Perhaps one more reason for the disappearance of hats is the omnipresence of sunglasses while up till then it was the hat that protected you from the sun. When I was a very young boy, all of my relatives wore hats, I would never e. g. see my father, my grandfather, my uncles, without a hat. And as I can rightly be accused of ancestor-worshipping I started wearing hats from a very early age as well and never felt out of tune with the rest of mankind. And as a teen, when I saw one of our Scottish friends pull out a deerstalker hat and another one with his panama hat, that was me starting to save the money to buy them myself as well. And for the past 10 or 20 years second hand shops have been quite a source as well, as then people died who actually owned hats - without still wearing them. So that brought in quite a few good-as-new specimen.
I don't believe protection from the sun is of issue. At least in the UK that is - where days with weather pleasant enough to offend the eye are few and far between. I personally attribute it to hats becoming more of a novelty than a necessity as well as a pivot in style to suit more casualwear that favours convenience over appearance. Fashion today is whatever top athletes are wearing that can be adopted into an everyday life. It just so happens that hats aren't worn in many sports (no I am not considering helmets) bar the swimming cap. I welcome the change as I would cherish the day that I see streets filled with men with shiny rubber topped heads although it is a shame to see the hats of my youth fade into obscurity.
@@eggdog7715 I think the main reasons are: - Casualization of the clothing - so that a hat would look out of place. - Longer hair (in the 1960ies and 1970ies), so that a hat would not look flattering. - And lastly: the availability of private transport. The baseball caps: I think they are just an expression of the Americanization of our lives. But - and that's the good thing about it - nobody forces us to adhere to any of the above - and we are free to wear whatever hat we like. And there are plenty to chose from. :-) All the best!
Wonderful Tommy Cooper. You look just like him with that fez on. Hats are my topic. Can't have enough of them and that black and white one is really nice. Cheers.
I'm 68 years of age, and have been wearing hats since age 14. I would feel exposed without a hat. And yes, I have a Homberg, a Bowler, three styles of pith helmets, a garrison cap (US Army style), three Fedroas, a Trilby (but don't wear it much), a 1930s steel construction helmet, several different style Panamas, TWO fezzes, and more else that I cannot remember at the moment.
From one chap to another, I frequently wore a variety of hats when I was younger, and now I seldom leave home without one. More often than not, it's a tweed trilby in winter, or a fur hat in very cold weather, and a panama in summer. It does depend on where I'm going and what I'm doing, and I do have other hats, including a bowler. I wear a hat for practical reasons, but also to go against the trend. As the fashion of the day becomes more informal, I dress more formally.
Baseball caps have their place, outdoor sporting events in warmer weather. However I detest seeing the clowns whom spin them around backwards with the brim pointing at their arse. I totally agree that the classic fedora/trilby needs to make a comeback as it is so practical and dresses you up. If you need to be more casual or are doing physical labor then I reach for the flat-cap. Keep up the good work, much appreciated.
There are occasions to spin them around, flat caps also, riding a bicycle in a hurry or on a windy day springs to mind. So much time wasted chasing them down to retrieve them otherwise.
Just for the record, what you describe in this video as a Trilby is actually short brim fedora. Although the two are quite similar, there are some important differences, 1) the brake angle from the crown to brim. 2, the indent at the top. Fedoras have the teardrop shaped indent where trilby's have a straight groove.
I inherited my Grandfather's classic grey Stetson fedora and wore it regularly all thru the 70s and 80s until the interior band rotted away. Ive tried to find a hat repair shop in my area but no luck. Ive tried to find a replacement but Ive never found a hat that fitted as well, looked, or felt as good as Grandaddies old Stetson.
Being a "Hat" man is always enjoy finding presentations on the subject. I am always disappointed, however, when the iconic "Akubra" hat company in Australia is overlooked. Being a huge fan of their unique styling I have many (10) in my collection and always receive compliments on them when I wear them. If you have a moment take a look at their videos on these classic styles of town and country hats. The Snowy River, The Cattleman, The Territory, and the Riverina. They are all classic and add a great detail to any sartorial look.
Being a little pedantic, the busby should not be mistaken for the much taller bearskin cap, worn most notably by the five regiments of Foot Guards of the Household Division.
Thank you! I came late to hats in my life. I really recommend Akubra hats. They make a couple of nice Fedoras and an open crown hat called the Campdraft. They’re pretty rugged hats. Incredibly, my standards of dress have increased since wearing hats.
My first and foremost choice of hat since my late 30s has always been the bowler. Goes great with my moustache, suit, collar & tie. The one I'm currently wearing is an old beat up lightweight fur felt bowler from around the early 1920's, where the damage I feel actually adds character to it. (Having gotten fed up of being carded for looking underage as late as my mid 30s, for things like junior hacksaws at B&Q, that was when I first grew a moustache. Unfortunately, I was still wearing a bright red baseball cap at the time, along with more casual dress, so everyone went 'It's a-me! Mario!' for a while. Then I gravitated to suits, collars, ties and bowlers for everyday wear as I approached my 40s).
i think thats the best thumbnail i,ve seen all month !! another reason for the lack of hats in recent times is air quality 70-80 yrs ago every house had a coal fire ,industry was belching out smoke a hat would keep the worst of away from your hair which is probably why you don't see as many women in headscarfs as you would in the past
Great video Ash, I totally agree ~ a man should wear a nice hat. I see a gentleman dressed nicely in a suit, but without a hat, and to me he just seems to be missing the finishing touch. I have a collection built up over the years - fedoras, bowlers, homburgs, boaters, a top hat, flatcaps and berets. Now I never leave the house without a nice hat, chosen carefully for my outfit at the time. The couple of times that I have forgotten one, I have felt like something was missing and been quite upset with myself.
Great video! Wide brimmed hats are a must for summer in New Zealand -- I've got a nice Panama hat for the beach. I'm thinking about investing in a Borsalino or Stetson for the winter months
May I suggest an Antonio Guerra instead of Borsalino. They're made in the same general area, so similar quality. Being the owner of both, i find the Guerra much more comfortable. You might also check out Panizza, a very comfortable range of hats. Cheerio!
I read somewherethat the bowler hat was originally designed as protective head gear for use while riding on horseback. That might account for their popularity in the old West
The trilby hat is sharp but not all chaps can pull off the look, But that's the joy of hats. Personally I'm a flat cap chap. Another excellent video. Well done Squire 👍
The rise of modern corporations since the 1960 and sports franchises have all been responsible for the decline and change of what used to be classic style and hat wear include the rise of baseball caps. These corporations have casualized dress wear in every sense and so much so that people don’t know how to dress and all thru life they still don’t know. This has very much affected classic hat wearing as well. It’s up to us all to intentionally in our dress wear to help reverse some of what trends have brought us.
In my 20s, I wore vintage fedoras that were given to me by elderly men I knew who didn't wear them anymore. In my 30s, I wore mostly baseball caps but in my 40s, I now wear Trilbys (and sometimes a flat cap), which are a bit less flashy than a fedora but a good alternative to the casual baseball cap.
