9 Classic Hat Style For Men - Why To Wear Mens Hats - How To Buy Men's Headwear
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Hey guys, Antonio here.
I'm the founder of Real Men Real Style.
Today, I'm going to be talking about classic men's hats.
Now, a lot of you guys have been asking me for this for a long time, for years, and I
had an opportunity recently.
I was contacted by a woman named Satya Twena.
She's out in New York City, and I really admire her story.
Her and a cousin went in and they took over an old hat factory in New York that was basically
going under.
They laid off all the employees and they used crowd funding to raise money in order to buy
back the factory, rehire everyone, and they really want to bring back hats, so I thought
this was a great reason, a great example, a great time for me to step in and say, "What
can I do to help?"
One thing I think I can do is introduce my audience to hats.
We're going to talk quickly about the "why".
We're going to talk what to look for, five things to look for when you're out there buying
a hat, and I'm going to go over nine styles today.
Now, I'm not going to talk about unshaped hats like watch caps like ushankas, no.
This is about hats that are quite a bit more stylish, something that maybe your grandfather
would've worn, and I think you could still wear in the right situation.
Let's go ahead and really quickly -- I want to talk about three reasons why you should
even consider wearing a classic men's hat.
Number one is they're actually pretty functional.
So if you go back and you think about when men wore hats like this, especially it was
very fashionable, so it was easy for us to wear it because everyone else was doing it,
but they wore it primarily because it was functional, because it actually kept the rain,
the wind -- everything.
It kept all of this.
We go into a work area and they weren't always heated the way -- we live in a very comfortable
world now, one in which you've got central heating, central air conditioning, all that
stuff.
Hats used to perform a much needed function of actually keeping you cool, helping keep
you warm, and keeping the sun, all of the elements off of your face.
They were a very functional piece.
Now, they were also -- and they still are -- very stylish if you know how to wear it
and if you wear it with confidence.
Again, back in the '40s, back in the '50s, back in the '60s, you could wear it and you'd
look around.
Other men were wearing it and you felt safe.
Nowadays, you've got to have the confidence to pull it off because most likely, you're
going to be the only man that you're going to see wearing a hat, but that's a good thing
if you have the confidence and if you have know-how.
If you know that it's going to help your face look better, if it's going to help you stand
out, those are some great things if you have the courage to be able to do that.
Number three, there are certain meanings that a hat sends that are a bit subconscious.
Have you ever wondered why military men, why police officers, why men in authority oftentimes
are wearing hats?
Because they send a signal of strength, so that's a great thing.
Another thing is why do they send off that signal of strength?
If you get down to it, hats make you look taller.
Any man wearing a hat gives a perception of added height.
Think about it.
Height is never a bad thing.
Many of us know this.
Many of us would like to look a little bit taller, so wearing a hat can add to that.
Those are three reasons to consider wearing a hat.
Now, let's talk about five things you want to look for when you're out there buying.
I'm going to create a separate article and video on this, so I'm going to touch over
these really quickly.
The first one is let's look at the material.
What is it made from?
Is it made from straw?
Is it made from felt?
Now, felt, in case you're wondering, that's actually where they take a lot of -- basically
wool, and then they mat it down.
They form a material from it, which is then shaped -- they shape the hat with that.
There are other things and I'll go into that into a later video.
Now, the shape of the hat, I started to talk about that.
The shape of a classic hat is going to determine the style.
We're going to talk about nine styles, so I'm not going to go too much into this, but
the shape.
Number three is look at the size of the hat.
Make sure it fits you.
Wear a hat that's too big and it's going to look bad.
Wear a hat that's too small, it's going to look comical.
Number four, the quality of the build.
Was it made by a machine?
Was it made by hand?
Is this something you're going to pick up at Target for $12 or is this something you're
going to have handmade like that woman I was talking about, Satya?
She makes all of hers by hand in New York City, so I think there's a huge range.
I really recommend that if you are getting into this, that you work with a professional
and that you're confident.
Now, you can play around and many of us have worn caps for function, but I really advice
looking at a quality hat if you're serious about bringing in a classic piece.
