All You Need to Know About Hat Etiquette

The Librarian · Oct 15, 2008

Trash-picker

Dumbjaw said:
Whenever I see these hat etiquette threads, I immediately get the urge to take all of my hats and throw them in the garbage.

What's the big deal about taking your hat off for a security camera? Is it a sacrifice of your civil liberties or something?

First world problems.

Getting my rubber gloves ready to raid Dumbjaw's garbage cans. lol

Marty

Drew B · Oct 15, 2008

Torpedo said:
BTW, it is curious the hats you see most in wear (like Kangol soft hats, trilby-like modern contraptions and the like) are, usually, on the heads of people that do not follow any hat etiquette.

Regards

Most of them are 16yr olds with no etiquette at all. And they wear them with most rediculous clothes skinny leg jeans *shudders*

When i was sixteen I felt that all my peers needed some training in manners. And now that I'm 19 and look at all the younger kids traipsing around being just rude it still upsets me.

Good god, I'm only 19 and i'm already that grumpy old "The kids today have no respect" guy. I expect that when i'm 40 I'll be running round killing off the rude little buggers, geez, I'm gunna have to keep this in check. Heheh....

Oh it was very funny the other day I wasn't wearing hat and a walked past an elderly couple and just out of habbit I reached for the brim of my hat ... only to find it wasn't there. Oh how silly i felt.

I tend to handle my hat by the pinch when removing it, just to save on hands, it's a travesty i realise but there you are.

And I do tend to doff to elderly people as well as ladies, just out of respect. When doffing my hat i just grab the brim with thumb and finger and give it a light tugg, a nod and a smile as well.

ScionPI2005 · Oct 15, 2008

Drew B said:
Good god, I'm only 19 and i'm already that grumpy old "The kids today have no respect" guy. I expect that when i'm 40 I'll be running round killing off the rude little buggers, geez, I'm gunna have to keep this in check. Heheh....

Glad to know I'm not the only grumpy "younger one". Two old guys aged 19 and 23...somehow we jumped a generation or two...how did that happen?

univibe88 · Oct 15, 2008

I am also a grumpy old man at the ripe old age of 29 lol

HarpPlayerGene · Oct 15, 2008

This is an enjoyable thread.

Torpedo, you really impress me man. In my opinion, you've got the spirit of it all down pat. "Delightful old-fashioned manners". Perfect.

Welcome, Drew. Your comments - and Scion's - resonate with me. I've always felt a little uncomfortable when witnessing bad behavior. Over time, I've grown, mostly, to concentrate on being the best example I can be without hoping for others to do as I wish they would. Live and let live and all that.

Being young (I wish I still were

) is one thing but you seem to understand that you don't have to be immature. Good for you!

Florida_Marlin · Oct 15, 2008

Last year my daughter was in the Junior Miss program in our community. The dads were give the honor of escorting our daughters across the stage in their formal dress just before the interview. This dad even bought a new suit. I was in Memphis on business a couple weeks before the event and stopped at "Mr Hats", a store at Highland and Popular. I obtained a Milan fedora with a black band, thinking I might wear it at the occasion.

My wife didn't think that I should wear the hat because no one else would. My daughter liked the hat and wanted me to wear it. The day of the event, we had relatives from Mississippi in, and my daughter was getting ready to leave. My wife and sis-in-law were in my daughter's room, when I walked in with the suit. I asked my daughter, "you decide", ..."Hat, Head, Hat, Head" as I alternated between donning the hat and taking it off. My wife, her sister, and my daughter, at the same time, hollered "Hat!" I'll never forget that!

So, I suppose etiquette is in the eye of the beholder(s)!

I try to be polite and not block other's view at events like movies, etc. So, usually, I take a driving cap (newsboy?) with me in the car and wear it into the theatre. The cap indoors is less distracting than the light bouncing off this moon-sized head! Regards, F_M

Hap · Nov 10, 2008

Hat Etiquette

I looked through the Sticky on this topic but didn't find the answer I was searching for - or maybe I just did a poor job of interpreting what I did find. Anyway, here's my question:

When going to the Symphony or the Theater (not the movies), when and where should you remove your hat? Is it ok to leave it on in the lobby, stairways, hallways and other common areas of the building?

I ask because I went to the Symphony this weekend and wasn't sure so I removed my hat upon entering the building and carried it in my hand until I found the coat/hat check. I have season tickets this year so I'll be headed back again soon and just wanted to know what is the proper thing to do with my hat.