I personally just think all the other hats look nicer than the baseball cap. The only other hat I see here in the USA are cowboy hats by certain people sometimes. I wanted to try and get a Greek Fisherman, Elbsegler, or a Maciejowka hat from the designs. I do worry a bit if some of them are appropriate to wear, but the majority of time people don’t wear hats at all so It could only be a step up or can be removed easily later. I think some people would like to wear more different hats, but also things like names of hat types and where to buy them could be a barrier for some.
For the last half hour or so, you have preaching to the converted. As a child I would often be found wearing one of my aunt’s hats with a huge feather as it was the nearest I could get to a cavalier’s. Now I own a few hats of my own. Several trilbies one fawn cowboy hat bought in California, and a number of flat caps, including herringbone tweeds and tartan (including a Welsh Jones tartan for family reasons - I hesitate to say entitlement because that would question my right to wear other tartans). I mostly wear the caps. I do have a few baseball caps but only wear them indoors on top of headphones, to stop them falling off my head. Grief I have just seen that this is two years old. Sorry I am still catching up.
Hello Ash, another great video and subject, enjoyed watching. As an owner of several hats, I fully agree with you, the trilby is a great and versatile choice, specially here in windy Scandinavia. Maybe there could be a short video on how to wear your hat, dos and don’ts. Please keep up your good work…..and as usual, best regards from Sweden
Thank you. I am a hat lover, owning several different types. As it happens, I do put on my smoking jacket and fez to enjoy a pipe or quality cigar... then again, I do run a comedy chat group where I do it. It has become a bit of a brand for that purpose. But most of the time, I prefer a trilby or fedora for outdoors.
As you may infer from my photo, hats have been an important part of my life from the cradle. I've worn various types over the years, but Western hats almost exclusively since retiring from the Navy and establishing residence in Colorado. You covered all the bases in the video - the practicality, utility, and style, and the presence and tone a hat conveys. And you know the difference between a Trilby and a fedora!
If you want to get ahead, get a hat. Love wearing my (vintage) German Trilby, it's unlined and vented, but more than warm enough. I do get the occasional look, but when I'm wearing my hat I'm dressed appropriately and looking a heck of a lot better than them (especially if they are dressed like a 5-year old lol). Flat caps, being Northern I own and wear a few - pretty much essential in winter.
Excellent.....greetings from ny...yes i am a hat wearer for over 60 years....now that we are entering the spring and summer seasons i will be wearing my panamas ..light weight news boys..sun visers....how many panamas do i own..my friend i could open my own mini bates...smile..each point you mentioned was on target....yes i have been a subscriber to your channel and you do outstanding work...i will be interested on your take on summer suits...here in the states too many men wear clothes that are too dark..lighten up!!!!! Have fun..... gentlemen!!!!! Enjoy the rest of the weekend...peace...spring is almost here....
Growing up on the farm here in the U.S.,hats were important for us to wear while we were working, whether a straw in the summer or a toque in the winter. One thing I did notice is the summer straw slowly disappeared as every feed, seed and petroleum company started giving out baseball caps. Why buy a new straw when you were just given a new baseball cap, which is why now people think of farmers here is wearing baseball caps as part of there outfits. Now I see folks spending good money on those same caps. Anyway, still a regular hat wearer here, and my collection includes two Western Stetsons, two bowlers, a Homburg, two fedoras, a top hat, and a couple flat caps as well as several other hats. Swapping out your hat can change the whole look of your outfit, so they are a useful accessory that Everyman should own.
Those multibillion corporations, like Nike also destroyed the way one used to wear clothes. Make us look cheap as long as they can make their dough. Not with us!
I used to work for a Pharmaceutical company in their facility ops for over a decade. Never had to ever buy any kind of baseball cap. Company would give us free hats as well company jackets. Every time a vendor came to visit or sell us stuff, they gave us free hats. They added up to over three dozen plus hats over years. In going classic I no longer wore them and just got rid of them all. In needing to keep my head warm it’s one reason I’m looking at flatcaps to match my classic mens dress style.
I find wider brimmed hats somewhat underrepresented in this video. A classic fedora for the dressier occasions and an Akubra hat for the more casual, extremely hot applications for example.
I have a 1940s fedora I wear every time I’m in a suit :) I do think the classic types of hats look their best in a suit with classic porportions tho like vintage suits.
*The "Old West" photo @ 11;13 of men in boller hats includes Butch Cassidy (seated right). As well as the Sundance Kid, who I believe is standing behind Butch.
As an Australian I find it incredible that modern men do not still wear hats, this climate is harsh and a brimmed hat provides far better protection from the sun than a baseball cap.
I have and wear six such hats routinely: a Panama in the summer, and five different fur felt fedoras. People (of all ages) regularly stop and compliment them.
Also in the 1950s the young Men wanted to show off their hair styles Tony Curtis and Elvis Presley onward then the 1960s The Beatles and then the Rock Stars of the 1970s with long hair and the Punks of the 1970s and New Romantics big hair 1980s . Albeit we have a resurgence of the Cap with the Peaky Blinders ..good work Ash .
You displayed various different hats there, including the fez. Apart from the late Tommy Cooper, I can't imagine anyone wearing one of those in Britain. I can't even imagine myself ever wanting to wear a flat cap either. As I see it, unless one is a chap pursuing country sport, the wearing of a flat cap denotes a lower class person from a bygone era. I have several Panama / straw fedora or trilby summer hats. These are by far the most easily worn hat without looking out of place. My light blue straw trilby goes great with my sky-blue, unlined, linen jacket. In my opinion, the most stylish hat is the dress fedora. Humphrey Bogart was The Man. I noticed that you didn't have one on display there in the. I have one in both navy and black. The ultimate practical head gear for a bitingly cold winter's day is the Russian hat: the ushanka.
I literally started wearing trilby hats last year because of your video on the hat. I used to associate them with those little small brimmed nonsense numbers from boy band videos mid 00s. Glad I changed my mind.
Very interesting. Living in rural Ireland, I've noticed that most farmers, even the older fellows, have eschewed the traditional flat cap in favour of a baseball hat. The peak does provide shade from the sun and keeps the rain of your face. I suppose it's also a bit cheaper and doesn't need maintenance. Also, with regard to funeral wear, it's not considered very proper for a man to wear a hat at a catholic ceremony, apart from the Groom's topper for a wedding, and even that would be removed in the church. Funerals are the only occasions where I would go bare-headed.
I have 4 Fedoras, 2 Trilby's, several flat caps and a couple of knitted fisherman's hats. I'm more likely to be wearing some form of headdress than not 😀 I do want to get a Panama hat, with a hat band in Royal Marines Corps Colours, should go well with my blazer with the Corps Crest on it.
