Which hat colour? Carbon or moonstone

[ninjabathy]

Hi there, I'm James and I'm relatively new on the forums here. I'm looking for a bit of advice please, experts! I currently own an Akubra FedIV dlx in brown, which I absolutely love, but I'd like a hat that I can wear with a grey suit and black shirt combo (which I wear a lot)... I probably sound incredibly vain, but I just want to pick the right hat!

I'm currently thinking of a standard FedIV in either moonstone or carbon grey; I feel the carbon might go a bit better with my blonde complexion, but I have seen several pictures of both hats, and sometimes the carbon looks almost black (which is a little harsh I think). Which colour do you guys think I should go for? How bold is the carbon grey? Would I suit a different hat better? I'm also a little worried the moonstone might make my eyes a little frightening; they can be a little bit wolfish when paired with pale blues/greys, and look even worse when my skin darkens in summer (yes, I am hoping the hat will work all year round - I'm cheap and my fiance's wondering why I need another hat...)! I don't want to go around scaring people... lol

Thanks in advance! (I may be slow replying... I'm not being rude, it's just bed time and I'll check back later tomorrow.)

Here's a current piccie of me to give you an idea of what might work. Thanks again!

 

[avedwards]

From what I've heard carbon grey is almost black, and from my experience black is not a good idea. It only goes with dark suits, no good for casual wear. Get moonstone is my advice. It looks like a nice shade of grey going with almost anything, especially grey suits. With moonstone (on the Fed IV) the band is black which looks vintage and allows it to go with more colour combinations. And don't worry about eye, hair or skin colour; grey is a very forgiving colour.

 

[DavidVillaJr]

Hello,

I've a few non-Akubra hats that are close to the carbon black offered by Akubra and I rarely wear them. I find they aren't black enough to match well with black, and not grey enough to go with the other colors in my closet. They always seem a bit "off"

I'm brown haired and greeny-eyed, so my coloring is different than yours, but I look devastatingly handsome in my Moonstone Federation.

So, if you want to look like me, order the Moonstone.

And, the ladies love the wolf-y look. (I guess, at least, that's what I suppose)

dv

 

[Carlisle Blues]

From what I've heard carbon grey is almost black, and from my experience black is not a good idea. It only goes with dark suits, no good for casual wear. Get moonstone is my advice. It looks like a nice shade of grey going with almost anything, especially grey suits. With moonstone (on the Fed IV) the band is black which looks vintage and allows it to go with more colour combinations. And don't worry about eye, hair or skin colour; grey is a very forgiving colour.

I had two black before I ventured into the world of color namely Moonstone, dark gray and Brown. In other words I agree get something that matches with what yopu already have not what you intend to buy for the black hat

 

[MattJH]

I've owned hats from Akubra in both Carbon Grey as well as Moonstone and I thought(?) that they both went with the same colors, although I'd agree that the Moonstone works fine with browns while Carbon Grey does not. The Moonstone color is also a bit more casual looking.

I already have the Akubra Federation IV Standard in Dark Brown and Carbon Grey. My next two new hats will be the same hat in Moonstone and Tawny Fawn.

 

[Goose.]

Hi James...
My current avatar is an Akubra Sydney "charcoal"...black shirt w/ brown jacket. As you can prob tell from my pic, I wear that hat casual. It may as well be black...it's as close to it as any other shade I've seen. Maybe it doesn't look good, but no one has told me otherwise. Well, my wife likes me in my Duluth Trading oil cloth packer (made in Sri Lanka by the same kid that made my soccer ball I'm guessing). So, maybe peeps are thinking it and not saying it.
Oh well, I love my Sydneys (my hat and my beagle of that name )

Next hat may be a CEO and I'm thinking of a shade of grey for variety.

So, while I obviously don't give a sheet what other's in general think, I do value the opinions and recommendations of those here. Seems you do too based on your thread start. For your situation, I would go grey for the same reasons as posted by others.

As for the fiancée asking about your hats...ask her why she has so many shoes, to get you a beer, and to finish cooking your dinner

 

[Mr. Paladin]

James, I have a FED IV in moonstone and I like it very much however, I believe its style and color make it a bit less formal than I would wear with a suit. I like it fine with a button-down and jacket with boots, but not for a suit and tie dress hat. Just my opinion, but I have other dressier hats for that type of wear.

 

[kaosharper1]

I have a Fed III in Carbon Grey which you can see here:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=34737

Its a very dark grey, but its not black or charcoal grey (My sydney is charcoal grey and that is like black). And I do wear it with grey suits without a problem. Moonstone is a lighter grey, and is probably a little more versatile but they both work. Its a matter of taste. Dark grey or light grey?

 

[UWS Cowboy]

I wish I had gotten my Fed in Moonstone rather than Carbon Grey. Don't know what I was thinking.

 

[Goose.]