By the way, I wore my Dobbs 5th Ave.

Mike in Seattle · Nov 10, 2008

Use the search function because there are several posts on the topic. You might also just scroll back on the hat forum.

Personally, I'd remove it on getting into the building, or if I knew where the hat & coat check was and was heading there immeidately, I might leave it on until I got there.

DerMann · Nov 10, 2008

The lobby and hallways are all public spaces, ergo, you have your head covered. Only remove it when you check it or are about to enter the theatre (if there is no hat check).

WideBrimm · Nov 10, 2008

Take your clues from other gents at the event, and use common sense.

Wearing a hat in the common area/lobby would probably be OK before and after the performance, but not during intermission if the audience is eating, drinking, visiting in that space. Wearing a hat inside the building would signify that a gentleman is either arriving or leaving.

Hap · Nov 11, 2008

Thanks for the information everyone - I was the only gent there with a hat on, so I was on my own.

Jfala · Nov 11, 2008

Hap, I went through the same dilemma not so long ago while attending a party at the music center. Since the entire party took place in a "public area" I chose to leave my hat on for the duration of my stay; plus there wasn't a hat/coat check available. Received some compliments, but no sneers to me Stetson OR.

Enjoy.

carldelo · Nov 11, 2008

I agree that there's no need to remove your hat in the lobby. When I enter museums, theaters and restaurants in NYC, if I'm headed to the coat check I leave my hat on until I hand it over. This is especially important in Roseland, so you can be stylin' for the maximum amount of time on your way through the club...

Ryan94 · Nov 11, 2008

Hello,

my name's David, I'm 20 years old and come from the beautiful Germany.

So, first I'd like to greet all of you, it's a nice forum and I really love to read here about my favourite hats.

And now, I got a question for you. I'm working as a custom Tailor for mens clothing and for work I normally dress more or less chic, (Shirt, tie, fine black or brown shoes are my standard wear, when I work with customers) because first of all I like to wear such clothing and secondly I want to give a good impression of myself when working with other people.

But that's also on of my "problems" because I also wear one of my three hats (two borsalino and one brown Stetson Fedora) when I drive to work in the morning, go outside during the lunch break or travel home.
And the wife of my boss (she's always around and well, we might have some differences) don't like when I wearing a hat, because she's conservative and for some reason she thinks a hat does not fit to a twenty year old.
So, yesterday at lunch time I was preparing to go outside to eat at a famous sandwich restaurant.

I was putting on my jacket and hat and just wanted to go downstairs to leave the building I am working in, and just in this moment she showed up and told me, that I never EVER should put on my hat before I left a building.
And I don't really understand what's her problem with that, because I always take my hat off when I enter the workplace and just leave it on in public buildungs. (train station, shopping mall et cetera)

How do you think about that and what is interesting me, how do you handle that?
Do you put your hat on just in the moment you step over the door sill or when you put your coat on and get ready to leave?

I thank you for your time and look forward to hear your answers!

Best regards
David

ScionPI2005 · Nov 11, 2008

Ryan94 said:
Hello,

my name's David, I'm 20 years old and come from the beautiful Germany.
So, first I'd like to greet all of you, it's a nice forum and I really love to read here about my favourite hats.

And now, I got a question for you. I'm working as a custom Tailor for mens clothing and for work I normally dress more or less chic, (Shirt, tie, fine black or brown shoes are my standard wear, when I work with customers) because first of all I like to wear such clothing and secondly I want to give a good impression of myself when working with other people.

But that's also on of my "problems" because I also wear one of my three hats (two borsalino and one brown Stetson Fedora) when I drive to work in the morning, go outside during the lunch break or travel home.
And the wife of my boss (she's always around and well, we might have some differences) don't like when I wearing a hat, because she's conservative and for some reason she thinks a hat does not fit to a twenty year old.
So, yesterday at lunch time I was preparing to go outside to eat at a famous sandwich restaurant.
I was putting on my jacket and hat and just wanted to go downstairs to leave the building I am working in, and just in this moment she showed up and told me, that I never EVER should put on my hat before I left a building.
And I don't really understand what's her problem with that, because I always take my hat off when I enter the workplace and just leave it on in public buildungs. (train station, shopping mall et cetera)

How do you think about that and what is interesting me, how do you handle that?
Do you put your hat on just in the moment you step over the door sill or when you put your coat on and get ready to leave?

