How popular is the fedora in 2011? Are hats seeing a resurgance finally?

[Sam Craig]

There are, besides myself, at least two other people who wear fur felt fedoras on Iowa State's campus. One is a grad student and is always impeccably dressed in suit and hat. I'm not really worried about being considered eccentric for wearing hats, as my goal is to be a professor and eccentric appears in the job title.

The hat is classic and looks terrific ... So I wouldn't call that "eccentric"

Now, having your picture taken with a summer sausage in your mouth .... THAT is eccentric.

Seriously, great hat!

Iowa needs more of them.

Sam

 

[Alex]

There are, besides myself, at least two other people who wear fur felt fedoras on Iowa State's campus. One is a grad student and is always impeccably dressed in suit and hat. I'm not really worried about being considered eccentric for wearing hats, as my goal is to be a professor and eccentric appears in the job title.

ISU's campus will probably see an addition to the fur felt wearers this coming semester

 

[PabloElFlamenco]

Since I last commented, about two years ago, in a similar thread, the situtation -here in Belgium- has hardly changed: yes, some young people wear hats, stingy ones, a (extremely) rare occasional vintage piece, but usually those cheap starched cloth or straw hats belonging merely to the "fashion" side of the quality equation. I don't think it's a trend-changing evolution: it might disappear overnight. All in all, the only people who systematically wear quality hats are jewish people, wearing stern black suits, et. al. In winter, yes, there's the staid "burgher" wearing some new Stetson, but there again, there is no real attempt at finding the great quality hats that contributors on this board notoriously strive for. It's a very rare occurance, really, to spot a remarkable hat in the street. So, no, let us not delude ourselves...even if the situation is, most probably, more favorable in the USA. But, gentlemen, that is ... ¡hat country!

 

[Iyor]

Your right Pablo, the jewish people are the only one s systematically wearing hats mostly fedoras , though there are a lot of people from the older generation who came from Europe who wear homburgs. You should see what is like in bencraft by besdor how many people are cramming to buy hats for he holidays.

I wonder if there will actually be a resurgence if it will drive up he prices of vintage

 

[Sam Craig]

Your right Pablo, the jewish people are the only one s systematically wearing hats mostly fedoras , though there are a lot of people from the older generation who came from Europe who wear homburgs. You should see what is like in bencraft by besdor how many people are cramming to buy hats for he holidays.

I wonder if there will actually be a resurgence if it will drive up he prices of vintage

What ever you want to attribute it to, those of us who have been involved in the Internet since its inception, who have watched Ebay grow to its current monstrous capacity, have seen the national ... even international ... growth in the vintage hat market.

Less than a decade ago, good vintage hats were still affordable, compared to the prices they bring now. It was unheard of to see a vintage fedora bring more than $100 when Ebay was first becoming popular.

I'm not saying they are NOT worth what they bring. At least there might be some hope that a person paying $150 to $200 for a great old hat will take better care of it than if they pick it up for a few bucks in a thrift store ... or not. They also pay that for cell phones, which are pretty much like expensive tissues these days.

Only time will tell how the market will play out, but for those of us who have been collecting for a while ... I bought my first serious "vintage" hat in 1972 ... the market may be more expensive, but it is also much more EXPANSIVE than ever before.

You take the good with the bad, like anything else in life.

Sam

 

[Iyor]

Only time will tell how the market will play out, but for those of us who have been collecting for a while ... I bought my first serious "vintage" hat in 1972 ... the market may be more expensive, but it is also much more EXPANSIVE than ever before.

You take the good with the bad, like anything else in life.

Sam

It probably wasn't considered "vintage" then (kidding)

The good is that when someone sees one somewhere they can put it on the bay and a new owner can get use out of it.

 

[HatsEnough]

I have been on ebay for 13 years, now. Prices have gone stupid on just about everything there. All sorts of collectibles markets have been skewed by the stupid prices on ebay.

 

[Rats Riley]

Hey, We're not all wearing wool fedoras.
Sometimes us old men wear fur felt fedoras, too.
They're about the only thing we have on that's not wrinkled ... head to toe!

Sam

Well Said!

 

[Rats Riley]

I'm a retired law enforcement officer now working full time at Home Depot. I wear a hat at work (on the sales floor) everyday and am known as "Terry The Hat" (kinda mafia-LOL). I see lots of people wearing hats everyday and I've swayed several to purchase hats after talking to them on the sales floor. I've done lots of reading on the rise and fall of hats and I see an upturn in my area. Several stores are starting to stock them again and the local suit shop has a nice selection. I also always stop in and see "Gus" at Batsakes whenever I go home to Cincinnati. Batsakes is a great old (over 100 yrs) Hattery that is a real "trip." I've purchased an Akubra Silver Belly Campdraft and a beautiful Penney's Marathon Fedora since joining this great forum. There is a real upturn in Hat Purchases at my house much to my wife's dismay . I blame you guys!