Ash, I usually wear a black cap or a fedora summertime I wear a Panama. They also keep the sun off your head protecting from skin cancer. You will see in history men on African safari we're a large brim hats or pith helmets . Also in tropical areas they will we're Panama straw hats. I have always wore a hat even since childhood. I like yourself have lost hair on the top of my head but I'm not self-conscious about it I just like wearing a hat. You might Want to do a segment on hat etiquette. I see a lot of people wearing baseball caps while dining. Great video keep up the good work. By the way you look like Gordon of Khartoum with your Fez on. 😉cheers Ron
I know it's a bit of a clashing combo, but when it's super cold I like to wear a thick tweed cap, scarf and a pair of over ear Sennheiser headphones. They keep my ears warm and sound good so I can handle the style hit. It's either that or resort to a beanie or trapper hat. For the summer I love my Panama hats, they keep the sun away from my eyes and can double as a fan when I start getting too hot. If it's raining I use my Burberry check bucket hat. It makes me look like a 90's raver but hey, it keeps me dry and back then I was a raver!
Indeed! I've always loved a premium hat built with impeccable detail My grandfather, father and uncles usually wore Dobbs and looked sharp. Thanks for this video, Ash!
Hi Ash. You’ll remember when you had to wear a helmet whilst on foot patrol and a flat cap whilst driving a marked vehicle and you had to get a dispensation not to wear a cap when doing so.
In the u.s.a , it is my understanding that jfk wouldn't wear a hat. Particularly on his inauguration, and instantly men stopped wearing hats. Movies, t.v. etc, followed suit.
The baseball cap, the ultimate sign that the herd mentality has taken hold. I have one that was sent to me by Hardy's in Alnwick up in Northumberland but I never wear it. For me I am never without one of my Harris Tweed flat caps. I'm a bit older than you but have been fortunate enough to have kept all of my hair (my barber rolls his eyes when I walk through the door). I am well pleased to have finally found a men's channel that I genuinely enjoy.
When I was 5 years old in 1965, my father bought me a coat that came with a trilby hat, every body was wearing a hat, but as time passed people started not to wear hats, the young were the first, people who wore hats were seen as elderly like the actors in the old black and white films, so we started to not use the hats, besides it was very uncomfortable entering the car, you hit the frame coming in or going out. When we returned to England in 1968 for a longer period nobody wore hats any more, just some elderly people in London who wore the bowler hats, lots of people wore the flat cap and we wore the school cap and the Cub Scout cap. Coming from Venezuela were baseball is the national sport, I had a baseball cap which I believe I was the first person to wear in Ascot and its suburbs, maybe the US military in WWII may had baseball caps. I do not wear a baseball cap any more, the last time I went to England in 2012 I bought a baseball cap that was totally a Union Jack pattern.
I think the demise of the hat matches the rise of hair care products inc styling and hygiene products. Once they became available, hair styles changed and became an essential part of sub cultural fashions. Also, the common style of hat depends largely on location. In rural Australia and America, the cowboy styles are most common. Rural uk theres still largely flat caps. Inner city trendy suburbs or precincts will be a larger variety of styles.
Great video. I think one of the reasons for the disappearance of the hat by the 1960s was its direct association with an older generation that was more formal in style and conservative in outlook, and that was still clinging to outdated fashions and hairstyles. Wearing one's hair out long, growing a beard, and foregoing a necktie were all visible acts of rebellion. When I think back to my own dad back in the day, he always wore a trilby and a suit & tie, not a look I ever wanted to emulate. Now, decades later and with a lifetime of experience, I don't mind the disappearance of hats since it makes my own beautiful collection stand out all the more!
Funny how some men can pull off a fedora/trilby much better than others. I'm thinking Brando, Bogart, Sinatra, so stylish. Tell you what, Ash, I'd love to see a video featuring your choices of men who pulled off various hats the best. For example, the ultimate fedora wearer, for me, must be O' Blue Eyes. You can't think of the man without the hat. Buster Keaton and his Pork Pie etc.
Hi Ash, Thanks for the informative video. Why did men stop wearing hats and why don't they wear them now? The Beatles and modern cars! The immense popularity of the Beatles world wide led to men and boys wearing their hair longer and longer starting in the mid 60s. With longer hair and some of the permed styles of the day, a hat wearer would show "hat hair" when the hat was removed. When the hat was on, the long hair would cause "Bozo" (the clown) hair. With short hair more generally popular today, the problem is twofold. Very few places to buy a proper hat locally but, more significantly, modern cars that all have head restraints. Wearing one of my fedoras or a western hat causes the back of the brim to constantly contact the headrest. Also, modern cars have low rooflines that make it difficult to enter or exit without knocking one's hat off. Thus the popularity of baseball caps, especially in the States. I always wear a head covering going out but often it is some type of ball cap or flat cap. I still like wearing my hats though.
I first got into hats when I was presented with my first flat cap a tradition in my family when a boy either comes of age or when they marry into the family. Since then I have come to own a variety of flat caps, bush hats, felt cowboy hats including a very old 10x quality felt cowboy hat made out of pure beaver felt. Various straw cowboy hats and even a Panama hat which I’m wearing right now actually as I type this outside. I wear them all pretty regularly depending on weather and temperatures. I’ll tell you one thing you’ll never catch me working out in a field with a straw cowboy hat on or a bush hat. I even have a black bowler hat I got as a gift from my uncle though I don’t wear it as I have nothing to go with it and it’s a tad to big for me. I will say this flat cap is my go to day to day hat. And of course I have my workhorse cowboy hat which I don’t care if it gets dirty or wet which I use for work. And my dress hats for when I go out. Now I do use baseball caps for work to because I sometimes work in tight areas or the wide brim gets in the way. Also wear leather bush hats when I’m out or working in the sun because they provide good sun and UV protection and the vents keep them quite cool. But most of the time I wear classic hats.
I will throw my hat in the ring (hardy har) and say I love my cowboy hats! I have three: one in leather, one in felt, and one in straw. They are as functional as it gets, and if you can muster the confidence to wear one with pride, you will stand out in a great way, especially outside the western USA. As long as you keep other Western attire items to a minimum, you can mix it in with your more formal attire without looking like you are wearing a costume.
The cowboy hat is a truly iconic and functional hat. Sadly they would look somewhat out of place anywhere other than the Southern USA, but they do look great in that context.
@@TheChapsGuide That does seem to be how most people feel, but I have two thoughts on that. The first is that, as you say in your video, modern men hardly wear classic hats, period. Whether it be a fedora, trilby, flat cap, or yes, a cowboy hat, it will automatically make you stand out. While I certainly would agree that outside North America wearing a cowboy hat would probably be pushing the envelope too far, here the worst case scenario is someone mistakes you being from Texas. As long as you're not also wearing a bolo tie, turquoise cuff links, cowboy boots, and a tasseled jacket, I'd say you'll be fine. Second, even though I live in the Midwestern US where cowboy hats are not common, people love when I wear one! I get a compliment on them almost every single day either at work or while running errands. I can't quite explain why, but it seems like folks respond quote positively to them. I've never caught flak for wearing one, that's for sure. Perhaps an outback style hat would be a good alternative for those where a cowboy hat would be too out of place? I've been looking into getting at least one for such occasions.
