How do folks react to your hat wearing?

[hatguy1]

After years of being self conscious around certain groups or in large groups I now don't even notice when I am wearing a hat let alone what other people think about it.

Part of that is maturity. The rest is age. Back in my 20s and even 30s, when I wore one of my fedoras, oftentimes folks thought I was some young dude making a fashion statement. Now, sadly, I'm just some old guy wearin' a hat!

 

[Historyteach24]

Part of that is maturity. The rest is age. Back in my 20s and even 30s, when I wore one of my fedoras, oftentimes folks thought I was some young dude making a fashion statement. Now, sadly, I'm just some old guy wearin' a hat!

One of the good parts of aging then because I used to let those people get to me, people that would make Indiana Jones or Pimp jokes, now I just simply don't let it bother me

 

[B1ggles]

Part of that is maturity. The rest is age. Back in my 20s and even 30s, when I wore one of my fedoras, oftentimes folks thought I was some young dude making a fashion statement. Now, sadly, I'm just some old guy wearin' a hat!

So true. When I was younger, if someone were to make a remark, or look amused, I would have let it get to me and probably never have worn that hat again. Now I look 'em straight in the eye and grin back.

And it's useful if you want to be recognised - 'I'll be the old geezer with the moustache and the fedora (or panama, depending on the weather and time of year)'. That usually narrows it down enormously!

 

[stratcat]

So true. When I was younger, if someone were to make a remark, or look amused, I would have let it get to me and probably never have worn that hat again. Now I look 'em straight in the eye and grin back.

And it's useful if you want to be recognised - 'I'll be the old geezer with the moustache and the fedora (or panama, depending on the weather and time of year)'. That usually narrows it down enormously!

I absolutely agree. I think it was in these very web pages that I read "better to be looked over, than overlooked"

I've never really cared what others think (I have been described as eccentric by my own mother!), many years ago while wearing a long leather trench-coat (a la The Matrix) I passed a group of local teenagers, I knew a comment was coming so was ready for the usual "take the red/blue pill" jibe when one of the completely wrong footed me by asking if I was Batman! I chuckled all the way to my destination.

There are quite a few hat wearers in my very small town as it's an elderly population, but it tends to be tweed caps, Tilleys and the occasional country Akubra when the weather is very poor. I'm the only one I've seen wearing a felt so I'm sure it won't be long until I'm known as 'the guy with the hat'.

 

[B1ggles]

There are quite a few hat wearers in my very small town as it's an elderly population, but it tends to be tweed caps, Tilleys and the occasional country Akubra when the weather is very poor. I'm the only one I've seen wearing a felt so I'm sure it won't be long until I'm known as 'the guy with the hat'.

Yes, I appear to have achieved that distinction in my small market town. I even went to a family funeral last week, where I met up with a few people I hadn't seen for years (as you do), and they had already been told to look for the 'guy with the hat'!

 

[tropicalbob]

In GQ's The Style Guy, Glenn O'Brien (very decent chap) responded to a question about wearing hats by saying,"They protect you from the elements, keep your head warm, and look fantastic." So when someone asks me about it, I quote that line and add, "It's not why I'm wearing one, it's why you're not."

 

[hatguy1]

ISo when someone asks me about it, I quote that line and add, "It's not why I'm wearing one, it's why you're not."

Funny how the common sense approach to headwear has left the fashion scene. With luck there will be a revival of interest in hats and soon all men will be wearing them everywhere again.

 

[Lt.hats]

Today must have been hat appreciation day. I had two separate strangers tell me they liked my hat while I was walking to lunch in downtown Atlanta. (Moonstone Akubra Fed IV ) Then I walked into the restaurant and had a man ask me where he could get a fedora like mine, he even pulled up hats direct and the Akubra website on his phone to confirm he had the right one. Finally, I had a deputy chief ask me where I got my fedoras not two hours later.

 

[AMGbullitt]

I have received many compliments. "Great hat!" is the usual comment.

 

[Benzadmiral]

. . . I really don't see it as such a big deal to, for example, wear a hat and bring it to work with you, but taking it off upon arrival. That seems to fit well for someone with a desk job, at least. More people should consider hats, as they are practical, and can look good in the modern world as generations before.

That's pretty much what I do during cooler weather and the work week. I set the fedora up atop a file cabinet, so it's prominently displayed, and go to work. Then I pop it back on when I walk to my car.

On the weekends, again with cooler weather, I'll wear my fedoras while browsing in a store -- since they don't have hat check girls any more -- and into a restaurant, though I doff it when I sit at a table.

 

[Benzadmiral]

Not sure if I shared this before, getting old and confused. Last summer my wife and my 2 year old and I had to stay in downtown San Francisco for three days for a conference she was attending. There was a huge amount of homeless people in the area of our hotel, but one guy kept nodding at me when we would walk by. Coming back one evening, he stopped us and said "I like your lid, man. I like those shoes too. If I can tell you where you got 'em will you give me a buck?" I agreed, since I was going to give him something anyway, and he said "You got 'em on your feet!" I laughed, gave him a fiver and we wished him a good night. I was wearing my VS Dove with a 2 7/8" brim, to keep it hatty. Frank

Oh, gosh, I thought that routine was only a Noo Awlins line.

