Me Hat

[xman]

P. J. O'Rourke said (read 'wrote') that, "A hat should be taken off when you greet a lady and left off for the rest of your life. Nothing looks more stupid than a hat". It is an amusing notion and one based not on practicality, but on intellectual slavery to fashion, written in the late twentieth century and largely in jest as the idea of male headdress had fallen out. It is a stance which I do not nor never have adopted. Hats keep the harsh summer sun off when it shines and even a small brim can help shield the eyes from its glare. They offer shelter from the rain better in my estimation than does an umbrella because they do not tie my hands up as 'brollies' do. (diminutive usage intentional) Most especially, virtually every hat as a simple cover for your head will with certainty keep you warmer in the cold since seventy to eighty percent of your body heat is lost through your head. Here in The Great White North, even in the 'soft' Lower Mainland of the Pacific Coast, this can be important. In most of the rest of the country it can quite literally be life preserving. (not a joke or an over exaggeration) Under the weight of these benefits I have rarely gone out of doors without a hat and I don't expect that to change any time soon. I am a creature more of function than of form. As proof of that I submit my slim logic that since all my trousers are wearing out at either the cuffs, knees and/or crotch, of which kilts contain none, a kilt should either last in perpetuity or until I spend too much time on my as-you-like-it. Since with me practicality will trump fashion nine times out of ten I will wear hats first and then suffer to look good under them.

In this light, I have been reviewing my wardrobe, not solely for the inclusion of kilts, but generally and find my common dress to have grown (shrunken more accurately) to lack a minimum standard of being able to put myself together well. Kilting will step this up but that won't, I sincerely hope, cover my head and I need to review appropriate head wear to be inclusive of kilting. Since my paternal line is now nine generations removed from the highlands and likely as far from kilt wearing, the notion of wearing a traditional Bonnet or Glengarry would be extremely affected I put it to you, what else do you think would go well upon my noggin when my hips are tartan clad?

I currently own an Australian Outback Collection Safari hat loosely illustrated in my avatar, waxed and oiled to repel the rain. It is positively jammin' in the rain forest winter which is really more of an extended wet autumn melding slowly into and early and prolonged wetter spring. I also share (borrowed, lost and replaced, but she still never wears it) with Validator (my wife) a Mediterranean mariner's cap. Remarkably warm in the cold and still good in a drizzle, this cap and my Safari hat both have a place for a sprig of heather in the spring and a fallen leaf in the autumn. Also I have an alpaca wool toque I picked up in Chile a few years back. It helps with warmth and looks fine in Canadians environs, but is not, I must admit, as good at keeping me warm as is the mariner's cap. Finally I have also been wearing (again from my wife's collection which she never dons) a cloth military cap. It's a bit too large for me so in danger of lifting away in a stiff breeze and doesn't suit my moustache at all so I'm replacing it with the sometimes contentious here flat cap in poly cotton, on order from USAK and due to arrive with my first kilt. I'm thinking about buying a wool cap too. Both should go well with the new mustache. All of the aforementioned are illustrated below.





I am not prone to attend Highland Games or Clan Gatherings although perhaps Renaissance Faires upon occasion and intend to kilt primarily as business casual daily wear or respectable man about town and so again I ask you, in the absence of a Balmoral or Glengarry, which hat should I don while kilted in the warm sun, the wet rain or the biting cold? Which would you? I value your opinion and especially invite 'traditionalist' responses.

Please let me thank-you all for suffering this far my raconteuring ways and close with a gentle if perhaps unnecessary reminder that your opinions are honestly and seriously invited and if so delivered, so appreciated and that none should be seen as offensive which are not so meant in what could be misperceived as a contentious issue.

Again with my gratitude,

X

[NewEnglander]

I used to read a bit of Mr. O'Rourke and enjoyed his less-political writings. As for headwear, I have a Barbour flatcap similar to the last you posted that I wear all fall, winter and into early spring. But now that it's finally getting consistently warmer around here I've been thinking about find a more lightweight alternative too keep my flowing locks from blowing in my face and to keep the sun out of my eyes.
Not the most helpful post, but I'll keep an eye on this thread for suggestions...