Good video. Have just got the summer hats (Panama and an Akubra) out, and put away some of the winter flat caps - though there’s always one in my bag. But I wouldn’t dream of going bare-headed.
I wonder if the trend of fashionable haircuts, say from the 60's onwards, especially with the younger Hollywood stars, like Steve McQueen, Marlon Brando, Elvis, James Dean with their fashionable, influential hairstyles. Edit, Sorry Ash, I pressed send just as you made the point about bouffant hairstyles.
I've wore a hat as long as I can remember. Usually a baseball cap. Therse day I have a cap that not a regular baseball cap, that I wear for everyday, My good hat is a tribbley, Idealyt I'd like a pammana hat for the summer and a couple of flat caps, and fedora. However being blessed with a extremely small noggin, finding regular hats that fit me is next to impossible. Even a small is usually too big for me. As usual, a good video ASH.
The fez is the odd one out. I read somewhere that it was outlawed or banned (?) by Kemal Atatürk during the founding of modern Turkey as it was too closely associated with the Ottomans and everything that was old and stale. If such is the case, its reasons for being absent today (apart from in Dr. Who, Call of Cthulhu and dress parties) are quite different from the ones mentioned here.
Another problem is that in trying to make the car more aerodynamic, the ceiling inside has been lowered so there is no room for a hat. If I want to keep my head warm, I stay with a flat cap which fits, even though I have several nice hats (even a top hat). I turned 18 in 1961, which in the US was the age when you could begin wearing a hat and leave the cap behind. By my 18th birthday, the hat had virtually disappeared. I felt so cheated!
hat are cool , keep you warm , and cool in summer save you time and money don t have to think how your hair look and don t need to put product , and if ride motorcycle or bike and must wear helmet and mess you hair just put a hat on , and will make people remember you i like wearing a trilby or flat cap , and some time army cap or cycling cap when on bike , or army beret and bini in winter and at 47 still got my hair
I bumped into a colleague of mine in London one day and he had a Homburg on to my surprise and actually got away with it. He is tall and runs a very successful business so it suited him. I'm not that tall and not as financially rolling in it so I don't think that I'd suit one. Also, I'd be wary of wearing a Trilby in case it blows off or some moron knocks it off. Saying this, I'm a big fan of a flat cap as it's 100% functional and you can wear it casually and also with something more businesslike. I always feel sad that you never see any bowlers, especially around the City of London. Great video.
I'm a year late to the party, but hey ho. I have a modest collection of hats. I think you missed some things early on when you were discussing protection. Firstly, the hat is protection against bird droppings. And droppings thrown out from windows in earlier years. Second, that protection is not needed so much these days as most people live, work, and travel under cover or indoors. Thirdly, when protection is needed the classic hats have often been bettered by helmets or hard hats. A big downside of hats is that they are bulky. Flat caps, fur hats, and panama hats (and some others) can be be rolled or folded and put in the pocket of your overcoat or jacket or blazer. The others? Not so much. When you move indoors they have to be put somewhere. And these days space is at a premium: storage space costs money.
I must say for a perfect no nonsense watch I love the plain bezel and oyster bracelet on a silver dial on the date just , it transforms the date just into a all occasions watch. But why I prefer it over the explorer and the op is because you get the cyclops eye 👁 which to me says Rolex
How could you put a Fez on your head without mentioning the great Tommy Cooper? Mind you, you can't beat the trilby. I own dozens of hats, yet its the trilby I return to time and again.
Whilst the bowler hat was premier in Britain, in the US Midwest where I grew up it was the fedora. And if you did not tip your hat in politeness, you could touch the edge of the brim with a finger or two. May in the States credit the disappearance of the hat to the inauguration of John F. Kennedy. The custom then was for the outgoing and incoming Presidents to wear top hats and morning coats. Ike was used to a hat from his military days, but Kennedy never put his on. He fiddled with it, turning it this way and that, juggling it around. And I remember men discussing it afterwards. And within two weeks, the hat was disappearing.
I wear a hat or cap because I’m bald on the top. It keeps the sunburn at bay and warms the head in the winter. I feel not completely dressed unless I have at least a ballcap on in the summer. Winter it’s for the most part a flat cap. The ballcap or the flat cap is easily worn in a car. Also most vehicles have a head rest on the seats now and that will definitely hit on the back of a brimmed hat. Not good.
Hi Ash, I think you are a bit mistaken about men discarding hats after the war. I’m a bit older than you and I think I know what really happened because I was there. When I was a train spotter around 72&73 I went up to London a lot. All the commuters wore a suit, bowler, brolly and carried a leather suitcase. It was about this time that the boomer generation started to enter the London workforce in strength and the new guys had never worn hats of any kind. Also the sort of hairstyles they had meant they couldn’t wear hats anyway. This probably made the older men feel anachronistic and they gave up the bowlers. When I joined the railway in 75 the bowlers were all gone. It happened that fast. I think it might be time for a renaissance though. Only today I passed a man in a homburg who acknowledged me as we passed. Clement Attlee used to wear a homburg and pocket square in some of the old photos too.
You said many time that a classic hat has more utility than a baseball cap but didn't really explain how. The examples you had did not have wide enough brims to protect the neck or ears from the sun. The baseball cal has a better brim really than the examples given for shading the eyes. Warmth is certainly on utility but less important in warmer climates. My issue with hats is what you do with them when you take them off. I hate having multiple things to carry around.
Perhaps one more reason for the disappearance of hats is the omnipresence of sunglasses while up till then it was the hat that protected you from the sun.
When I was a very young boy, all of my relatives wore hats, I would never e. g. see my father, my grandfather, my uncles, without a hat. And as I can rightly be accused of ancestor-worshipping I started wearing hats from a very early age as well and never felt out of tune with the rest of mankind. And as a teen, when I saw one of our Scottish friends pull out a deerstalker hat and another one with his panama hat, that was me starting to save the money to buy them myself as well. And for the past 10 or 20 years second hand shops have been quite a source as well, as then people died who actually owned hats - without still wearing them. So that brought in quite a few good-as-new specimen.
I don't believe protection from the sun is of issue. At least in the UK that is - where days with weather pleasant enough to offend the eye are few and far between. I personally attribute it to hats becoming more of a novelty than a necessity as well as a pivot in style to suit more casualwear that favours convenience over appearance. Fashion today is whatever top athletes are wearing that can be adopted into an everyday life. It just so happens that hats aren't worn in many sports (no I am not considering helmets) bar the swimming cap. I welcome the change as I would cherish the day that I see streets filled with men with shiny rubber topped heads although it is a shame to see the hats of my youth fade into obscurity.
This effect can be exemplified by the rise of the baseball cap as mentioned in the video
@@eggdog7715 I think the main reasons are:
- Casualization of the clothing - so that a hat would look out of place.
- Longer hair (in the 1960ies and 1970ies), so that a hat would not look flattering.
- And lastly: the availability of private transport.
The baseball caps: I think they are just an expression of the Americanization of our lives.
But - and that's the good thing about it - nobody forces us to adhere to any of the above - and we are free to wear whatever hat we like. And there are plenty to chose from. :-)
All the best!
