Post: #1

First of all, I am 100% serious with this thread.

Recently I had to wait somewhere for 3 hours for an unrelated thing. There was a hat store nearby. I tried a bunch of hats on and I decided I could pull it off in a fedora.

I'll soon get my first hat but I'm a total newbie in this thing and want to get familiar with some basics before I do:
- What color/type pairs well with what? I mostly wear white/light blue shirt, dark jeans or chinos, brown belt, brown shoes but general information would also be nice
- What size is a good fit for a hat? I was planning to go with someone that covers 3/4ths of my forehead
- Where to wear it/ where NOT to wear it
- Do I take it off when I'm speaking to people? (Of course I don't. Then, where should I take it off?)
- What to do with it when I take it off, to not look like a fucking chode
- I guess I shouldn't tip it..?
- Other basics related to wearing hats and not looking like a faggot ass hipster. I don't even wear knit caps in winter, I know nothing about hats.

Here's a bunch of dudes melting some hats down, for reference:





And of course:


As you can see, fedoras are not only for neckbeards people.

Post: #2

NO just NO

The guys you posted are celebs, they can wear anything or do almost anything and their inherent value wouldnt change much you cant say the same for yourself..

Post: #3

Post: #4

Black guy in the first picture looks like a faggot with that fedora. Would look better without it.

Post: #5

Post: #6

First off are you in shape with strong facial features?

Post: #7

You might think you can pull it off, but you probably can't. It's too tainted. Pictures 1 and 3 look like chodes wearing it. Pictures 2 and 4 do not quite look like chodes as they are not in our present time where the fedora is a leper's bell for degeneracy.

If your style, grooming, and fitness are all on point consider starting your formal old time classic felted hat journey with a style that is neither a fedora nor a tribly or anything which may be mistaken for those two. It may also help to be the sort of bold, crazy motherfucker whose testicles produce tren. If you are slacking on any of these things the best possible outcome will be seeing the fedora in your closet months after purchase and wondering why you spent money on it in the first place. Worse outcome involve your wearing it too frequently and people remembering and thinking you are one of THOSE people.

Post: #8

A good rule of thumb for hats and sunglasses is " When in doubt, take it off.

To expand on this just a little apart from the obvious things like churches, ceremonies, etc.. : never wear a hat while eating, it's considered disrespectful to the person you are eating with. Also many of the older generation grew up in a generation where lice was very easily spread, so if you place your hat on a table in a restaurant, you're likely to piss a few people off.

Apart from that, I don't know anything about fashion so I can't tell you how to match colors.

Post: #9

I'm on a personal campaign to bring back the fez.

   

Post: #10

"There's a time and a place for fedoras. The time is 1935. The place is atop Frank Sinatra's head."

I don't remember who said this but I can't take credit.

Post: #11

If you're going to do this, there are a few rules to follow.

Cold weather only. Pair it only with a coat or possibly a full suit. If you're wearing a coat and the fedora and you take off the coat, you'll need to lose the hat too.

Only go this direction if you're one of those guys who defines his environment. Don't be that quiet guy who is hoping people will like him because what he is wearing. You have to be the guy who could show up to a black tie event in a wetsuit and totally pull it off thanks to personality.

Only fedoras with the velvet stripe. It doesn't work and it doesn't count if it just has a fedora shape. This looks cheap. Make sure any fedora you purchase has some proper texture to it. Dark colours that match your coat and scarf.

Don't wear it inside ever. It goes on the coat rack or on your lap if necessary.

If you aren't the type of guy who is open to wearing suits every day, don't even bother trying to go in a fedora direction. These things don't belong within 1000 miles of a visible t-shirt.

Post: #12

^^^^^

A fedora goes with a suit, fine leather shoes and a top coat. Depending on the weather, also a scarf and fine leather gloves. Colors should be dark and matching.

This looked fine 2-3 generations ago with a sea of mean all wearing this going to the office in NY or Chicago. Today is looks alright but you'll be an incredible outlier. Has to be congruent with the person.

Post: #13

I met a prominent high repped member who was rocking a fedora, I would say he pulled off the look, though I wasn't exactly analyzing his outfit lol. I'd say it's got to be congruent with your style, vibe, and personality, this particular member had the vagabond, traveler, badass vibe with the "don't give a fuck" attitude to boot.

If you rock the fedora as with a lot of certain looks, you truly have to "not give a fuck", if you're worried what other people think then you will look like a tool. That said I'd say 70-80% of guys will look pretty lame with a fedora and not pull it off. Unfortunately it became too much of a trend with hipsters 3-4 years ago who totally played it out, kind of like with the "man bun" hairstyle. Now when I see a hipster with a man bun part of me wants to walk right up to him and sock him in the face.

Post: #14

I bought a fedora a couple years ago and am glad I did. However I agree with many of the caveats mentioned upthread.

I got a dark gray (not quite charcoal gray) felt fedora with a classic, unostentatious design. It is therefore pretty versatile. On the other hand if you know you wear brown and blue all the time you can get a brown hat. I wear mine with a black patterned suit, blazer, or a shirt-and-tie. I like the look and feel comfortable and confident with it but the last thing on Earth I would want is to be mistaken for some hipster scum, so I would never ever wear this without at minimum a shirt collar and tie; I wouldn't wear it in jeans either.

Poster Suits above had some concrete bullet points that I'll respond to for convenience. In general I like where he's coming from but think he's being a little too strict—if you really followed all these rules to a letter you'd find it wasn't worth it buying such a hat for how little you're really in it.

