How Do I Hat? (Flat Cap Edition)

February 15, 2018 7:14 AM

I recently got a hat, similar in style to this one. Help me wear it without looking like a goofus?

Literally my question is: how do I wear this hat? I see people in similar hats pretty frequently, but I can't figure out what sorts of outfits to wear it with. What kind of jacket or coat would it go with? How does one do this with confidence and (hopefully) grace? I like the hat, but I'm kind of... scared of it? Am I being insecure and weird about this? I'm really bad at, like, clothes. Pls halp.

(if it is helpful: please assume nonbinary clothing/presentation)

posted by halation to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (18 answers total)

Best answer: I think you're being insecure about it. In the most classic application of the flat cap, pair with winter, cool/cold weather clothing (knit sweaters, for example), preferably with a coat made out of wool. Match with a scarf with similar darker colors. Synthetics, sleek jackets won't match it (at least not in the classic style).
posted by Karaage at 7:25 AM on February 15, 2018 [4 favorites]

Best answer: It's classic! You can wear it with pretty much anything (I'm trying to think of what not to wear it with and can only think of ridiculous examples- a Speedo at the beach! A sequin tuxedo on Broadway! A wetsuit under the sea!)
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 7:30 AM on February 15, 2018 [5 favorites]

Best answer: I wear a hat like this every day (well, when it's cold). You can relax. Don't overthink it.

That said, hats are functional garments. As long as it's cold, you can wear it with a big, warm coat, a leather jacket, a fuzzy sportcoat, or even a chunky sweater, and you'll be fine. Take it off inside.
posted by SansPoint at 7:42 AM on February 15, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Number one rule of wearing a hat is just to commit to it without second-guessing yourself. Just follow whatever rules you'd normally follow for coordinating colours, and you're all set.

(I mean, there are obviously exceptions, like baseball caps aren't appropriate business attire no matter what balding middle-aged CEOs want us to think, but flat caps in particular scale very well from a last-minute head covering for a casual stroll to almost everything short of like black tie.)
posted by tobascodagama at 7:44 AM on February 15, 2018 [7 favorites]

Best answer: I'd say tobascodagama has it. I moved to wearing a similar cap in cold weather when my hair loss (yay, genetics and grad school / postdoc) got to the point that there wasn't much up top. Don't overthink it, although you may find that there's a temperature maximum where it's comfortable if you're walking around (for me, with a similar hat, it's about 40F; any warmer, and I can expect to sweat into it).
posted by Making You Bored For Science at 7:50 AM on February 15, 2018

Best answer: Yes with everyone who's saying just sort of go for it. The only thing I'd maybe say is that it would make more sense to me with more natural fibers? Wool sweater, wool jacket, rather than technical stretchy athletic fabrics? That seems super obvious to me, but I can't think of anything else that'd be an issue at all.
posted by LizardBreath at 7:51 AM on February 15, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Maybe this is culturally specific, but most older male members of my extended family frequently sport similar headgear. They'd typically be matching it with wellies, waxed cotton jacket, a checked flannel shirt, maybe some corduroy. More poacher than country gent, perhaps, in my family's case - but they're all originally coming from somewhere similar, sartorially speaking.

So I'd say maybe avoid either of those looks, unless you're doing it deliberately. Other than that, the world's your lobster (although he wore a different hat).
posted by rd45 at 7:58 AM on February 15, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: They also make lighter-weight/breathable flat caps for the spring and summer. I bought a nice tan one a couple of years ago on sale, and it's good for keeping the sun and rain off my head without being "too much hat" for casual or business wear.
posted by Strange Interlude at 8:09 AM on February 15, 2018 [2 favorites]

Best answer: Yes, linen flat caps are pretty easy to find and should be more than suitable for summer weather.
posted by tobascodagama at 8:10 AM on February 15, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Hello, I live in The Westcountry in the UK and caps like this are still very much a la mode, here are The Rules:

- Wear your hat at all times outdoors during the winter

- Wear your hat outdoors in other seasons if it is sunny (the peak keeps the sun off your eyes), rainy (keep your noggin dry), or cool (keep the warmth in)

- If it is very windy, wear your cap anyway because you are committed, even though it will occasionally blow away, you must accept people laughing about this, it is part of the arrangement

- Do not wear your hat indoors unless you are a musician or beat poet who is currently performing
posted by greenish at 8:46 AM on February 15, 2018 [12 favorites]

Best answer: (There's some gray area with the "indoors" thing with certain public spaces like lobbies or places where you're just there to stand in line for a specific thing and then leave. Swapping a hat on and off every time you duck inside a Starbucks or whatever is distracting and therefore somewhat tacky. My general rule is that I take off my hat if I'm staying in one place for more than a minute or two.)
posted by tobascodagama at 9:03 AM on February 15, 2018

Best answer: I got a flat hat a couple of years ago for Christmas and eventually wrote a blog post on what I learned about current men's hat etiquette.

The tl;dr version is that the never wear a hat indoors rule seems to be looser these days, and the dividing line is more public vs. private spaces, and is the hat being worn for utilitarian reasons, or is it a fashion item. YMMV, and the previous discussion of hat etiquette here got pretty rambunctious. People have strong feelings about hats.
posted by COD at 9:29 AM on February 15, 2018

Best answer: About the only time I feel comfortable wearing a hat indoors is if I'm shopping, and even then 9 out of 10 times I'll drop my hat in the cart/basket or just leave it in my car.
posted by Strange Interlude at 10:54 AM on February 15, 2018

Best answer: I wear this hat backwards with the non-brim side in front.
posted by bendy at 12:34 AM on February 16, 2018

Response by poster: I'M DOING IT
I'M WEARING THE HAT
a small child on the street did make fun of me, but otherwise, things are going very well, and I'm tempted to start thinking about a lighter-weight linen version for summer. Thanks!
posted by halation at 11:04 AM on February 16, 2018 [22 favorites]

Best answer: Chiming in that I own a similar linen hat also from Goorin, it's excellent for summer and looks more adult than a baseball cap - though the shorter brim isn't quite as good for shading your eyes.
posted by a halcyon day at 12:53 PM on February 16, 2018 [1 favorite]

the never wear a hat indoors rule

doesn't seem to apply at all here in Finland. I was taken aback when I first moved here but quickly learnt that huge halls will never get warm enough and keeping the top of your head warm is of first importance.
posted by infini at 9:42 AM on February 20, 2018

Best answer: I don't know if this is at all your thing stylistically, but there's a distinct tradition of wearing such headgear inside hard mod/early skinhead.

You could pair a hat like that with great profit with a Crombie, narrow trousers, and monkey boots or brogues — potentially a dapper AF look wherever one happens to lie on the gender-presentation spectrum. Or, hell, even with an MA-1. See this.
posted by adamgreenfield at 4:44 AM on March 22, 2018 [2 favorites]