[Downunder Kilt]

As you probably would have gathered from reading other threads, true traditionalist are not going the approve of any headwear that you have proposed. (That is if you are intending to to put yourself out as a wearer of the kilt in the traditonal manner as in the highlands of Scotland)

I try to dress in a way that is traditional, but also takes into account my geographic location when it comes to headwear. Most of our highland events take place in summer and as such I tend to wear a smaller brimmed Akubra style hat to protect me from the sun. If it is cloudy or turns a bit fresh I have a balmoral, a flatcap or Harris tweed drop brim trilby. I know these last two are not traditional and contravene my attempts at dressing in a traditional highland manner. I will take any critisim of my faux pas in relation to my head apparel and readily aknowledge that I am in the wrong. They dow however save my noggin from the elements.

All the best in your endeavours

[auld argonian]

Hey...a very nice, tweed ivy cap is one of my staples. Bear in mind that I also wear a couple of fedoras and a nice, cheap ebay panama (good so long as they don't look cheap...which this 'un don't).

Just went to Chicago Celtic Fest wearing the kilt and sweater with the black M65 field jacket and the ivy cap...I thought that it looked okay.

Like some other articles of clothing, the hat looks good when it looks like you are wearing the hat and not when it looks like the hat is wearing you. I have a brother in law who manages the latter on a permanent basis.

Someone might want to let some of my fellow Chicagoans in on the fact that the difference between a man in a hat and a kid in a baseball cap is that the man with the hat removes it when he enters a building. One of the great "looks" around town is the business-man-in-a-trenchcoat-with-a-baseball-cap-on...I guess that's "business casual" taken to an extreme.

I'm siding with the flat-cappers officially...I'm thinking that you can wear one with a kilt.

Best

AA

ps: I do not wear the fedoras or panamas with the kilt...just thought that I'd clarify that.

[MacMillans son]

X, I think your history of form follows function is a good place to start. You are not talking about anything related to "Traditional Civilian Highland Attire" so I would encourage you to go with what works for you and your conditions. Ok, I would caution against the Andean number, I cant think of anything that they go with other than that region's traditional dress. But other than that...

Relative to our traditional members, I have understood them to say: there are of course regional adaptations as a result of climate and personal style, those are not necessarily bad, just not traditional highland attire.

I cant figure out how to manage photo bucket so cant post here but will send you a self taken photo in the bathroom mirror (very classy, huh?) via email with a hat that I like.

[LANCER1562]

I generally tend to wear a flat cap of some kind whether I'm kilted or not (I happen to like the way they look). When it's cool hear in the S.F. Bay Area, I sometimes wear a black leather waist length jacket and a matching leather flat cap. I have gotten lots of compliments.

[Brian K]

ps: I do not wear the fedoras or panamas with the kilt...just thought that I'd clarify that.

You might want to re-think that position, AA. We have it on no less an authority than our own dear Jock Scott, who in another thread says it's a fine idea to wear a Panama hat with a kilt in the hot sun. He admits it's not traditional, but he apparently feels that there are times when the traditional must yield to the practical.

Regards,

Brian

[james.mccarson]

English Driving Cap (Flat Cap) are nice. Dark or Light, not tartan to match.

[Panache]

From "Panache answers the big kilt Questions"

#3 (Concerning Hats)


"Out of all the kit a gent can sport no item is more personal than his hat. I have seen kilts worn with cowboy hats, native American head dress, pith helmets, flat caps, top hats, panamas, fedoras, fez hats, knit caps, berets, in addition to glengarries, tams, and balmorals. What looks right to me on my head might not be to someone else's taste. What looks right to them might not be to mine. Unless you are wearing some sort of uniform or adhering to some specific dress code wear the hat that suits you...and don't mess with a guy about his hat...EVER!"

[xman]

From "Panache answers the big kilt Questions"

#3 (Concerning Hats)


"Out of all the kit a gent can sport no item is more personal than his hat. I have seen kilts worn with cowbow hats, native American head dress, pith helmets, flat caps, top hats, panamas, fedoras, fez hats, knit caps, berets, in addition to glengarries, tams, and balmorals. What looks right to me on my head might not be to someone else's taste. What looks right to them might not be to mine. Unless you are wearing some sort of uniform or adhering to some specific dress code wear the hat that suits you...and don't mess with a guy about his hat...EVER!"

CHEERS! ith:

Link to the rest?