Would you like the fedora and related hats to become main stream fashion

[St.Ignatz]

If hats return to main stream we would have a proper place in bars and restaurants to put them.........perhaps.

 

[MCrider]

Good or Bad?

Personally, I wouldn't mind if the fedora became more mainstream. Like others have stated, once the fad was over there would still be quite a few who'd stick with it. That may mean better quality hats and hopefully more places selling quality. Sure we'd have to put up with some crap for awhile, but maybe in the long run it would be beneficial. As far as looking different, that's not why I wear my fedora's. I wear them because I want to. It's not a statement, it's not a fashion thing, it's just who I am. [huh]

 

[Ordinary Guy]

When I first saw this thread I thought "Absolutely YES !!"

Then I started to read all of the comments... Yes it took quite awhile.

Many good thoughts on both sides and I was a bit in the middle, couldn't quite make up my mind.

Like many others I wear my Fedora because I want to and like them.

Now fast forward to last night, I had just gotten the latest Indiana Jones movie that was just released on DVD..

I made some popcorn and settled into my comfy chair to watch the movie.

I wasn't into the movie but about 15 or 20 minutes when I thought immediately of this thread.... It was scene where there were a lot of people , at a train station I believe, anyway a lot men in the scene and all weating hats, it looked like mainly Fedoras....

I thought. "this is what it would look like it they were to become mainstream again "... I guess I rather like being seen in my Fedora because I like them and not because everyone is wearing them.....

 

[Down2BDapper]

It does seem that whenever I see guys in hats in the UK, other than baseball caps or soft woollen tea cosy type stuff, they are in cowboy hats.

English cowboys huh? Now I've heard everything. lol

 

[rumblefish]

I think many people have it in them to be fedora wearers. As I expand my collection and become more seen in them, I notice interest from people I would never take for donning a fedora. Cousins, friends, even strangers give me positive feedback, leading to asking me where they can shop for a "nice hat". Mixed with a bit of "If that bozo can pull it off so can I"

 

[Subvet642]

I would absolutely like to see a shift to a more formal society, and this would of course mean more people in hats. Hat etiquette is the gateway to better manners, and more style as well.

 

[retro50]

I voted no. I love fedoras and would like to see more people wearing them, but not en masse as in the past. Mass produced hats in today's economic regime would not be a good thing in terms of quality. In the fedora hay day, quality was a way of life. Mainstreaming hats would kill the wonderful cottage industry of hatters we have now such as Art Fawcett and Adventurebilt, hatters who take great pride in the art they practice, as they could in no way compete with mass production. Besides, I would not like to lose the distinction I currently enjoy of "being different" or a "non-conformist" in the area of my chosen head gear. Just saying.

 

[Widebrim]

Voted yes, and that's all there is to it!lol In the service, I got used to wearing caps/hats of all varieties, so it's in me to the core. I also want to see more law enforcement officials wearing their service caps again, like they did until the '70s.

 

[High Pockets]

My vote was "yes" as well.

Looking at the hundreds, if not thousands, of photos of FL members in their favorite hat and admiring how nice they look, I can't imagine what seeing a good portion of main stream society in fedoras would be like.

Besides,...when I've got a nice fedora on, I act a little nicer and smile a little more often, I can't help it, it just seems natural. And if it has that affect on me, I can't help but think might be the same for the rest of the hatted population,.......
and wouldn't that be a fresh change?

 

[Widebrim]

Besides,...when I've got a nice fedora on, I act a little nicer and smile a little more often, I can't help it, it just seems natural. And if it has that affect on me, I can't help but think it do be the same for the rest of the hatted population,.......
and wouldn't that be a fresh change?

Wearing a fedora has a similar effect on me, except that it sometimes makes me act a bit more serious...At any rate, I do feel different (and more attractive) wearing a fedora (and that's only partially because I'm bald on top ).

 

[Fletch]

No mainstream fashion, please. Mainstream fashion actually goes out faster than a slow-but-steady subtrend.

I would like to see fedoras given the same respect and support (repair, cleaning, etc.) as western hats. They're not going away, and neither should ours.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

I voted yes. I love fedoras, but hate the snickers and looks I get when wearing one, so I seldom wear one. If it went to a mainstream thing, sure it would fade as all fashions do, but so many more people would be wearing them because they were recently acceptable and fashionable and not so much of a "grandpa" thing to be wearing.