• No coat, no hat? The hat and coat combination looks great but then it's like, ok so now I carry the hat around more than I wear it? At first I took the hat off any time I went inside. But having to stand anywhere for more than one minute with a hat in your hand doesn't look good ("hat in hand" figuratively means, "with humility") so I don't do it anymore. I have grown comfortable wearing it in places where people are generally standing/there are high ceilings, so barrooms, lobbies, etc. That or you can check it/hang it up. (No, I would never wear my hat in a home, sitting down, etc.)
• Only go this direction if you're one of those guys who defines his environment. You don't have to be Han Solo but if you're going to be self-conscious, don't bother. If you're gonna be fidgeting with this thing, if you can't wear it and forget that it's on your head, just forget it.
• Only fedoras with the velvet stripe. Buy a felt fedora. Whatever the hell those hipster's hats are made of I wouldn't bury my worst enemy in it. The stripe doesn't have to be velvet; mine's not and the one in this picture doesn't seem to be.
  
• These things don't belong within 1000 miles of a visible t-shirt. 10,000 miles.
  

Post: #15

Even those that can "pull it off" would look better without it.

There is zero reason to even consider wearing a fedora. At best, you are not adding anything to your look by doing so, and more likely you're taking away.

Post: #16

Sadly, the hipsters and internet atheist chodes have done damage to the fedora that will not be undone for decades, so it's really difficult to pull off.

Which is too bad, because I am pro-hat and wish they would come back into more style. In warm weather I sometimes wear a Leghorn hat by a well known Italian hatmaker that I found in a thrift store in a tiny town.

   

And, as God is my witness, next year I'm going to get a white linen suit and a Panama hat:

   

   

   

Post: #17

The first hat, and the one on the neck beard, are not Fedoras. Those are a hat called the Trilby. It annoys me that they have tarnished the name of the Fedora.

It seems like hats are one of the things black guys can pull off and still look cool that white guy's can't.

Post: #18

First off, thanks to all. Very good opinions on this thread.

(11-22-2015 11:23 PM)cascadecombo Wrote:  First off are you in shape with strong facial features?

I am in decent shape with quite strong facial features. I've been looking at random pictures of guys in fedoras and facial features seem to make or break it

(11-22-2015 11:58 PM)Suits Wrote:  Only go this direction if you're one of those guys who defines his environment. Don't be that quiet guy who is hoping people will like him because what he is wearing. You have to be the guy who could show up to a black tie event in a wetsuit and totally pull it off thanks to personality.

(11-23-2015 01:26 AM)OGNorCal707 Wrote:  I met a prominent high repped member who was rocking a fedora, I would say he pulled off the look, though I wasn't exactly analyzing his outfit lol. I'd say it's got to be congruent with your style, vibe, and personality, this particular member had the vagabond, traveler, badass vibe with the "don't give a fuck" attitude to boot.

If you rock the fedora as with a lot of certain looks, you truly have to "not give a fuck", if you're worried what other people think then you will look like a tool.

This is absolutely correct. SJWs in hats don't fail the look because of the hat, they would have failed without them anyway.
I guess I'll be fine as long as I play the look as if the hat wasn't there. Not looking like a dork I won't have a problem with, because it's already pretty cold where I live so I'm always in a coat, and I only wear stuff without a collar to the gym.
That being said, I'm also looking at more casual hat styles to pair with an untucked, loose linen shirt in the summer, but that's ahead of time at the moment.

(11-23-2015 07:36 PM)RexImperator Wrote:  The first hat, and the one on the neck beard, are not Fedoras. Those are a hat called the Trilby. It annoys me that they have tarnished the name of the Fedora.

Correct. The first one actually looks more like a Homburg. Trilby is a bit more casual than the classic fedora and it is the one almost all neckbeards wear. I should be clear that I'll be getting a classic, felt fedora by a reputable brand and not anything else.

With all those out. Let's go with an example. If I'm wearing a charcoal overcoat, navy suit and brown brogues, what color hat should I wear?

And let's try the same but with white dress shirt, navy blazer, and dark blue, non sanded jeans (Think levi's 511) instead of the coat.

Post: #19

In my mind the Homburg has a bigger brim. I'm thinking Godfather or Biggie Smalls.

With a navy suit I think a grey hat works well.

I'm a fan of the 1930's style, with a straight non-tapered crown. Classic Hollywood look.

One of the best deals in real hats are the Akubra fur felt hats made in Australia. Hatsdirect.com has a grey Akubra Federation IV Deluxe which I think would fit the bill nicely.

Post: #20

(11-24-2015 06:53 PM)the Thing Wrote:  And let's try the same but with white dress shirt, navy blazer, and dark blue, non sanded jeans (Think levi's 511) instead of the coat.

Also. Oops, i meant instead of the suit not the coat. The coat stays.

(11-24-2015 07:42 PM)RexImperator Wrote:  In my mind the Homburg has a bigger brim. I'm thinking Godfather or Biggie Smalls.

With a navy suit I think a grey hat works well.

I'm a fan of the 1930's style, with a straight non-tapered crown. Classic Hollywood look.

One of the best deals in real hats are the Akubra fur felt hats made in Australia. Hatsdirect.com has a grey Akubra Federation IV Deluxe which I think would fit the bill nicely.

I'm against buying hats online since no way I'd buy an expensive hat without trying it on first

Post: #21

Well, I suppose then you must find a reputable chapeau store in your local metropolis.

Post: #22

grew my hair out to try a top bun. looks horrendous.
hair cut tomorrow.

Post: #23

(11-25-2015 12:36 AM)Sharkie Wrote:  grew my hair out to try a top bun. looks horrendous.
hair cut tomorrow.

This has to be one of the worst of recent trends. Good call cutting it.

Post: #24

Post: #25

Actually, this gives me an idea. I think we need a Nehru Jacket thread.

If I ever make it to Hong Kong, I am totally going to have one of those made up custom.