Welcome back to the Gentleman's Gazette!
In today's video, we'll discuss the basic rules of etiquette for the hatted gentleman
so you not only wear your hats with style and confidence but also with class.
This video is the second in a three-part series on hats; the first part, which you can check
out here, covered basic hat anatomy and terminology.
This part, as we mentioned, will cover etiquette and the third part, which you should stay
tuned for, we'll cover the trilby, Homburg, and pork pie styles in greater depth.
Also, don't forget to take a look at our previous videos on hats which are guides related to
the fedora, the flat cap, and the Panama hat, as well as a guide on how to choose the correct
hat for your specific face shape, you can find these videos by clicking on the banners
on the screen here.
One quick note on today's video, the majority of its information was sourced from the writings
of menswear historian, Bill Thompson.
You can find his related blog post on the subject in the video description as to the
topic at hand today then, just as the gentleman should have a variety of hats for different
seasons and occasions, he should also be aware of the rules for when to have his hat on and
when to take it off.
A great many menswear sources, if they do offer advice on hat etiquette, will typically
advise that the most basic rule to remember is to wear your hat when outdoors and to take
it off indoors.
While this advice may end up working out for the wearer, let's say 75 to 80 percent of
the time, we believe that there's a better central starting point for approaching hat
etiquette which is as follows:
Wear your hat in public spaces and take it off in private spaces.
Stated simply, a private space is any place where people live, work, or pay a fee to enter.
Anything else is generally going to be considered public.
Here then are some more specific examples of this philosophy in practice.
A house is a private space but the foyer or entryway just inside the door can be considered
a public space.
This goes back to the era when a butler would typically greet guests at the door and take
their hats and coats.
Similarly, an apartment is a private space but their surrounding hallways as well as
the lobby are public.
This same general rule is typically true for hotels with the added caveat that spaces reserved
specifically for hotel guests such as the pool or lounge are also considered private
spaces.
One unique distinction for apartment buildings, hotels, and other such multi florid spaces,
an elevator is considered a private space.
This goes back to the days when most elevators still had human operators.
As such, you would consider the elevator the operator's office.
Related to the concept of entry fees are membership dues.
As such, any club with specific members is also considered to be a private space.
You may be beginning to sense the overall pattern at this point.
Here's another example relating to office buildings where the lobbies and hallways are
public spaces but specific offices are private spaces.
In addition, cubicle areas are collectively treated as private, basically functioning
as one large office.
This isn't limited to the specific space inside each individual cubicle.
If a doctor's office has a separate reception area, that's
considered a public space but the waiting room is considered a private space because
you're already waiting for the doctor's services and in a manner of speaking, already in the
office.
Also in the medical field, a hospital building is treated as an all private space.
This goes back to the days when most hospitals were still run by churches.
A theater is a private space since you have to pay for a ticket to get in, however, since
you have to buy the tickets in the lobby most of the time, the lobby is considered a public
space.
Despite usually requiring a ticket for entry, an outdoor stadium is still often considered
a public space because it's outdoors and fairly large.
An indoor stadium, on the other hand, is a private space.
A restaurant is a public space, in general, but once you've been seated at your table,
it becomes a private space since in theory, you're paying to be there.
Curiously enough, however, the bar is almost always considered a public space at all times.
Stores are typically public spaces with the exception being if you're given specific attention
from a salesperson.
Because you're requiring their services at that point, the interaction then becomes more
private at which point it's best practice to remove your hat.
Places of worship are generally considered to be private spaces but of course, some religious
traditions do have specific rules related to men's head wear as well as women's head
wear.
If you plan to attend a place of worship and don't know the rules relating to head wear,
be sure to ask someone in the know.
Hats can also be removed at certain specific times for such activities like prayer, the
recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in the United States, or for the singing of hymns
or national anthems.
Finally, if you're in motion, your hat should remain on regardless of the method or openness
of transportation.
This harkens back to the days when transportation was pretty much all done out of doors, either
walking, on horseback, or in an open carriage.
Even though we have many new methods of transportation and a lot of them are enclosed, the tradition
of keeping your hat on while you're moving still remains in effect.
And there you have it!
Using this public space private space motto, the hatted gentleman can be sure that he's
always observing proper etiquette when wearing his hat or as the case may be, not wearing
it.
The question remains, however, why remove the hat in private spaces to begin with?
The answer is that the uncovering of the head is a sign of deference that goes back millennia.
It's usually done to signal an acknowledgement of intrusion or to show basic gratitude.
In other words, the hallmarks of a gentleman.
This brings us to one final piece of hat etiquette for today, the practice of tipping the hat
to others while out and about.
The tradition of tipping one's hat has its roots in bowing to show respect.
A practice that was common across various cultures for centuries.
When hats became the dominant fashion for men and bowing was still common practice,
the hat would have to be removed when a man bent from the waist so that it didn't hit
the floor.
Bowing would gradually become less extreme over the course of the 19th century, culminating
in the simple hat tip by the 20th century.
These days in the 21st century, even that practice can seem a little outdated.
If you're a regular hat wearer and feel totally comfortable in head wear, you can give a hat
tip to people regardless of gender these days too but if you feel that the behavior would
seem affected coming from you, you can go ahead and skip the tip.
In conclusion then, even if you don't commit to memory every single example we outlined
in today's video, you can still be sure that by following the basic model of the public
space private space paradigm, you as a hat wearing gentlemen will be courteous with your
stylish head wear.
So which of the etiquette rules we covered today came as the biggest surprise to you?
If you'd like to let us know you can do so in the comment section below and as always
a reminder to subscribe to the gentleman's Gazette youtube channel so videos like these
can come straight to your inbox.
in today's video I'm wearing a herringbone sport coat it's charcoal grey but also features
elements of black white and even a hint of brown my shirt which is from Charles Tyrwhitt
features a grid pattern of pink and blue on a white background most of the other elements
in my wardrobe today are from Fort Belvedere and we'll start with the tie which is a silk
knit tie in mottled blue and brown the blue of course harmonizes with the blue in my shirt
and the brown is dark enough that it still remains harmonious with most of the other
elements of the outfit as well as bringing out some of those subtle brown tones in the
sport coat the pocket square is a dark blue linen featuring a white hand-rolled X stitch
and the boutonniere is a light blue Veronica persica my final Fort Belvedere accessories
today are my cufflinks which are palladium plated sterling silver and feature lapis lazuli
as the stone you can find all of these Fort Belvedere accessories in our shop here my
trousers are plain black as are my socks and my shoes are cap toe black derbys you've seen
them in a few videos already and of course today's outfit is topped off by a hat it's
a vintage charcoal grey trilby you could also perhaps call it a stingy brim Fedora since
the band is relatively wide and the style kind of sits between both of these the band
features a fine grosgrain and is also accented by a bow and a very small red feather I thought
this hat would be a good choice not only because the color directly corresponds to the color
of the sport coat but also given the sporting heritage of the trilby I thought the Hat would
pair well with the thick tweed of the coat as well as the knit of
the tie