Wonderful Tommy Cooper. You look just like him with that fez on.
Hats are my topic. Can't have enough of them and that black and white one is really nice. Cheers.
"Bereft on the follicle front." Ha Ha! Great line.
That's me as well, and it doesn't bother me, but I do wear hats.
I'm 68 years of age, and have been wearing hats since age 14. I would feel exposed without a hat.
And yes, I have a Homberg, a Bowler, three styles of pith helmets, a garrison cap (US Army style), three Fedroas, a Trilby (but don't wear it much), a 1930s steel construction helmet, several different style Panamas, TWO fezzes, and more else that I cannot remember at the moment.
From one chap to another, I frequently wore a variety of hats when I was younger, and now I seldom leave home without one. More often than not, it's a tweed trilby in winter, or a fur hat in very cold weather, and a panama in summer.
It does depend on where I'm going and what I'm doing, and I do have other hats, including a bowler. I wear a hat for practical reasons, but also to go against the trend. As the fashion of the day becomes more informal, I dress more formally.
I went to London last week and you'd see people wearing bowler cap hats which was refreshing for a change.
Baseball caps have their place, outdoor sporting events in warmer weather. However I detest seeing the clowns whom spin them around backwards with the brim pointing at their arse. I totally agree that the classic fedora/trilby needs to make a comeback as it is so practical and dresses you up. If you need to be more casual or are doing physical labor then I reach for the flat-cap.
Keep up the good work, much appreciated.
There are occasions to spin them around, flat caps also, riding a bicycle in a hurry or on a windy day springs to mind.
So much time wasted chasing them down to retrieve them otherwise.
I love your phrase 'the Homburg and the Bowler lie in wait for you'. Very amusing. If anyone can persuade men to wear hats, it's you Ash.
Just for the record, what you describe in this video as a Trilby is actually short brim fedora. Although the two are quite similar, there are some important differences, 1) the brake angle from the crown to brim. 2, the indent at the top. Fedoras have the teardrop shaped indent where trilby's have a straight groove.
Also , the wardrobe of men in the U.S. has become so casual. As always a great video.
I inherited my Grandfather's classic grey Stetson fedora and wore it regularly all thru the 70s and 80s until the interior band rotted away. Ive tried to find a hat repair shop in my area but no luck. Ive tried to find a replacement but Ive never found a hat that fitted as well, looked, or felt as good as Grandaddies old Stetson.
I have many fedoras and late last year I bought a bowler hat and a homburg
Being a "Hat" man is always enjoy finding presentations on the subject. I am always disappointed, however, when the iconic "Akubra" hat company in Australia is overlooked. Being a huge fan of their unique styling I have many (10) in my collection and always receive compliments on them when I wear them. If you have a moment take a look at their videos on these classic styles of town and country hats. The Snowy River, The Cattleman, The Territory, and the Riverina. They are all classic and add a great detail to any sartorial look.
Being a little pedantic, the busby should not be mistaken for the much taller bearskin cap, worn most notably by the five regiments of Foot Guards of the Household Division.
Thank you! I came late to hats in my life. I really recommend Akubra hats. They make a couple of nice Fedoras and an open crown hat called the Campdraft. They’re pretty rugged hats. Incredibly, my standards of dress have increased since wearing hats.
❤️ mine
My first and foremost choice of hat since my late 30s has always been the bowler. Goes great with my moustache, suit, collar & tie. The one I'm currently wearing is an old beat up lightweight fur felt bowler from around the early 1920's, where the damage I feel actually adds character to it.
(Having gotten fed up of being carded for looking underage as late as my mid 30s, for things like junior hacksaws at B&Q, that was when I first grew a moustache. Unfortunately, I was still wearing a bright red baseball cap at the time, along with more casual dress, so everyone went 'It's a-me! Mario!' for a while. Then I gravitated to suits, collars, ties and bowlers for everyday wear as I approached my 40s).
i think thats the best thumbnail i,ve seen all month !! another reason for the lack of hats in recent times is air quality 70-80 yrs ago every house had a coal fire ,industry was belching out smoke a hat would keep the worst of away from your hair which is probably why you don't see as many women in headscarfs as you would in the past
Great video Ash, I totally agree ~ a man should wear a nice hat. I see a gentleman dressed nicely in a suit, but without a hat, and to me he just seems to be missing the finishing touch. I have a collection built up over the years - fedoras, bowlers, homburgs, boaters, a top hat, flatcaps and berets. Now I never leave the house without a nice hat, chosen carefully for my outfit at the time. The couple of times that I have forgotten one, I have felt like something was missing and been quite upset with myself.
It's like a roof over your head... don't leave home with out...right?
Great video! Wide brimmed hats are a must for summer in New Zealand -- I've got a nice Panama hat for the beach. I'm thinking about investing in a Borsalino or Stetson for the winter months
Sounds great!
May I suggest an Antonio Guerra instead of Borsalino. They're made in the same general area, so similar quality. Being the owner of both, i find the Guerra much more comfortable. You might also check out Panizza, a very comfortable range of hats. Cheerio!
@@vincenzocherubini2424 Thanks for the suggestions!
I read somewherethat the bowler hat was originally designed as protective head gear for use while riding on horseback. That might account for their popularity in the old West
Solid vid.
Love meh hats
The trilby hat is sharp but not all chaps can pull off the look, But that's the joy of hats. Personally I'm a flat cap chap. Another excellent video. Well done Squire 👍
Just bought a flat cap yesterday. Been loving wearing it. I feel like a proper gentleman now.
Rock that hat sir!!
The rise of modern corporations since the 1960 and sports franchises have all been responsible for the decline and change of what used to be classic style and hat wear include the rise of baseball caps. These corporations have casualized dress wear in every sense and so much so that people don’t know how to dress and all thru life they still don’t know. This has very much affected classic hat wearing as well. It’s up to us all to intentionally in our dress wear to help reverse some of what trends have brought us.
In my 20s, I wore vintage fedoras that were given to me by elderly men I knew who didn't wear them anymore. In my 30s, I wore mostly baseball caps but in my 40s, I now wear Trilbys (and sometimes a flat cap), which are a bit less flashy than a fedora but a good alternative to the casual baseball cap.
I personally just think all the other hats look nicer than the baseball cap. The only other hat I see here in the USA are cowboy hats by certain people sometimes. I wanted to try and get a Greek Fisherman, Elbsegler, or a Maciejowka hat from the designs. I do worry a bit if some of them are appropriate to wear, but the majority of time people don’t wear hats at all so It could only be a step up or can be removed easily later. I think some people would like to wear more different hats, but also things like names of hat types and where to buy them could be a barrier for some.
For the last half hour or so, you have preaching to the converted. As a child I would often be found wearing one of my aunt’s hats with a huge feather as it was the nearest I could get to a cavalier’s. Now I own a few hats of my own. Several trilbies one fawn cowboy hat bought in California, and a number of flat caps, including herringbone tweeds and tartan (including a Welsh Jones tartan for family reasons - I hesitate to say entitlement because that would question my right to wear other tartans). I mostly wear the caps. I do have a few baseball caps but only wear them indoors on top of headphones, to stop them falling off my head.
