What to wear with a fedora....

[jcw122]

Hi everyone,

I'm a college student trying to not fit into the typical college look. I love fedoras, but going to a party and walking around campus in a full suit doesn't appeal to me. I have found that matching summer clothing with straw fedoras is relatively easy and looks decent, but I'm struggling to come up with ideas for winter/cold clothing + fedoras.

Does anyone have any basic ideas on what modern clothing I can wear with a wool fedora that won't look silly? In addition, shoe suggestions would also be great, I'm struggling with that as well. I really don't have a very good eye for style, but I'm eager to learn.

I'm horrible at visualizing outfits, so I would really appreciate the help. Thanks.

-Jon

 

[Geesie]

I probably don't need to say this, but no t shirts.

Corduroy or tweed blazer, wool or corduroy pants, if you want modern footwear there are the Doc Martens or similar shoes. Trench coat, but be sure to have proper trousers and collared shirt under it or you'll look like a stereotypical WoW/Unix/RPG geek.

 

[AlanC]

I would suggest looking through the 'What Hat Are You Wearing Today?' thread in Hats as well as the 'What are you wearing today??' here in General Attire. You'll get a lot of ideas. Particularly look at Dinerman, also of college age and one who dresses with particular aplomb.

 

[Guttersnipe]

I agree with AlanC, both those threads are great places to start. But also, look at old pictures to get ideas. Something that a lot of folks on here forget is that fedoras weren't - per se - a dress item back in the day. They go great with leather jackets, pea coats, mechanic's jackets, etc.

 

[Drew B]

trousers a nice polo and a jacket?

just my 2c

Cheers,
Drew.

 

[avedwards]

When I'm feeling like dressing casually (once every so often) I wear a light blue or grey long-sleeved shirt and blue jeans with a grey fedora and black wool blazer and blue pocket square. Leather jacket with khakis is also a good idea, though be prepared for some Indy comments unless your jacket and/or hat are not brown.

In winter I'd suggest a greatcoat rather than a trenchcoat as it won't be confused as "Inspector Gadget" as easily. That said I wear both a grey greatcoat and a beige trenchcoat and accept that some people are stupid. Or a pea coat could also be used as it's something both modern and vintage looking.

And while I understand that you might not want to wear a suit and hat on campus all the time, I suggest doing it now and then as it does look good. If you have any doubt, look at Metropd's pictures and you will see how a suit and hat can fit into a modern setting.

But to sumarise for your question, I'd say non-ripped jeans or trousers with a polo shirt or normal shirt and a leather jacket, blazer or sweater look fine with a fedora and not as obvious as a suit.

 

[Edward]

Uhm.... the most 'modern' I get these days is really something of a psychobilly look, which is turn is really just (stereotypical) greaser leather and denim, with a couple of modern additions, printed t shirt and the likes. Occasionally I have been known to wear a relatively sitngy-brimmed (50s style) fedora with a motorcycle jacket, or a porkpie, though I tend to prefer a newsboy style with that for the most part.

 

[ScionPI2005]

I definitely agree with the "no t shirts" comment.

I recently graduated from college and went through the same process. I generally wore a nice pair of slacks or bluejeans with a button up casual or polo type shirt-tucked in of course. I generally wear darker colors, so I usually work a gray, blue or black fedora with my clothes.

Thin ribbon fedoras seem to go very well with more casual clothes, however, some thicker ribbons do look good too. You really just need to experiment.

 

[Lady Day]

Did you scope out (Im trying some new lingo) this thread?

LD

 

[kaosharper1]

If you look at the "What hat are you wearing today" thread you'll see that most people don't wear suits or jackets with their fedoras. They're pretty versatile. There's even a "Hawaiian Shirts and Fedoras" thread where no one seems to wear a straw with their aloha shirts.

I'd think that a "thin ribbon" would be a good all round hat for a student. You can dress it up or down.

 

[CRH]

...

I'd think that a "thin ribbon" would be a good all round hat for a student. You can dress it up or down.

Yup!

 

[Not-Bogart13]

I have one key suggestion for you; leather jackets. A bomber, especially. Wear that with any shirt that has a collar. Or a blazer, like tweed or even cotton. Not my favorite look, but for the younger guys it helps bridge the gap. Jeans are fine, even with non-white sneakers... or is it trainers now? If you wear khakis, though, go for something like a lug sole oxford shoe or a casual boot.

And I will also support a good, long browsing through that "What are you wearing today" thread, as well.

 

[Carlisle Blues]

There are no set rules as far as I am concerned; with one proviso.....make sure your colors go............

 

[Dewhurst]

If the fedora is fairly standard and in the colors of black, brown, or grey they can go with a lot of things. I have found that the shirt is usually the most important when donning a fedora. Somewhat "rugged" fedoras tend to go with more things than super dressy fedoras. But even the dressy ones go surprisingly well with a French or Italian pullover, jeans, and some decent loafers.

Try out some looks in a mirror and see what you think. Doesn't hurt to experiment. Well OK sometimes it does... but not always. lol

 

[Inusuit]

It's great that you're considering fedoras for campus wear. All my felt hats are thin ribbons, either Open Roads or westerns. And I wear them with whatever I put on in the morning. I know this is heresy for many on this board, but I wear my hats with t-shirts and Carhartt work pants or jeans in the summer. In the winter, plaid Pendleton shirts get the call. It helps that I'm 65 and don't care squat what other people think about my apparel.

 

[gtdean48]

I wear t-shirts & jeans a great deal of the time that I am not at the office, polo, camp shirts, & button-downs at work. I wear khaki slacks & jeans exclusively at work except when meeting customers or investors. I see no issues with hats & non-collared shirts.

 

[djgo-cat-go]

I like to wear baggy 'repro' levi's and a leather jacket, or a ricky jacket and it really matches a fedora. Even a Dickies Bip-overall with a nice jacket and a striped jailhouse-type T-SHIRTworks for me.. there has to be some colour-coordination in your ensemble matching with the hat. Oh, and for shoes.. workmans-shoes or converse allstars are my favourites..

 

[gtdean48]

.... converse allstars are my favourites..

Love my Chuck T's!!!!

 

[Flitcraft]

Check out Denzel Washington ...

in Devil in a Blue Dress. You can pick up some great ideas for pairing fedoras with casual clothing...

 

[Not-Bogart13]

I like to wear baggy 'repro' levi's and a leather jacket, or a ricky jacket and it really matches a fedora. Even a Dickies Bip-overall with a nice jacket and a striped jailhouse-type T-SHIRTworks for me.. there has to be some colour-coordination in your ensemble matching with the hat. Oh, and for shoes.. workmans-shoes or converse allstars are my favourites..

Some guys can pull of unexpected style using clothes that you would not think could look good. Style is a very individual thing. There are safe bets to get one started, but don't be afraid to experiment. Follow your personality and consider the specific hat.

djgo's selection I could see working very well on him. On me? I would have to laugh at myself cruelly and then slap myself silly.

What hat wearing can do is help you find an outward mode of self expression, so don't over-think.