

Thanks for the help everyone! It's really helping me choose

If anyone has an Akubra Federation Deluxe or Stylemaster, could you post a picture of it please?

I like what i've seen of the Federation so far.. but i'm worried it would look at bit too 'Indiana'.

 

[Feraud]

If anyone has an Akubra Federation Deluxe or Stylemaster, could you post a picture of it please?

I like what i've seen of the Federation so far.. but i'm worried it would look at bit too 'Indiana'.

Here is my Fed Deluxe. Keep in mind any brimmed hat can get you the Indiana Jones comment.