Grief I have just seen that this is two years old. Sorry I am still catching up.
Hello Ash, another great video and subject, enjoyed watching. As an owner of several hats, I fully agree with you, the trilby is a great and versatile choice, specially here in windy Scandinavia. Maybe there could be a short video on how to wear your hat, dos and don’ts. Please keep up your good work…..and as usual, best regards from Sweden
Thank you. I am a hat lover, owning several different types. As it happens, I do put on my smoking jacket and fez to enjoy a pipe or quality cigar... then again, I do run a comedy chat group where I do it. It has become a bit of a brand for that purpose. But most of the time, I prefer a trilby or fedora for outdoors.
I recently got myself a wool flat cap. It's great. I really like it.
Great to hear!
Since first watching this, I have ditched my baseball caps for 3 x Tweed flat caps. Much smarter & more practical. Thank you Ash.
Great to hear!
As you may infer from my photo, hats have been an important part of my life from the cradle. I've worn various types over the years, but Western hats almost exclusively since retiring from the Navy and establishing residence in Colorado. You covered all the bases in the video - the practicality, utility, and style, and the presence and tone a hat conveys. And you know the difference between a Trilby and a fedora!
If you want to get ahead, get a hat. Love wearing my (vintage) German Trilby, it's unlined and vented, but more than warm enough. I do get the occasional look, but when I'm wearing my hat I'm dressed appropriately and looking a heck of a lot better than them (especially if they are dressed like a 5-year old lol). Flat caps, being Northern I own and wear a few - pretty much essential in winter.
Excellent.....greetings from ny...yes i am a hat wearer for over 60 years....now that we are entering the spring and summer seasons i will be wearing my panamas ..light weight news boys..sun visers....how many panamas do i own..my friend i could open my own mini bates...smile..each point you mentioned was on target....yes i have been a subscriber to your channel and you do outstanding work...i will be interested on your take on summer suits...here in the states too many men wear clothes that are too dark..lighten up!!!!! Have fun..... gentlemen!!!!! Enjoy the rest of the weekend...peace...spring is almost here....
Growing up on the farm here in the U.S.,hats were important for us to wear while we were working, whether a straw in the summer or a toque in the winter. One thing I did notice is the summer straw slowly disappeared as every feed, seed and petroleum company started giving out baseball caps. Why buy a new straw when you were just given a new baseball cap, which is why now people think of farmers here is wearing baseball caps as part of there outfits. Now I see folks spending good money on those same caps. Anyway, still a regular hat wearer here, and my collection includes two Western Stetsons, two bowlers, a Homburg, two fedoras, a top hat, and a couple flat caps as well as several other hats. Swapping out your hat can change the whole look of your outfit, so they are a useful accessory that Everyman should own.
Those multibillion corporations, like Nike also destroyed the way one used to wear clothes. Make us look cheap as long as they can make their dough. Not with us!
I used to work for a Pharmaceutical company in their facility ops for over a decade. Never had to ever buy any kind of baseball cap. Company would give us free hats as well company jackets. Every time a vendor came to visit or sell us stuff, they gave us free hats. They added up to over three dozen plus hats over years. In going classic I no longer wore them and just got rid of them all. In needing to keep my head warm it’s one reason I’m looking at flatcaps to match my classic mens dress style.
🎉 Congrats on being from the US and knowing the correct name for toque (or tuque), that's amazing! 🎉
I find wider brimmed hats somewhat underrepresented in this video. A classic fedora for the dressier occasions and an Akubra hat for the more casual, extremely hot applications for example.
I have a 1940s fedora I wear every time I’m in a suit :) I do think the classic types of hats look their best in a suit with classic porportions tho like vintage suits.
*The "Old West" photo @ 11;13 of men in boller hats includes Butch Cassidy (seated right). As well as the Sundance Kid, who I believe is standing behind Butch.
As an Australian I find it incredible that modern men do not still wear hats, this climate is harsh and a brimmed hat provides far better protection from the sun than a baseball cap.
You look damn good in that black and white Homburg, even if I do say so myself!😉
The pride of the fleet sir. Such a charismatic hat!!!
I have a leather black flat cap that I’ve had for half a decade. While they have no height, it does have a sharp, “square-toed” profile to it.
I have and wear six such hats routinely: a Panama in the summer, and five different fur felt fedoras. People (of all ages) regularly stop and compliment them.
Also in the 1950s the young Men wanted to show off their hair styles Tony Curtis and Elvis Presley onward then the 1960s The Beatles and then the Rock Stars of the 1970s with long hair and the Punks of the 1970s and New Romantics big hair 1980s . Albeit we have a resurgence of the Cap with the Peaky Blinders ..good work Ash .
You displayed various different hats there, including the fez. Apart from the late Tommy Cooper, I can't imagine anyone wearing one of those in Britain.
I can't even imagine myself ever wanting to wear a flat cap either. As I see it, unless one is a chap pursuing country sport, the wearing of a flat cap denotes a lower class person from a bygone era.
I have several Panama / straw fedora or trilby summer hats. These are by far the most easily worn hat without looking out of place. My light blue straw trilby goes great with my sky-blue, unlined, linen jacket.
In my opinion, the most stylish hat is the dress fedora. Humphrey Bogart was The Man. I noticed that you didn't have one on display there in the. I have one in both navy and black.
The ultimate practical head gear for a bitingly cold winter's day is the Russian hat: the ushanka.
I literally started wearing trilby hats last year because of your video on the hat. I used to associate them with those little small brimmed nonsense numbers from boy band videos mid 00s. Glad I changed my mind.
Outstanding sir!
Very interesting. Living in rural Ireland, I've noticed that most farmers, even the older fellows, have eschewed the traditional flat cap in favour of a baseball hat. The peak does provide shade from the sun and keeps the rain of your face. I suppose it's also a bit cheaper and doesn't need maintenance. Also, with regard to funeral wear, it's not considered very proper for a man to wear a hat at a catholic ceremony, apart from the Groom's topper for a wedding, and even that would be removed in the church. Funerals are the only occasions where I would go bare-headed.
Baseball cap is part of my uniform for trucking but I wear my dirby top hat and flat cap I wear with my suits
I have 4 Fedoras, 2 Trilby's, several flat caps and a couple of knitted fisherman's hats. I'm more likely to be wearing some form of headdress than not 😀
I do want to get a Panama hat, with a hat band in Royal Marines Corps Colours, should go well with my blazer with the Corps Crest on it.
