The Golden Age of hat was in the 1960s. Back in those days, hat used to be a real gentleman’s attribute. Nearly as much as a tie, suit and shoes. And although it is even more often replaced by the omnipresent baseball cap, a true gentleman will wear a hat with pride on his head held up high. And not exclusively to horse races. Since hats are remarkable accessories. They are uniquely accurate at emphasizing the style of a brave and confident man.
Hats were initially worn mainly by men, out of strictly practical reason – as a protection from rain, cold, dust and sun. With time hats began to decorate beautiful female heads as well. Their owners did whatever they could to outdo one another in terms of ideas for ornaments, and decorative brims have become an emphasis of ladies who wore them. In the 1920s their shine wore off, mostly due to the rapidly developing means of transport. It may be difficult to imagine a lady wearing a wide brim hat inside an automobile. Heavily decorated hats were then replaced by much simpler ones that reminded of helmets, a huge propagator of which was Coco Chanel.
The Second World War has become a temporary boom period for hats, but they never recovered their former glory. Although hats are currently ‘in’, they are not as important an item as they were in the days when in Paris – the then capital of fashion – there were no cars.
Top hat
Top hat is arguably the most formal kind of hat. According to its history, it was designed and worn for the first time by a London hatter John Hetherington in 1797. And although it resulted in a fine and stirred huge controversy among pedestrians, top hat as such became one of the most popular hats. It is worn by men even to this day. A silk top hat can accurately emphasize the elegance of gentleman’s attire, especially during official events, such as weddings. In cases, when gentleman’s haircut prevents from putting a top hat on, it is acceptable to hold it in hands. A true gentleman, for special occasions, wears this type of hat also with his morning dress. Prince Charles is the finest example of this custom.
Bowler hat
Bowler hat may initially seem to be a very little elegant type of hat.
It is not helped by the fact that it was designed, according to William Cole’s instructions, in order to make a hat for foresters, that would not constantly be toppled over by low hanging tree branches.
Despite all of this, bowler hats managed to maintain their position in menswear, and even received an American name – a derby hat. In the 1950s and 1960s it has been an attribute of stock brokers and bankers. Bowler hat has also been praised by cinema, by making it one of the of the main motifs in a series ‘the Avengers”. Role of a secret agent John Steed was played by Patrick McNee, always wearing a bowler hat. And although bowler hats are considered to be somewhat eccentric, it is being worn to this day in London by the officers of the Queen’s Guard.
Panama hat
Cradle of the panama hat is Ecuador. It is plated from toquilla palms, and its original models are equipped with the so-called optima crown, which means that the top part is shaped in a way enabling to roll the hat. The hat can, therefore, be simply rolled and put in a pocket. Its elastic fibers cannot be harmed even by such an aggressive treatment. It has earned its name thanks to the American workers and engineers, who protected themselves from sun wearing it during the construction of the Panama Canal. The lightweight, comfortable hat has earned recognition amongst the people of Northern America, and quickly became a traditional summer headwear for men.
Today its presence is visible all around the world. It is considered to be a symbol of arrogance and excitement, which surely only helps it to gain even greater popularity.
What will we see on the celebrities’ heads?
Woody Allen wears soft, rain hats even for a sunny weather (those can be bought at the Brooks Brothers, New York). Hats have been also made popular by Alain Delon, Fred Astaire, Picasso and Frank Sinatra. An admirable collection has also been owned by Winston Churchill, who was recognized as a connoisseur of headwear for men. Hollywood starts, especially in gangster films, especially favor Borsolino hats. Nonchalantly drawn over forehead, they were supposed to render characters more mysterious.
Soft, tweed hats are currently the most popular. Together with a tweed jacket, suit or a coat it is mostly preferred by intellectuals, scientists and everybody who values comfort. It is also perfect for autumn walks.
However, it is difficult not to observe, that the trend for wearing hats is slowly vanishing. And this is a big mistake. Hats are perfect for putting emphasis on the character and style of their owners. Regardless of season. In summer lightweight, straw hats and classic “panamas” seem to be the most fit. Brims, regardless of weather, protect either from sun or cold, and will surely make their owners stand out from the crowd. One, however, has to note that it is not advisable to wear hats in residential spaces.
Which to choose?
While choosing a hat it is not only important to suit it to the shape of face, but of the whole body. It is not advisable for delicate people to be overwhelmed by massive brims, as well as the well-built should avoid tiny hats. A rule of thumb is that the brim should not exceed shoulder lines. Ladies are ought to tie their hair when wearing wide brim hats, and teased hair usually go well together with derby hats or toques.
In case of men, it is practical to have short trimmed haircuts to fit their hats. In order for a hat to look best, forehead should be completely exposed. Many followers of hat trends seem to claim, that the sight of hats is much more acceptable on the streets than of naked hair. Hats are best measured. It is also good to look in the mirror from the side, because as Christian Dior used to say, “the profile is what really matters”.
The demanding lovers of headwear can also have their hats made for measure. Traditionally the measure is taken with the conformateur – a device used to determine head’s shape, later transferred to the cardboard. It is only in accordance to such a thoroughly designed pattern that the hat’s parts are later cut.