I get a thrill when I see someone else wearing one. I had a fellow at work talk to me wearing one and I had to tell him that I loved his hat. He went on to tell me that it was from the 40's and came from a friend of his that supplied hats and other props to "Public Enemies", but I digress....

 

[GWD]

I didn't read everyone's post, but it got me wondering, if Fur Felt hats became all the rage. Would they become the new target of radical groups like PITA?

 

[CRH]

I didn't read everyone's post, but it got me wondering, if Fur Felt hats became all the rage. Would they become the new target of radical groups like PITA?

I would consider it most likely that something like that would happen.

Many years ago (I'm old enough to use the phrase ) I had a conversation with a man who was convinced that keeping pets was cruel and unnatural. He advocated turning cats and dogs loose and letting mother nature find it's own balance.

I am an animal that kills, eats, and wears other animals and I will not apologize.

 

[scottyrocks]

Fascinating thread.

I have mixed feelings about fedoras becoming mainstream, but first, I dont think they ever will again because of lets call it the 'ease' of owning, wearing, and carrying a ball cap. I doesnt matter what I do to it. All I have to do is throw it in the washer, or soak it ina pot of oxi-clean or woolite solution, let it air dry, and its good to go. They require virtually no maintenance, and are acceptable in just about every facet of todays society. Most people just dont put on clothes fancy enough to warrant anything other than a ball cap.

Is that to say that no one dresses 'fancy' enough? Absolutely not. Just take a walk through the business districts in NYC. More suits than you can shake a dozen sticks at. And virtually no one wears a hat of any sort. These guys dont wear ball caps, but they dont wear fedoras, either.

imho, most men think that a fedora is just something that has to be put somewhere when its not on their head. All the guys going out for lunch on Wall St would rather just sit down and eat and not have to think about where theyre gonna put their fedoras. Im using the Wall St location just as an example, but the idea could be applied just about anywhere, especially any concentrated location where theres a large number of men with a large number of hats that cant be folded up and put into pockets, or worn on their heads. Combine this with the cost of a good fedora, that will be looked at as an anchor of sorts, and thats why I dont think they will come back any time soon.

So, as I had said, as far as my own personal preferences, I am ambivalent about fedoras becoming mainstream. I love my fedoras, especially my Fed IV, which I am seldom without. I am not a collector, per se. Rather, I wear the few hats I have just to wear them, because I like them.

My gf's youngest son doesnt like when I wear a fedora, or as he calls it, the cowboy hat, around his friends. He is embarrassed, because no one else wears hats like mine. Personally, I dont care what anyone thinks, because I think fedoras are beautiful, at least classically styled fedoras. They dont truly hurt anyone. Personal style is something that is harmless, regardless of whether anyone else likes it or not.

I like being a little different, but the elements my little different have to be acceptable to me. Fedoras happen to be acceptable to me. Being different means that not everyone is doing what I am doing. So I guess that means that I dont want fedoras to become mainstream. But if they did become mainstream, couldnt I find something else to make myself a little different? I suppose so. Hence my ambivalence.

 

[colps]

I guess i am for it.When i meet someone now i immediately try to envision them in a fedora.And if i think the won't think i am crazy, i will ask them if the have ever thought about wearing one.maybe i am losing it![huh]

 

[Tango Yankee]

Many years ago (I'm old enough to use the phrase ) I had a conversation with a man who was convinced that keeping pets was cruel and unnatural. He advocated turning cats and dogs loose and letting mother nature find it's own balance.

That man ought to pay a visit to the island of Guam. Lots of feral dogs and cats there. It was enough to break your heart, seeing the condition those animals were in!

While I wouldn't mind it if hats were to come back as a permanent part of a man's expected wardrobe, I'm not going to hold my breath waiting on it. Instead I'll continue being the slightly odd guy who often wears ties and sport coats, with the hats, the fountain pens, and though observers wouldn't know it, the double-edged Gillette razor with shaving brush and cream at home.

Regards,
Tom

 

[jwalls]

No, No, No, If I wished to dress like every one else I would wear BASEBALL CAPS.:rage: :rage:

 

[Geronimo]

Voted no preference, but leaning towards hoping it does come back. That way the good hatters (as opposed to the mad ones) have a better chance of staying in business.
Whether or not it becomes a trend, I plan to continue wearing what I like whenever possible.

 

[DC3]

I voted yes. You see, it's hard to tell when you're wearing a fedora backwards.