 

[frussell]

Paul, thinking back, N.O. may have been the first place I heard that one, as a young kid with my folks on Bourbon Street. I also had a really rough looking guy with one brown tooth left in his head ask me on the streets of Austin for $1.78. When I asked why the specific amount, he said he needed it to complete his tuition for dental school. He got a few dollars just for making my day. Thanks again for the heads-up a few years back on those tiny NOS Stratoliners, my three year old wears them often, and I've got a five month old who will wear them when they are too small for his brother. Still the best hat score I've had in years. Frank.

 

[Strapped-4-Cache]

I can thank my daughter for a couple of nice interactions at the grocery store this afternoon. When we talked about taking my wife's mom out for lunch today, my oldest daughter said that we should all dress up and make the day special. We decided to skip “Saturday attire” in favor of something dressier and enjoyed a nice lunch at the Cheesecake Factory.
After getting back home I needed to go to the grocery store to restock the pantry and didn’t think to change before leaving. I left home wearing a grey blazer and darker grey trousers, a blue shirt, red plaid bow tie and my grey Royal Stetson. Not anything terribly formal, but not nearly as casual as jeans and a t-shirt.
Two women stopped me to compliment me on how nicely I was dressed. Each took a moment to go out of her way to do so. I’m not used to such interactions, but accepted the compliments with a smile and a word of thanks.

 

[stratcat]

I think it's because everyone dresses down these days, so much so, that casual is seen as the norm and any attempt to make an effort is seen as dressing up.
Recently I have started wearing a tie and a sports jacket (or blazer) with trousers (no jeans) and I have had loads of compliments and even had people ask me if I was going on somewhere, going to a funeral(!!), or commented that I looked as if I was going to a wedding.
Goodness knows what they'd think if I wore a suit.
Funnily enough my hat is 'the elephant in the room' hardly anyone mentions it:eeek:

 

[-30-]

I "Dress to Impress" me and as now being retired and a usual homebody, every outing becomes an "occasion". Another well-worn saying,

"When in doubt, dress up; not down.", has kept me in good stead, in that one never has to say that they are "sorry".

A fine fur hat, whether it be a Fedora; a Homburg, my favourite, or a Panama during the summer,

is The Icing on The Cake, as is a goodly pair of well attended shoes;

never forget the shoes.


Regards,
J T

 

[stratcat]

I "Dress to Impress" me and as now being retired and a usual homebody, every outing becomes an "occasion". Another well-worn saying,

"When in doubt, dress up; not down.", has kept me in good stead, in that one never has to say that they are "sorry".

A fine fur hat, whether it be a Fedora; a Homburg, my favourite, or a Panama during the summer,

is The Icing on The Cake, as is a goodly pair of well attended shoes;

never forget the shoes.


Regards,
J T

We definitely need like buttons, well said JT

 

[se couvrir]

I think it's because everyone dresses down these days, so much so, that casual is seen as the norm and any attempt to make an effort is seen as dressing up.
Recently I have started wearing a tie and a sports jacket (or blazer) with trousers (no jeans) and I have had loads of compliments and even had people ask me if I was going on somewhere, going to a funeral(!!), or commented that I looked as if I was going to a wedding.
Goodness knows what they'd think if I wore a suit.
Funnily enough my hat is 'the elephant in the room' hardly anyone mentions it:eeek:

My experience is much the same as yours Stratcat. If I dress (I would call it casually) in trousers and a sports jacket or blazer (but hatless) I am often complimented on how smart I look, (particularly on hospital attendances????). Seems to me to be less a comment on my sartorial efforts but more on the general scruffiness and sloppiness in dress long prevalent here in the UK.
Have always received positive comments regarding my hat wearing, never negative. Perhaps, as I am getting on a bit people are not inclined to be rude!!

Chris

 

[Aether]

I think a lot of the comments we receive are influenced by our age (or perceived age - apparently I look younger than my 37 years!). I think people tend to see younger hat wearers as making a fashion statement, whereas a more 'mature' gent is seen as just being smartly dressed. Other than the usual Indy comments every now and then (which are normally from friends or colleagues) I've been getting a lot of compliments on my new hat - about 5 mins ago a young guy said I looked like an old time gangster 'but in a good way', and said that he loved the hat but wouldn't have the confidence to wear it himself.

 

[stratcat]

apparently I look younger than my 37 years!

Crikey, I'd have had you down as mid 20s! :eeek::eusa_clap

Lucky sod

 

[Aether]

Crikey, I'd have had you down as mid 20s! :eeek::eusa_clap

Lucky sod

Thanks Stratcat! It's obviously down to my healthy lifestyle...or not