I am also a "Master Mason" and if anyone knows anything about Masons (except the crap on the History Channel) you will know that we really like our hats!

Congrats on retiring from the Dept.! I've been a Deputy for about 8 years now(My 3rd career) and having been injured the 5th of January, I worrying that I might not be able to go back. Kinda scary...

Anyway, sorry to hijack the thread. Just wanted to give credit where credit is due!

 

[Rats Riley]

Okay, I'm weird! Always have been and always will be weird, I imagine.

It was only when I started wearing hats on a regular basis, and not just for sun protection, that I began to embrace my weirdness and be comfortable with it.

You all know what I'm talking about as most of you are weird as well, that's why you're here

As for a resurgance, I hope there isn't one! There, I've said it. I don't want people wearing fedoras to be trendy or fashionable (the enemy of individualism), I want them to wear one so I can recognise a fellow weirdo!

On the nose Mike! You freakin' ROCK!

 

[T Rick]

Well, at least the word "Fedora" must be gaining in popularity among pop culture. I've heard it referenced on TV shows (not the Today Show clip I mentioned earlier) twice in the last several days.

Last night, while an episode of "Love Bites" was playing in the background (a first for me, never seen it), a young man had just made love to an attractive "older" woman. Smiling he said "I feel like I should have a cigarette... no, a pipe. And a Fedora"!

Hey, if it's getting mentioned in sit-coms, it's certainly on someone's mind.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

I have been on ebay for 13 years, now. Prices have gone stupid on just about everything there. All sorts of collectibles markets have been skewed by the stupid prices on ebay.

Yes, and stupid has gone both ways. Some collectibles that were high-priced before eBay came along --because everyone thought that they were scarce-- are now cheap, cheap, cheap. Why? Because eBay brought the stuff out of the woodwork ... and it turns out that such 'rare' collectibles were in attics all over the place.

 

[Oldsarge]

I went to the L.A. Natural History Museum today and saw several straws and panamas . . . on women.

 

[Rats Riley]

I think the goal is to get the college aged men an women wearing them. Even if they start with a simple stingy, once you get them hooked, the goal is to then move em to a fedora! I have been seeing plenty of straw stingys and triblys and fedoras being worn here in town. Seems that more of the ladies and the older fellas (40 and up) will wear the fedoras. The younger fellas stick with the street smart stingy brims.

It's a smaller college town so we always have a new class coming through every year. The problem is that the nearest larger city is a half hour away and some of these kids don't have cars and walk or taxi everywhere. So it's a lot of low quality (Target/ Walmart) ivy, stingy and 8pc caps. After all the only REAL store we have is a Walmart in town. So in turn when I wear my lids, I'm always asked where I get them from. Everyone from the college age and the elderly are asking. Even my kids are being complimented by the college students and asked where they're 8pc caps are from. Of coarse they say "Dad" because they don't know the stores, but I'm actually wondering if maybe a smaller town might see more popularity than a larger city?

I have been seeing plenty of straw stingys and triblys and fedoras. Seems that more of the ladies and the older fellas (40 and up) will wear the fedoras. The younger fellas stick with the street smart stingy brims.l

 

[monbla256]

Been reading this thread with interest the past few days and thought I'd finally add some of my observations. Up front I'd have to say that the traditional fedora style of hat from the 30's through the 50's is NOT coming back. Regardless of all the "stingy" brims seen on younger wearers, until you begin to see them as a standard part of the "business" uniform worn thrughout the country it 'aint gonna happen. I live and work in one of the major urban areas in the US and I don't really see any indication of this happening. I may see a traditional styled Fedora on a suits head maybe once every 2/3 weeks down here. We do have a tradition of Western style hat wearing here but even that is diminishing from what I have observed. I'm in my 60's and can remember back in the mid to late '50s when more men still wore hats as an everyday part of clothing and we are NOWHERE near that level nor do I really see evidence that we will be again. JMHO

 

[bradbraden]

I live in Philadelphia, PA and I don't see any evidence of a return. Wide-brim felt fedoras will always be associated with the early part of the 20th century in the public perception, and that can't be undone. A true resurgence is impossible because whatever could happen will always drastically pale in comparison to the old photos and movies, and there's no way to avoid the comparison. Know what I mean? That's why fedoras are so often associated with the dress of an old man. It's the same thing with suspenders, handkerchiefs, chain watches... heck, these days, even wrist watches are considered completely, utterly outdated by the majority, a totally impractical accessory collecting dust on top of your father's bureau.