The last thing is price.
Now, why did I put price last?
Well, because if you're really looking at a hat, I would rather you spend -- you could
spend $20 on something that you wear once and you don’t like, or spend $120 on something
that you love and that you wear hundreds of times.
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Think about that.
The one that you spend 20 bucks on cost you $20.
The one that you spent $120 on but you wore hundreds of times cost you less than 50 cents
a wear.
Okay, guys, let's dive into the styles.
To start this off, I'm going to go ahead and I'm going to bring in a hat.
I want you guys to look at this, maybe give me your opinion in the comments.
What does this look like?
I get it.
I don’t wear hats very often, so I probably could tilt to the side, but we'll give you
guys a quick look at this right here.
I'm going to go over nine styles.
I would love for you to write in the comments what style you think this is.
Let's go ahead and get started.
Number one, the fedora, this is what most people think about when they think of classic
men's hats.
It's an iconic style and really is -- many people have said that anything with a brim
and a fixed crown is a fedora, but for the purist, a fedora is a felt hat with pinched
sides and a lengthwise crease down the crown.
It gives the front of a roughly wedge-like shape, and it can be molded to the wearer's
taste, so one of the most popular styles out there, gentlemen, the fedora.
Let's then talk about the trilby.
The trilby, it's a little more than a shortened angular fedora and it used to be called the
crumpled fedora, but it's kind of an old school term.
Trilbies are typically worn with the brim snapped downward in front and upward and back
adding to the impression of a narrowing angle at the back of the hat.
Let's move now on to the homburg.
It's the fedora's dressier cousin.
The homburg is your best bet for a formal business look and has the same creased crown,
but without the pinches at the side, and the brim is stiffer and has a slightly upturned
lip all the way around.
All right.
Now, let's move on to the pork pie; we're at number four.
A shorter style, a pork pie has a flattened top without a crease down the center.
It is pinched at the sides like a fedora and it creates a slightly triangular or wedge-shaped
front.
Now, the bowler or derby, and this one is one of the easiest ones to recognize.
It basically can be called the bowler or the derby.
In pop culture, it's associated with a stuffy British icon, but its origins are actually
working class.
It's a stiff, rounded dome with crown with no creasing or pinching.
Now, one of the most iconic hats out there, the western hat, also called the cowboy hat,
but the idea is we have a double crown and we have a much larger, high-crowned, wide-brimmed
hat, and usually worn -- I like lighter colors because it's more functional, although you
see a lot of -- I think it was the country western stars that brought in the darker colors.
Next style, the Panama hat, confusingly this was actually started over in Ecuador and they
shipped them over to Panama for the workers and they sold them there, and that's where
it's picked up.
So whenever they were digging the Panama Canal, supposedly this is where this hat made its
name because it was a functional and protective hat.
Next, let's talk about the boater.
It's a flat-topped straw hat with a wide brim.
They're mostly a novelty item, but they are still considered appropriate attire when near
the water, so rowing or Regatta events.
Barbershop Quartets, they like the boater.
Finally, let's talk about the top hat, probably the one that I wouldn’t really recommend
you buy unless you're wearing white tie or morning dress, pretty common, but really that’s
what it goes with and it's the proper covering for your head with those types of outfits.
Okay, guys.
I talked about the nine styles.
Again, I'll put this one quickly back on my head.
What do you think?
Do I look more authoritative?
Do I look taller?
Okay, guys, I look forward to your comments.
Try to guess what style hat this is.
One thing I do recommend, I'm doing a whole series on hats.
If you want to get all of this condensed into a single PDF and audio, I'm going to have
a link I'm going to send you to down below, and go to that.
There's a little form you can fill out.
What I'm going to ask and what I would like you to do is to send Satya a message.
Send her a message that you support what she's doing.
Go check out her hats.
She owns the company -- she recently bought Makins Hats.
Go check out what they're doing.
Support the company.
It's a great American company.
I really like what they're doing, so any support you can provide would be appreciated.
Take care, guys.
I'll see you in the next video.
Bye-bye.
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