How big should a hat really be?

[retrofashion]

retrofashion, If you want to go really cheap, on fur, you might look for a Burlington Coat Factory. Beyond that, you need to figure that $100 (plus or minus) is not breaking the bank.

Hi J.T. Marcus.
I think $100 wouldn't be breaking the bank, if it's a fur felt. That range would be fine for me. I have decided I want to get me a fur felt and I would be willing to pay $100 or so for it.

I think I will probably be more satisfied than buying a $30 wool hat.

 

[Prairie Shade]

ORRRRRR

You could call the Stetson Outlet in St. Joseph and buy a Stetson for maybe 40 bucks plus shipping. I know, I know, I sound like a broken record but its true.

 

[retrofashion]

In everything that you described, having a choice of the Medium or Large, I would suggest the Medium, and just put a little stretch to it, since it's not overly tight, and the large is obviously too large.

You say it is obviously too large based only on my description or also based on the photo I posted the link to?
Thanks.

 

[retrofashion]

I've had some success with Hatsdirect.com and DavidMorganHats.

Thanks. I will check them.

Besides Burlington Coat Factory (appx $20) for affordable starter hats, Orvis is a good bet. Nice line of wool felt hats for $39. Both the retail stores and on line.
http://www.orvis.com/store/product_...51&cat_id=5690&subcat_id=6971&shop_id=&bhcp=1
Other sporting goods and "outdoorsey" stores are also a good bet. Dept stores such as Macy's also sometimes have affordable hats in season. Just keep looking.

www.capasheadwear.com


Around $20.00 a hat.

Toll free 1-800-932-0257

Aaron and Besdor have bargain wool fedora's ....

Thanks guys. But I have set my mind on a fur felt now.

 

[J.T.Marcus]

Prairie Shade, The Stetson/Resistol outlet in St. Joseph closed a few months back. (A few Loungers got fantastic bargains.) The one left is in Garland, Texas. They have no web site, but you can find the phone number by doing a search for hat shops in Garland, Texas.

 

[carter]

Originally posted by J.T. Marcus
Prairie Shade, The Stetson/Resistol outlet in St. Joseph closed a few months back. (A few Loungers got fantastic bargains.) The one left is in Garland, Texas. They have no web site, but you can find the phone number by doing a search for hat shops in Garland, Texas.

As J.T. points out, the Stetson Outlet in Garland is an excellent source for fur felt fedoras. There are many styles and sizes to select from. The material ranges from very stiff to very soft. I picked up a beaver Stetson Pinnacle in Caribou there the week before last.

I'd be glad to help you but you'd need to specify a style, color, felt quality, and size (in inches). There is, of course, the question of, "What happens if you don't like the hat."
You can PM me if you're interested.

My best advice is to actually try a hat on and be certain it's the one for you. If that's not possible, you have quite a few options open to you.

 

[indycop]

Thanks. I will check them.





Thanks guys. But I have set my mind on a fur felt now.

Hatsdirect.com fur felt federation about 110-115 shipping included. Got mine in less than a week.excellent customer service!

 

[Prairie Shade]

Well I could be wrong

I just called the Stetson Outlet and they are open.

 

[J.T.Marcus]

Sorry, Prairie Shade, I was going by info that was previously posted in this forum. It's good to know the St. Joseph store is still open!

 

[Kentucky Blues]

About Snap Brims... it generally means there's an all around the crown curve to the brim, which allows you to snap down all or part of the hat, or snap it back up. Most dress fedoras have a snap brim, I don't recall any that don't, but certain other hats don't. The Akubra adventurer, for example, has a down turned back that is meant to hold that shape, and does not have a built in snap to it. It's true that you can usually turn the brim up or down with any hat, but that doesn't mean that there's a snap in it. I hope this helps.

 

[retrofashion]

About Snap Brims... it generally means there's an all around the crown curve to the brim, which allows you to snap down all or part of the hat, or snap it back up. Most dress fedoras have a snap brim, I don't recall any that don't, but certain other hats don't. The Akubra adventurer, for example, has a down turned back that is meant to hold that shape, and does not have a built in snap to it. It's true that you can usually turn the brim up or down with any hat, but that doesn't mean that there's a snap in it. I hope this helps.

Thanks KB.
So pretty much all fedoras are snap brims? And I thought the snap brims were the exception to the rule. Thanks for the info.

 

[retrofashion]

I think I have at least decided on a fedora style.

Thanks for all the great input guys. Truly appreciated.

So I have been looking around the net for a fur felt fedora.
I have been to the hats direct, miller hats, village shop, akubra, and also Ebay.
So many different options and brands. I know Borsalino seems to be the best out there, but they are also about $250!
Is Stetson as good? Also, about Stetson, it’s a bit confusing as Miller hats for example have Stetsons that they say are made especially for them. Are those different models and quality from other Stetsons?
I get the impression those two are the best/most sought after brands. But what about Dobbs, Jaxon (the Jaxon Bogart Style: 131553 for $68 caught my eye since it’s felt and pretty affordable.) and Bailey? Those are some of the other names I found at the online stores. Are the any good?

Then there’s Ebay and used or vintage Borsalinos. It seems that for the price of a new “normal” fur felt you can snap a used Borsalino on Ebay. But then of course there’s the risk of it not being in good condition.