Ash, I usually wear a black cap or a fedora summertime I wear a Panama. They also keep the sun off your head protecting from skin cancer. You will see in history men on African safari we're a large brim hats or pith helmets . Also in tropical areas they will we're Panama straw hats. I have always wore a hat even since childhood. I like yourself have lost hair on the top of my head but I'm not self-conscious about it I just like wearing a hat. You might Want to do a segment on hat etiquette. I see a lot of people wearing baseball caps while dining. Great video keep up the good work. By the way you look like Gordon of Khartoum with your Fez on. 😉cheers Ron
Are you a member of Dapperly Dressed youtube group? Your a dapper dresser and you should
my liking of hats, seems to have a direct collocation with my hair loss
Yep me too haha 🙂
I know it's a bit of a clashing combo, but when it's super cold I like to wear a thick tweed cap, scarf and a pair of over ear Sennheiser headphones. They keep my ears warm and sound good so I can handle the style hit. It's either that or resort to a beanie or trapper hat. For the summer I love my Panama hats, they keep the sun away from my eyes and can double as a fan when I start getting too hot. If it's raining I use my Burberry check bucket hat. It makes me look like a 90's raver but hey, it keeps me dry and back then I was a raver!
And still does.
Indeed! I've always loved a premium hat built with impeccable detail My grandfather, father and uncles usually wore Dobbs and looked sharp. Thanks for this video, Ash!
Hi Ash. You’ll remember when you had to wear a helmet whilst on foot patrol and a flat cap whilst driving a marked vehicle and you had to get a dispensation not to wear a cap when doing so.
In the u.s.a , it is my understanding that jfk wouldn't wear a hat. Particularly on his inauguration, and instantly men stopped wearing hats. Movies, t.v. etc, followed suit.
The baseball cap, the ultimate sign that the herd mentality has taken hold. I have one that was sent to me by Hardy's in Alnwick up in Northumberland but I never wear it. For me I am never without one of my Harris Tweed flat caps. I'm a bit older than you but have been fortunate enough to have kept all of my hair (my barber rolls his eyes when I walk through the door). I am well pleased to have finally found a men's channel that I genuinely enjoy.
When I was 5 years old in 1965, my father bought me a coat that came with a trilby hat, every body was wearing a hat, but as time passed people started not to wear hats, the young were the first, people who wore hats were seen as elderly like the actors in the old black and white films, so we started to not use the hats, besides it was very uncomfortable entering the car, you hit the frame coming in or going out. When we returned to England in 1968 for a longer period nobody wore hats any more, just some elderly people in London who wore the bowler hats, lots of people wore the flat cap and we wore the school cap and the Cub Scout cap. Coming from Venezuela were baseball is the national sport, I had a baseball cap which I believe I was the first person to wear in Ascot and its suburbs, maybe the US military in WWII may had baseball caps. I do not wear a baseball cap any more, the last time I went to England in 2012 I bought a baseball cap that was totally a Union Jack pattern.
I think the demise of the hat matches the rise of hair care products inc styling and hygiene products.
Once they became available, hair styles changed and became an essential part of sub cultural fashions.
Also, the common style of hat depends largely on location. In rural Australia and America, the cowboy styles are most common. Rural uk theres still largely flat caps. Inner city trendy suburbs or precincts will be a larger variety of styles.
Selecting a hat other than a baseball cap or knitted beanie becomes more difficult when your outdoor coat is Hi-Viz workwear.
Just found this site..and I am hooked. I love it 😊
Welcome aboard!
I doff my hat to you sir. Glad to have found your channel.
Welcome aboard!
Great video!
17:47 - Gold
Thank you for the advice yes I will start wearing proper hats for utility no more baseball caps for me
Great video. I think one of the reasons for the disappearance of the hat by the 1960s was its direct association with an older generation that was more formal in style and conservative in outlook, and that was still clinging to outdated fashions and hairstyles. Wearing one's hair out long, growing a beard, and foregoing a necktie were all visible acts of rebellion. When I think back to my own dad back in the day, he always wore a trilby and a suit & tie, not a look I ever wanted to emulate. Now, decades later and with a lifetime of experience, I don't mind the disappearance of hats since it makes my own beautiful collection stand out all the more!
For this amazing study on the subject of hats you should be awarded a doctorate. Dr. Ash. PHD. Well done sir!
Glad you liked it!
Funny how some men can pull off a fedora/trilby much better than others. I'm thinking Brando, Bogart, Sinatra, so stylish. Tell you what, Ash, I'd love to see a video featuring your choices of men who pulled off various hats the best. For example, the ultimate fedora wearer, for me, must be O' Blue Eyes. You can't think of the man without the hat. Buster Keaton and his Pork Pie etc.
Hi Ash, Thanks for the informative video. Why did men stop wearing hats and why don't they wear them now? The Beatles and modern cars! The immense popularity of the Beatles world wide led to men and boys wearing their hair longer and longer starting in the mid 60s. With longer hair and some of the permed styles of the day, a hat wearer would show "hat hair" when the hat was removed. When the hat was on, the long hair would cause "Bozo" (the clown) hair. With short hair more generally popular today, the problem is twofold. Very few places to buy a proper hat locally but, more significantly, modern cars that all have head restraints. Wearing one of my fedoras or a western hat causes the back of the brim to constantly contact the headrest. Also, modern cars have low rooflines that make it difficult to enter or exit without knocking one's hat off. Thus the popularity of baseball caps, especially in the States. I always wear a head covering going out but often it is some type of ball cap or flat cap. I still like wearing my hats though.
Great video. Love my hats.
I love the pattern and color on that flat cap. I'd buy one quick if I could find one.
I love a good hat. I feels a bit strange to wear them but I can't help myself. Beaver is the best! Borsellino is wonderful!
Thank you Sir ✋🏻🎩
I first got into hats when I was presented with my first flat cap a tradition in my family when a boy either comes of age or when they marry into the family.
Since then I have come to own a variety of flat caps, bush hats, felt cowboy hats including a very old 10x quality felt cowboy hat made out of pure beaver felt. Various straw cowboy hats and even a Panama hat which I’m wearing right now actually as I type this outside.
I wear them all pretty regularly depending on weather and temperatures.
I’ll tell you one thing you’ll never catch me working out in a field with a straw cowboy hat on or a bush hat.
I even have a black bowler hat I got as a gift from my uncle though I don’t wear it as I have nothing to go with it and it’s a tad to big for me.
I will say this flat cap is my go to day to day hat.
And of course I have my workhorse cowboy hat which I don’t care if it gets dirty or wet which I use for work.
And my dress hats for when I go out.
Now I do use baseball caps for work to because I sometimes work in tight areas or the wide brim gets in the way.
Also wear leather bush hats when I’m out or working in the sun because they provide good sun and UV protection and the vents keep them quite cool.
But most of the time I wear classic hats.
A true hat connoisseur and a very practical collection indeed. Thanks for sharing
I will throw my hat in the ring (hardy har) and say I love my cowboy hats! I have three: one in leather, one in felt, and one in straw. They are as functional as it gets, and if you can muster the confidence to wear one with pride, you will stand out in a great way, especially outside the western USA. As long as you keep other Western attire items to a minimum, you can mix it in with your more formal attire without looking like you are wearing a costume.
The cowboy hat is a truly iconic and functional hat. Sadly they would look somewhat out of place anywhere other than the Southern USA, but they do look great in that context.
