What Your Hat Says About You

by Adrian Nadler

What kind of message are you sending when you put on your hat?

There is a lot of history behind the most popular kinds of hats worn today and their origins explain a lot about their use.

Baseball Cap

Ball caps are ubiquitous due both to their utility and versatility. Originally designed for Major League Baseball around the start of the 20th century, they have since served useful for professional golfers and tennis players. Since they can also be worn for any casual outdoor sport or recreation, and because they block the sun so well, they can also indicate an active lifestyle.

As a symbol of American culture, baseball caps capture that everyman, sports fan quality. They will always be used to declare affiliation with a sports team or city, but were appropriated by fashion in the 1980s. Being able to customize baseball caps by using the team logo’s space for any kind of art or graphic or by wearing bright colours and designs increases their value as a personal fashion statement.

Depending on the colours and designs that a hat sports, how the brim is bent and how it is worn on the head, baseball caps can be part of the style of many distinct subcultures. Hip hop has expensive caps with stiff brims worn askew, truckers have them made cheap from mesh and foam and some of the world’s armed forces use them to display rank and insignia.

Flat Cap

The use of these European-style tweed caps can be traced back to 14th century Britain and Ireland and were first associated with the working class. Despite that, they were used by the middle and upper class as casual dress. They lend a more sophisticated look than baseball caps.

Today, they’re still popular in working-class Irish communities, like Boston, but are seen worn by popular musicians, comedians, actors and athletes. They have, like baseball caps, become popular worn backwards. If you wear a flat cap compared to a baseball cap, you’ll look more formal, mature and refined in taste while still looking casual.

Beret

Another European design, berets were originally worn by peasants around the border of France and Spain, and later became part of the uniform for the French military. Now used by militaries all over the world, berets look less functional and more ornamental than other hats. Military berets are always worn folded tightly to one side and displaying insignia, reflecting the formality and professionalism of the armed forces.

Che Guevara made berets iconic. Since they are not seen as often as caps, they’re more of a fashion statement and it’s more interesting to see a person wearing one. Also, because they’re associated with French culture, they give a look of cultivation.

Toque

Everybody in Canada knows what a toque is, but elsewhere, they’re called all sorts of things like skullcap, wool cap, knit cap and beanie. Other than being a purely functional winter hat, often made long and folded over at the brim to snugly fit the head, there are thinner, more stylish designs that are sometimes worn in warmer weather. Brimmed versions are worn by snowboarders, and fans and athletes of other extreme sports like surfing and skateboarding also have toques as part of their style.

Wide-Brimmed Hats

You don’t see brimmed hats very often because they are used either for specific purposes or in specific regions. One example is the fedora, which is one of the wide-brimmed hats from the 20th century still worn today, albeit rarely. Your personal style needs to reflect a love of vintage fashion to pull off this one, otherwise you’ll stand out in a bad way.

Other brimmed hats likewise look silly unless you wear them for their intended purpose. Loose-fitting boonie hats are used by armed forces and also when you go fishing or for outdoor use in general, but if they are worn in public, it is a sign that the wearer just doesn’t care about how he looks. Cowboy hats likewise should never be worn unless you know how to ride a horse and do so on a regular basis.

Overall, these kinds of hats are great for getting attention, but make sure it’s the kind you want.

The Right Fit

Hats aren’t a necessary part of your wardrobe, but you should be aware of how they can be used to amp up or add to a look. It will help to keep your wardrobe versatile by making you look more active or sophisticated or hip, depending on your goal, so try on some different kinds to see what works best for you.

*FASHIONISM.ca