I thank you for your time and look forward to hear your answers!

Best regards
David

Hi David, and welcome to the Lounge!

Interesting dilemma that you bring up. Personally, I would see no problem with placing the hat on your head as you get your jacket. Many people consider hats and jackets/coats as accessories, so it only makes sense that you are putting them on at the same time. Personally, I don't really see that much of a difference if you put on your hat "on your way to the door" or "as you are exiting the door". Frankly, I think its sort of nit-picky; especially in today's society. I think the behavior exhibited at the actual event, and not the few moments leading up to the event (in this case, putting on a hat when getting ready to go outside, or taking off a hat once getting to the restaurant table versus removing it upon entering the restaurant) is a lot more important.

It sounds like she's just trying to give you a hard time. You already said she disapproved of a 20-year-old wearing a hat. I don't have any ideas right now as to what exactly you should say, but don't stop putting the hat on as you are leaving. Just be polite to her, yet assertive in your decision.

C.K.Farnsworth · Nov 11, 2008

I refuse to eat at establishments without hat racks...

Just kidding. Most of the suggestions given I have done as well. I will add though that I love to go to old places in Downtown L.A. where I live that actually do have hat racks! Like Cliftons Caffateria. In fact there were a group of us eating there for the first time together and were all looking around and placing our hats on chairs when one gent said "suit yourselves but I like to put mine on the hat rack..."

The trickiest situation is if you're on a date, particularly a first date and you don't want to seem too "dandy" about yer fancy hat not getting dirty. I have, in this situation ballanced it on my knee for the duration of the meal with my foot up on my toes to facilitate. Beneath the table she had no idea I was going to such lengths to preserve the condition of my Lid...

Cheers,

WideBrimm · Nov 11, 2008

Jfala said:
Hap, I went through the same dilemma not so long ago while attending a party at the music center. Since the entire party took place in a "public area" I chose to leave my hat on for the duration of my stay; plus there wasn't a hat/coat check available. Received some compliments, but no sneers to me Stetson OR.

Enjoy.

In such a situation I might resort to holding my hat in my hand, unless I were trying to juggle food and drink in my hands, in which case I'd keep the hat on my head!

C.K.Farnsworth · Nov 11, 2008

I do wait till I go out the door generally

Ryan94 said:
Hello,

How do you think about that and what is interesting me, how do you handle that?
Do you put your hat on just in the moment you step over the door sill or when you put your coat on and get ready to leave?

I thank you for your time and look forward to hear your answers!

Best regards
David

Welcome David,

If you pay attention in old movies men frequently put on their hat then their overcoat before exiting the building, especially if in a hurry. I wear a hat every day to work and don't remove it upon entering the building until I enter my office. But, when leaving in the evening I put my jacket on while my hat is still on the hat rack and then carry my hat and put it on my head as I am walking out the outside door. Sort of one connected event, Pushing the door open while raising the hat to my head. It just feels right to me. Honestly I think this woman is trying to pull rank on you like "you're so young you don't even know the proper ettiquette of wearing a hat..." Don't let her get at ya though. As previously mentined just be polite and don't argue the point with her. The whole ritual of wearing hats with the "do's and don'ts" gives us a sense of an elevated culture in our society. Not that anyone is better than anyone else but that we care enough to exercise manners and put a lot of thought in what we do and how we dress and how we treat others, with respect.

Cheers,
Cary

ScionPI2005 · Nov 11, 2008

C.K.Farnsworth said:
The trickiest situation is if you're on a date, particularly a first date and you don't want to seem too "dandy" about yer fancy hat not getting dirty. I have, in this situation ballanced it on my knee for the duration of the meal with my foot up on my toes to facilitate. Beneath the table she had no idea I was going to such lengths to preserve the condition of my Lid...

Cheers,

lol :eusa_clap

OH! I've done that!!! Albeit, not on a date, but I have balanced my hat on my knee with my foot up on my toes to keep the balance. And in class, if my hat suddenly slides on my lap like its going to make a run for the floor, oh the way I jerk suddenly to grab it and stop it. lol Must make some of my fellow students wonder about me...

Colby Jack · Nov 11, 2008

Welcome to the lounge David....Hopefully the boss' wife will come around eventually and realize that hats can be worn by young and old...:eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

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