@@TheChapsGuide That does seem to be how most people feel, but I have two thoughts on that.
The first is that, as you say in your video, modern men hardly wear classic hats, period. Whether it be a fedora, trilby, flat cap, or yes, a cowboy hat, it will automatically make you stand out. While I certainly would agree that outside North America wearing a cowboy hat would probably be pushing the envelope too far, here the worst case scenario is someone mistakes you being from Texas. As long as you're not also wearing a bolo tie, turquoise cuff links, cowboy boots, and a tasseled jacket, I'd say you'll be fine.
Second, even though I live in the Midwestern US where cowboy hats are not common, people love when I wear one! I get a compliment on them almost every single day either at work or while running errands. I can't quite explain why, but it seems like folks respond quote positively to them. I've never caught flak for wearing one, that's for sure.
Perhaps an outback style hat would be a good alternative for those where a cowboy hat would be too out of place? I've been looking into getting at least one for such occasions.
Red cap with Tail is fit for Jokers.
Well argued .
Good video. Have just got the summer hats (Panama and an Akubra) out, and put away some of the winter flat caps - though there’s always one in my bag. But I wouldn’t dream of going bare-headed.
Sounds great!
I wonder if the trend of fashionable haircuts, say from the 60's onwards, especially with the younger Hollywood stars, like Steve McQueen, Marlon Brando, Elvis, James Dean with their fashionable, influential hairstyles.
Edit, Sorry Ash, I pressed send just as you made the point about bouffant hairstyles.
I've wore a hat as long as I can remember.
Usually a baseball cap.
Therse day I have a cap that not a regular baseball cap, that I wear for everyday, My good hat is a tribbley, Idealyt I'd like a pammana hat for the summer and a couple of flat caps, and fedora.
However being blessed with a extremely small noggin, finding regular hats that fit me is next to impossible. Even a small is usually too big for me. As usual, a good video ASH.
At 11:17 the guy in the bottom right looks so much like Kurt Russel from Tombstone
The fez is the odd one out. I read somewhere that it was outlawed or banned (?) by Kemal Atatürk during the founding of modern Turkey as it was too closely associated with the Ottomans and everything that was old and stale. If such is the case, its reasons for being absent today (apart from in Dr. Who, Call of Cthulhu and dress parties) are quite different from the ones mentioned here.
Another problem is that in trying to make the car more aerodynamic, the ceiling inside has been lowered so there is no room for a hat. If I want to keep my head warm, I stay with a flat cap which fits, even though I have several nice hats (even a top hat).
I turned 18 in 1961, which in the US was the age when you could begin wearing a hat and leave the cap behind. By my 18th birthday, the hat had virtually disappeared. I felt so cheated!
Well Chap, the baseball cap seems to have found it’s way into Cricket. The horror. THE HORROR !
The widespread adoption of a parka with a hood had something to do with it for winter hats.
hat are cool , keep you warm , and cool in summer save you time and money don t have to think how your hair look and don t need to put product , and if ride motorcycle or bike and must wear helmet and mess you hair just put a hat on , and will make people remember you i like wearing a trilby or flat cap , and some time army cap or cycling cap when on bike , or army beret and bini in winter and at 47 still got my hair
You should've gone for the black fez
Nice collection of hats, sir.
Thanks!
Thank you for the support sir.
I bumped into a colleague of mine in London one day and he had a Homburg on to my surprise and actually got away with it. He is tall and runs a very successful business so it suited him. I'm not that tall and not as financially rolling in it so I don't think that I'd suit one. Also, I'd be wary of wearing a Trilby in case it blows off or some moron knocks it off.
Saying this, I'm a big fan of a flat cap as it's 100% functional and you can wear it casually and also with something more businesslike.
I always feel sad that you never see any bowlers, especially around the City of London.
Great video.
I'm a year late to the party, but hey ho. I have a modest collection of hats.
I think you missed some things early on when you were discussing protection. Firstly, the hat is protection against bird droppings. And droppings thrown out from windows in earlier years. Second, that protection is not needed so much these days as most people live, work, and travel under cover or indoors. Thirdly, when protection is needed the classic hats have often been bettered by helmets or hard hats.
A big downside of hats is that they are bulky. Flat caps, fur hats, and panama hats (and some others) can be be rolled or folded and put in the pocket of your overcoat or jacket or blazer. The others? Not so much. When you move indoors they have to be put somewhere. And these days space is at a premium: storage space costs money.
I must say for a perfect no nonsense watch I love the plain bezel and oyster bracelet on a silver dial on the date just , it transforms the date just into a all occasions watch. But why I prefer it over the explorer and the op is because you get the cyclops eye 👁 which to me says Rolex
Sovereign citizens have hats like the red one. Thanks for another great, video!
Thanks for watching!
How could you put a Fez on your head without mentioning the great Tommy Cooper? Mind you, you can't beat the trilby. I own dozens of hats, yet its the trilby I return to time and again.
Beautiful suit sir
How I loathe baseball caps.
Sadly, the clothing store I work in only sells baseball hats, canadian style tuques and rain hats (that are bloody hideous.)
Whilst the bowler hat was premier in Britain, in the US Midwest where I grew up it was the fedora. And if you did not tip your hat in politeness, you could touch the edge of the brim with a finger or two.
May in the States credit the disappearance of the hat to the inauguration of John F. Kennedy. The custom then was for the outgoing and incoming Presidents to wear top hats and morning coats. Ike was used to a hat from his military days, but Kennedy never put his on. He fiddled with it, turning it this way and that, juggling it around. And I remember men discussing it afterwards. And within two weeks, the hat was disappearing.
I wear a hat or cap because I’m bald on the top. It keeps the sunburn at bay and warms the head in the winter. I feel not completely dressed unless I have at least a ballcap on in the summer. Winter it’s for the most part a flat cap. The ballcap or the flat cap is easily worn in a car. Also most vehicles have a head rest on the seats now and that will definitely hit on the back of a brimmed hat. Not good.
Hi Ash, I think you are a bit mistaken about men discarding hats after the war. I’m a bit older than you and I think I know what really happened because I was there. When I was a train spotter around 72&73 I went up to London a lot. All the commuters wore a suit, bowler, brolly and carried a leather suitcase. It was about this time that the boomer generation started to enter the London workforce in strength and the new guys had never worn hats of any kind. Also the sort of hairstyles they had meant they couldn’t wear hats anyway. This probably made the older men feel anachronistic and they gave up the bowlers. When I joined the railway in 75 the bowlers were all gone. It happened that fast. I think it might be time for a renaissance though. Only today I passed a man in a homburg who acknowledged me as we passed. Clement Attlee used to wear a homburg and pocket square in some of the old photos too.
I hope that you are right sir.
You said many time that a classic hat has more utility than a baseball cap but didn't really explain how.
The examples you had did not have wide enough brims to protect the neck or ears from the sun.
The baseball cal has a better brim really than the examples given for shading the eyes.
Warmth is certainly on utility but less important in warmer climates.
My issue with hats is what you do with them when you take them off.
I hate having multiple things to carry around.