What color hat?

[wgiceman]

When selecting a hat to wear with suits, should the hat match the suit or should it contrast by picking up an accent color of a pin stripe, for example?

What color hat would you wear with the following suits?:

charcoal pin stripe
medium gray pin stripe
chocolate brown
british tan
navy
medium blue pin stripe

 

[Joel Tunnah]

I find that color choices only look bad when they're too close. For example, if you have a gray suit, choosing a gray hat that's close in color - but not quite the same - wouldn't look as good as one that's much darker or much lighter, IMO. Trying to match colors on all your clothes looks downright weird to me.

 

[Cruiser]

What color hat would you wear ...

I agree, don't try to match up everything. A few more thoughts: (1) An all-around versatile color, IMHO, is a medium to light gray with a black or dark blue ribbon. Goes with a lot of different things. (2) A close second choice (it would be first for some on this forum) is a brown hat, especially a grayish-brown. Goes with just about anything. (3) If you had both 1. and 2., you'd be very well covered. (4) Do a search on the hats forum for threads posted by Douglas. Douglas has a wide variety of hat styles and colors, and posts a lot of pictures of himself wearing them with great suits and jackets. By reviewing these posts, you will have a darn good primer in tasteful hat/suit matchups. Tony in Tarzana is another one with lots of good posts. There are plenty of other Loungers posting pictures with hats/suits, also in very good taste, so go through the threads and see what you like or don't like in hat/suit combinations.

 

[Blackhorse]

Sound advice overall. I especially agree with trying to stay away from "close" matches with hat and suit. If one or the other is a much cooler or warmer tone they would fight. Not good at all. The idea of Grey with black band and Gray-Brown (Taupe) with perhaps black as a solid twosome is also sound. Another thought would be to make a "set" out of a basic hat and an overcoat...or maybe match a band to the coat color...not the suit. I think the suit was a seperate and the overcoat and hat more of a pair...but maybe that's just a winter thing! Anyway...another, perhaps second or even third, item would be a charcoal or black hat...for me. But then my coloring calls for it. Silver hair, etc. Too, I think that a big indicater of what to look at has already been determined FOR you...by your complexion. If you're red haired with cream skin and lots of freckles...or dark skinned with dark hair...or tanned with blond pate...go with what looks good because your choice in suits and other clothes will (or should at least) have gone along with that skin tone and hair color. Just a thought.

One second to the last thought (or comment due to the lack thereof): There is a reason why "outdoor" hats are mostly dark browns or charcoal or black...and "dress" hats are lighter...or used to be anyway. It's called dirt. Are you fastidious or more casual in your care of clothing items? Also, check out the differences in what was done in dress hats of the 30's...40's...then 50's & 60's. Fashion/prevailing tastes of the times make a big difference. Are you going for a period style...or trying to fit into "today"? Think about it. :cool2:

 

[John in Covina]

Color Diatribe.

Here is an interesting article from Miller with their match up recomendations:

http://www.millerhats.com/hatcare_index/hatcolor.html

My fedoras are:
a medium grey Stetson Sovreign.
The Borsalino in my Avatar is green grey.
an off white / ivory Dobbs Westward
A light brown (light milk chocolate) Hockel (BCF)
and a golden colored Straw Dobbs Rouge.

In time I would like to add:

A dark brown
Navy blue
Tan
Black

plus others as the opportunity allows.

You can go mono chromatic or offset with color, it just depends on what works.

As a friend of mine once said: "Fashion is supposed to be a statement not a question."

 

[Manny Tavares]

I wouldn't go for a "exact" match of colors. A subtle match works fine, for instance if the color of the hat or the suit "compliments" the other. :eusa_doh: What I'm trying to say is if it's a dark blue suit, don't go for the same dark blue hat, a blue hat that's just slightly lighter would look good.

 

[epic610]

We are forgetting something...

and that is the color of the OVERCOAT one might be wearing. if your hat is to match, it will probably worn most often with an overcoat. my own crisis is figuring out what is appropriate with a khaki trench coat worn over a blue suit.

 

[aliados]

I have been considering that question recently, thinking that I could (and should) prune my collection down to the few esential colors -- say, twenty or so . . .
The adivce already given is excellent. To answer your questions specifically, I myself would match the following:
charcoal pin stripe - medium gray
medium gray pin stripe - light gray or charcoal
chocolate brown - tan
british tan - browwn, olive or green
navy - blue-gray (or any gray, for that matter)
medium blue pin stripe - navy or midnight blue, charcoal, or light gray.

Obviously, I concur with trying to avoid matching colors and shades, prefering some contrast. Nothing's sillier than trying to match exactly and missing -- and I never make what I believe to the mistake of allowing my sportjacket and slacks looks as though I was trying to pass it off as a suit.

I also often match the hat to the accessories; I have a pale gray windowpane withblue threads that I wear with light blue shirt, blue and gray tie, gray-blue hat and blue trenchcoat. If I were earing green with a brown or tan suit, I might opt for that color hat as well.

Of course, you could always post pix every weekend of the upcoming week's choices, and take a poll . . .

Charlie

 

[aliados]

One more thing -- with a neutral suit, just about any other single color will look okay, providing the accessories match none another . . . IMHO . . .