Fashion moves forward, not backward. That's just how it works. I see so many people here look at a ball cap or a herringbone-checkered, loud-colored stingy with almost complete derision / disgust, but don't forget that it goes both ways! How you feel will sometimes mirror how they feel. The fashion industry doesn't need you to like current fashion, because the items are selling without you, and it's not because the consumers are stupid, or sloppy, or lacking in culture. It's 2011, and that's the fashion, and that's just how it works. There are some here who remind me of the cranky old guy on the porch yelling at the kids to get off his lawn, with their long hair and their athletic sneakers and their ball caps. Ball caps, folks? Really? C'mon, lighten up! People love ball caps. It's really OK. They've been around for as long as the fedora. Maybe longer. The ball cap won. It happens.

I've seen these sorts of threads a lot over the years. Don't worry about a resurgence. If you like hats and you don't mind being in the minority and blatantly standing out in a crowd, wear hats. I do. Heck, I forked over a good amount for a custom Art Fawcett! Make no mistake, though, that you will always, always be The Guy In The Hat in a crowd, and you need to be OK with that, all of the time. Yes, sometimes people stare because they admire you, and wish they could pull off wearing a hat. Other times, people stare because they think it's really strange that you're wearing a fashion piece that disappeared 50 years ago. That reaction is understandable, too, and you have to be comfortable with it. Not defiant, or angry, or pretending like it should be a totally normal occurrence to see someone walking down the street with an Adam Executive with a 6" crown height on their heads. Because it isn't. It stands out. Be comfortable. There's a thread here talking about the most common comments people get wearing a hat, from "Nice hat!" to "Where can I get a hat like that?" and all things in-between. You know what I get the most, that I haven't seen mentioned in that thread much? "Why are you wearing a hat?" or "What's with the hat?" You have to be comfortable with that, because there's no resurgence coming around the bend that's going to make our hats stand out any less.

Sure, sometimes certain bits of fashion are brought back into season due to the cyclical nature of things, and wide-brimmed fedoras could catch one of those waves someday, but it will be fleeting, because they will always, always, always be something from the past. Hats like the ones we discuss here aren't coming back. They've gone the way of the pennyfarthing, the monacle, the handlebar moustache and the wooden shoe. The remaining niche market that still enjoys wearing them exists right here on The Fedora Lounge and in the customer records of your local hat shops. That's OK. Don't worry about a resurgence. Be comfortable, enjoy your hats, and tip them at every elephant in the room you find. Embrace it.

Matt, I also live in Philly and l have to say that I think you are spot on with everything you have said. I'll tell you if you are gonna wear a fedora do it because you like the look, not because of what others think or to be under some delusion that you are starting a trend. It's a great look if you like it and that should be reason enough.

 

[MikeBravo]

On the nose Mike! You freakin' ROCK!

Well, thank you Rats

 

[PabloElFlamenco]

Hatsenough,

I have been on ebay for 13 years, now. Prices have gone stupid on just about everything there. All sorts of collectibles markets have been skewed by the stupid prices on ebay.

and Sam Craig:

About eBay; OK, through the "tourist" coincidence of visiting Florence in the early eighties, I bought some Borsalino hats (wool felt, turned out to be ...ladies Fedora hats!). Liked them, and I was "weird" enough to wear them, which was NOT always easy to do, because, well, ...I always stood out and I ain't no pop star. But getting back to eBay: if it wasn't for eBay, I would not have my nice "collection" of wearable hats. I probably overpaid, but when you have to choose between "nothing" and "20% of my eBay purchases were excellent", well...one has to choose. After all, I bought a Stetson 100 on the English eBay for something like $80, had it revamped by Optimo and, yes, that hat is absolutely stunning. And there's other very good hats I have. So I, for one, don't knock eBay. I must clarify that over here, in Belgium, it's almost impossible to find vintage hats, even on the local eBay.
Just wanted to say that...
Cheers,
Paul

 

[sandyg]

I'm doing my part here in SE MI. I wore my BG Camp Draft this spring while training my labrador retriever to run hunt tests. Everyone loved it and most are old guys in their 60's. They said it was the reason my dog was so good...

 

[yardpup01]

ISU's campus will probably see an addition to the fur felt wearers this coming semester

And an increase in style as well, it would seem.

I myself have been away for an internship and look forward to returning to campus this fall. Perhaps a hat club is in order? Heck, there's a club for everything else.