About style I was thinking a teardrop (or are they called c-crown?), longish brim, but not as long as an Indy hat. Probably 2" 3/8 brim seems to be the right length. I would prefer a soft felt to stiff if possible.
Any comments regarding that type of fedora and what types of people and outfits it fits best or any limitations of that hat style?
Also, based on the style description above, would you have any recommendations for a particular hat?

I'm not sure about the color yet. I was thinking of gray, but am still not sure. Grey seems to be so common.
But I realize that as my first hat I should get something that would go well with many outfits.
I have suits in dark blue, charcoal (looks almost black), black, medium gray, and a very dark brown. What color hat would you recommend to fit all that or most of them?
I love black and would love to wear a black fedora, but I hear it’s really hard to pull it off.
Thanks.

 

[retrofashion]

As J.T. points out, the Stetson Outlet in Garland is an excellent source for fur felt fedoras. There are many styles and sizes to select from. The material ranges from very stiff to very soft. I picked up a beaver Stetson Pinnacle in Caribou there the week before last.

I'd be glad to help you but you'd need to specify a style, color, felt quality, and size (in inches). There is, of course, the question of, "What happens if you don't like the hat."
You can PM me if you're interested.

My best advice is to actually try a hat on and be certain it's the one for you. If that's not possible, you have quite a few options open to you.

Hey Carter,
Help would be great. Thanks for offering!
See my post above for style etc.
About "What happens if you don't like the hat.", given that I liked the wool hats I was looking a lot, I don't think I would be disappointed with a nice fur felt.

 

[Kentucky Blues]

Thanks KB.
So pretty much all fedoras are snap brims? And I thought the snap brims were the exception to the rule. Thanks for the info.

No problem With the various Indiana Jones nutters around here (since the hat was notoriously not a snap brim), it's not surprising that one might think a snap brim was unusual. Also, the fact that snaps are the norm could easily cause for most to not even mention it, and for those that do to sound like they might be talking about something different, lol

 

[J.T.Marcus]

About Snap Brims... it generally means there's an all around the crown curve to the brim, which allows you to snap down all or part of the hat, or snap it back up. Most dress fedoras have a snap brim, I don't recall any that don't, but certain other hats don't. The Akubra adventurer, for example, has a down turned back that is meant to hold that shape, and does not have a built in snap to it. It's true that you can usually turn the brim up or down with any hat, but that doesn't mean that there's a snap in it. I hope this helps.

That's always been my understanding of what "snap brim" means. A while back, we had a post that tried to (rather authoritatively) tell us that the term meant "turned up in the back and turned down in front" (which really sounds more like the definition of a TRILBY). Thank-you for stating so well, what we mean by "snap brim."

 

[retrofashion]

Thanks KB and JT!

Does anybody have anything to add to my post #32 above?

 

[J.T.Marcus]

Does anybody have anything to add to my post #32 above?

Most Fedoras are probably snap brims, but there are some notable contemporary exceptions. The crushable wools tend not to be, as well as many (though not all) of the high quality fur felts coming out of the Czech Republic (as found at Burlington Coat Factory).

Also, if you soak and shape your Fedora into a turn down, front and back, chances are you will lose the snap.

 

[retrofashion]

Thanks JT.
But I was referring to this post: I gues I may have got mixed up with the post numbers.

Thanks for all the great input guys. Truly appreciated.

So I have been looking around the net for a fur felt fedora.
I have been to the hats direct, miller hats, village shop, akubra, and also Ebay.
So many different options and brands. I know Borsalino seems to be the best out there, but they are also about $250!
Is Stetson as good? Also, about Stetson, it’s a bit confusing as Miller hats for example have Stetsons that they say are made especially for them. Are those different models and quality from other Stetsons?
I get the impression those two are the best/most sought after brands. But what about Dobbs, Jaxon (the Jaxon Bogart Style: 131553 for $68 caught my eye since it’s felt and pretty affordable.) and Bailey? Those are some of the other names I found at the online stores. Are the any good?

Then there’s Ebay and used or vintage Borsalinos. It seems that for the price of a new “normal” fur felt you can snap a used Borsalino on Ebay. But then of course there’s the risk of it not being in good condition.

About style I was thinking a teardrop (or are they called c-crown?), longish brim, but not as long as an Indy hat. Probably 2" 3/8 brim seems to be the right length. I would prefer a soft felt to stiff if possible.
Any comments regarding that type of fedora and what types of people and outfits it fits best or any limitations of that hat style?
Also, based on the style description above, would you have any recommendations for a particular hat?

I'm not sure about the color yet. I was thinking of gray, but am still not sure. Grey seems to be so common.
But I realize that as my first hat I should get something that would go well with many outfits.
I have suits in dark blue, charcoal (looks almost black), black, medium gray, and a very dark brown. What color hat would you recommend to fit all that or most of them?
I love black and would love to wear a black fedora, but I hear it’s really hard to pull it off.
Thanks.

 

[Kentucky Blues]

I'd go with grey. Grey goes with black and blue, and of course grey. Charcoal is a dark grey to me, so it should work. And a bit more on the snap brim, tell whoever said that turned up and back and down in front meant snap that that's one way to wear it, but it isn't what makes it snap And I having a feeling soaking a hat and turning down the brim wouldn't remove the snap unless it was either ironed or something else was done to alter the bend in the felt. And even so, if you iron it right, or it gets a little flat, you can still have a snap to it, it'll just be a more angular snap.

 

[thefedorastore]

You say it is obviously too large based only on my description or also based on the photo I posted the link to?
Thanks.

I have based everything on what I read in your post.