Hat Pins or Not??

[SheikhDaoud]

Because so many of us are reading about or discussing Art Fawcett's decision to give up renovation work, it is the perfect opportunity for me to brag about the fantastic charcoal gray Fedora that Art just made for me (I will try to figure out how to post a picture of me wearing the hat). It has a 3 inch brim, a wide grosgrain ribbon, and, at my request, because I admired such a hat in a photo recently, a hat pin stuck behind the knot.

Because it was a bit cool today, I put away my Cuenca fino fino (which Art also blocked for me) and wore the hat as I strolled down the boardwalk in Coney Island. I got two random compliments from passers-by.

I just wondered how many of you own Fedoras sporting hat pins and under what circumstances you tend to wear such hats. Also, if anyone can share anything about the history of how the tradition of inserting hat pins into men's hats got started, I'd love to hear about it.

 

[besdor]

Hat pins

Hat pins were an important part of selling a hat years ago . Today , it's a different story . We end up taking them out of most of the hats as the customers dont seem to want them in the hats anymore .
There was a time when every company would put a logo pin in their hat to advertise . Customers would get angry when their pins werent in the hats . I have boxes of Stetson, Dobbs , Borsalino and Bailey pins that we have taken out of hats over the years . Even pearl pins are a thing of the past .
But if you ever want a pin Sheik , you know where we are . I've got plenty for you !!



Steven

 

[Zemke Fan]

I've got two hats with pins...

Recently, I purchased a wonderful mid-weight brown Stetson Stratoliner that sports a TWA Stratoliner pin. And, my Palomino from Art has a TWA DC-3 pin. Hopefully, these and a "Connie" pin will be available in .925 silver or 14kt gold plate for all to purchase. (The first batch should be back from the foundry any day now.) But if Besdor's logic holds true, I should order them in VERY small quantities!

 

[SheikhDaoud]

Pearl pins...

Besdor wrote:

Even pearl pins are a thing of the past .
But if you ever want a pin Sheik , you know where we are . I've got plenty for you !!

Art put a pearl pin in it for me, and even though I am biased, I think it gives a classic edge to the hat. It looks really dressy, but I felt oddly un-self-conscious wearing it with a Polo sport shirt topped by a golf jacket (and just think, I don't even play golf!!!).

So, Besdor, when was it the fashion for men to have pearl pins, and when did the tradition die out?

Thanks, David

 

[besdor]

I'd say by the late 1980's , pins started to die out . I remember years ago , we used to sell a line of hats by Stetson called the Key Club . It was a suede finish hat that they still make ,but we sold hundreds of them every year . The design of the lining had a key on it and Stetson would put a little key in the band to match . Customers would come in all of the time asking for a key pin when they fell out of their hats . Boy, have times changed !



Steven

 

[Absinthe_1900]

I think it depends on the hat, I keep either a Stratoliner or DC-3 pin on one of Art's Sportaires, or my old Miller "Strat" knockoff.

 

[Andykev]

I'd buy one that said "FEDORA LOUNGE" and had a small fedora on it!

I am still waiting for someone to reproduce the DC-3 or Stratoliner pin in serling silver for Loungers to buy ........It is an exciting addition to the hat. The pins just go on the ribbon..you can use any pin to support your candidate, company, religion, sports team, favorite brand, aircraft, car, or hobby. I like pins, but not huge ones. Nice, metal, classy ones.

 

[Dixon Cannon]

All of my hats...

sport vintage airliner pins!

-dixon cannon

 

[The Wingnut]

ZF, if I gather right, you commissioned the pins? I have a non-hat-related pin I'd like to produce and have been looking for a source. Could you PM me with some details?

 

[squid]

Hat pins were an important part of selling a hat years ago . Today , it's a different story . We end up taking them out of most of the hats as the customers dont seem to want them in the hats anymore .
There was a time when every company would put a logo pin in their hat to advertise . Customers would get angry when their pins werent in the hats . I have boxes of Stetson, Dobbs , Borsalino and Bailey pins that we have taken out of hats over the years . Even pearl pins are a thing of the past .
But if you ever want a pin Sheik , you know where we are . I've got plenty for you !!



Steven
www.bencrafthats.com

Borsalino? I have a few extra bucks in my paypal acct... Are these all new pins or do some go back a little?

The only hat I have with a pin is my Brent Black panama. He puts a BBB pin in each hat he sells. I didn't see any reason to remove it.

 

[Zemke Fan]

Hey, Wingnut...

ZF, if I gather right, you commissioned the pins? I have a non-hat-related pin I'd like to produce and have been looking for a source. Could you PM me with some details?

Your PM box is full...

It's Weingarten Gallery

Weingarten Gallery
14066 Deer Stone Lane
Fortville IN 46040
Phone: (317) 598-1026
mrmac@aol.com

 

[deanglen]

My cheap BCF mod I did imitating a Stetson Stratoliner, to wear to my daughter's wedding, has a Stratoliner pin on it I received. I'm hoping to post photos very soon. I love the pin, and the accent it brings to the hat.

dean

 

[Colonel seriously.]

Hat pins

Hat pins were an important part of selling a hat years ago . Today , it's a different story . We end up taking them out of most of the hats as the customers dont seem to want them in the hats anymore .
There was a time when every company would put a logo pin in their hat to advertise . Customers would get angry when their pins werent in the hats . I have boxes of Stetson, Dobbs , Borsalino and Bailey pins that we have taken out of hats over the years . Even pearl pins are a thing of the past .
But if you ever want a pin Sheik , you know where we are . I've got plenty for you !!



Steven

Hello sir. I myself like the hat pins. I have an antique two beaver Stetson pin on my new Stetson Temple. But I am in need of a Resistol and a Champ. Any chance you still have some and would consider selling me a few?

 

[Cuvier]

I do rather like small pins. Especially if there's a meaning behind it. I'd like to get a few.

 

[Who?]

I don’t care for them, and would not poke a hole in a perfectly good hat.

Having one in a new hat would definitely annoy me.

 

[Colonel seriously.]

I don’t care for them, and would not poke a hole in a perfectly good hat.

Having one in a new hat would definitely annoy me.

Wellllllll they don’t actually go into the hat….they go on the hat band on the ribbon bow.

 

[Edward]

I don’t care for them, and would not poke a hole in a perfectly good hat.

Having one in a new hat would definitely annoy me.

Reminds me of the Lewis Leathers logo patch debate....

I recently bought my first straw Stratoliner, and it came with the pin. It's small and subtle, and I like it very much. Crucially, of course, that's been a part of the Stratoliner design for many decades. I wouldn't want one that had a company logo / brand name, or to add one to a hat as an aftermarket accessory.

Not a fedora, that is.... My berets all have pins added - political symbology one one or two, a Clash icon on another, and one particular favourite which carries a Chap star that parodies a Soviet era Lenin badge.

 

[Who?]

Wellllllll they don’t actually go into the hat….they go on the hat band on the ribbon bow.

That shows you how up to date I am.

Still don’t like ‘em.

 

[Cuvier]

If it's just a logo for the brand. I don't care that much for them unless they're attractive. I like ones that display a love for a hobby or sport or the like. Something that has meaning. A trinket to have a trinket is gaudy to me. I have a pearl one I made from an earring I found. Sometimes it's a pin for my hat. Sometimes for my tie. Depends.

 

[T Jones]

Not a hat pin but an interesting placement of a windcord button, on the bow itself. An idea I got from an old picture that a Lounger posted on another thread. The hat is a Stetson / Akubra Frankenhat.