I have a Fed III in Carbon Grey which you can see here:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=34737

Its a very dark grey, but its not black or charcoal grey (My sydney is charcoal grey and that is like black). ...

You are correct in that my Sydney from DM is also "charcoal". I edited my post above accordingly and admit that I make mistakes (my error in the post and two ex-wives prove that)
Damn, given that I shouldn't have even posted about it...nonetheless, I suggest Moonstone. Your mileage in this Pesi Challenge may vary.

 

[ninjabathy]

Thanks to everyone, moonstone it shall be!

Wow! I thought my post was headed for the "no-replies" zone as there are references to both hats elsewhere, but you all came through! Thank you very much, all of you! You've all been very helpful as lots of the pictures of the carbon grey I had seen made it look lighter than I now understand it to be. I'm going to go for the Moonstone! I'm going to save up for a bit for it (so I might get the deluxe version), but I'll be sure to post in the new hats thread when I get round to it.

Thank you all again, this really is such a helpful and well-informed forum; I dunno how I chose my clothes without it! lol I wish there was a shop here in the UK I could go to try them on, it'd be so easy and I could own the hat right then; postage from Australia is too much for me to handle!!

Cheers, James

 

[Wil Tam]

hah

Thank you all again, this really is such a helpful and well-informed forum; I dunno how I chose my clothes without it! lol I wish there was a shop here in the UK I could go to try them on, it'd be so easy and I could own the hat right then; postage from Australia is too much for me to handle!!

Cheers, James

nah you're not vain

hah hah jk ... remember that shades of gray goes with pretty much anything!

 

[MattJH]

I wish I had gotten my Fed in Moonstone rather than Carbon Grey. Don't know what I was thinking.

Actually, I don't know what you're thinking! I have a Federation IV Standard in Carbon Grey and it's fantastic.

 

[UWS Cowboy]

Actually, I don't know what you're thinking! I have a Federation IV Standard in Carbon Grey and it's fantastic.

Agreed, and I think it's versatile (definitely doesn't look black), but I think I'd look better with a lighter shade of gray.

 

[Edward]

I have a Fed MkIII Reg in carbon grey, and other hats in a colour similar to moonstone. The carbon is certainly not black, and it woulsd be impossible in all but the poorest lights to mistake it for black (the sort of light where the dark brown fed looks black too). I regularly wear mine with blues, greys and (accessories depending) even black. Works with them all. I do agree with the opinions above that moonstone has the edge with browns, though as you already have a brown hat, I'd say it's a matter of personal taste. If you're worried about staining / dirt, the carbon will show that up much less than the moonstone.

 

[JohnnyB53]

I'm going to go for the Moonstone! I'm going to save up for a bit for it (so I might get the deluxe version), but I'll be sure to post in the new hats thread when I get round to it.

I gave myself a moonstone Fed IV Deluxe for Christmas and it is by far my favorite hat now. To me it's easily worth the extra money. Its very mid-grey shade coordinates with a wide range of dress levels. My dad almost always wore a mid-grey fedora with a wide variety of dark suits. This is me in my new moonstone Fed IV Deluxe. The brim is much more contoured on the sides now:

 

[Torpedo]

Hi,

Given that you are in the UK, maybe you could consider Christy's hats, available from Hornet Hats:

http://www.hornetshats.com/

By what I have heard, these are a quality of felt inferior to Akubra's, and I have read concerns about its proneness to tapering, but many believe they are well balanced quality-price hats; on the plus side, they have a lot of colours to choose, and will do some customizing, like changing ribbons or adding brim trimming.

This is their closest equivalent to the Fed IV, called "The Adventurer" (the photo is pretty awful, its shape is better than shown here):

http://www.hornetshats.com/f_hatview.php?link=Fur Felts

To add my two cents to the colour question, I think medium grays are more combinable than darker ones.

Regards!

 

[Alchemy5150]

I gave myself a moonstone Fed IV Deluxe for Christmas and it is by far my favorite hat now. To me it's easily worth the extra money. Its very mid-grey shade coordinates with a wide range of dress levels. My dad almost always wore a mid-grey fedora with a wide variety of dark suits. This is me in my new moonstone Fed IV Deluxe. The brim is much more contoured on the sides now:

That hat looks GREAT on you! How did you get the crown to taper at the top like that?

 

[BinkieBaumont]

Any Help?

https://www.tophatters.com.au/shop/product/category/akubra_city/105

 

[ninjabathy]

Thanks for that, Torpedo. I was trying to get on their site the other week, but ended up assuming it was broken and gave up. I tried your link and it works now; the site must have been under maintenance or something! Checking it out, but I reckon I'll probably wait for the Moonstone Fed IV Deluxe anyway.... it looks like it my be a great source for trying out a few trilbys though... heehee

Thanks to the rest of you for the ongoing comparison between the two; I dare say I may end up owning both further down the line! Just the Moonstone for now though, thanks guys!

Ciao for now! James