Fedora Fit

What you always wanted to know about Elegance, but were afraid to ask!
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Guest

Thu Feb 28, 2008 4:39 pm

Fitting advice please:

do you want your fedora or panama to hit, or end at your ears to be considered to fit properly?
Guest

Thu Feb 28, 2008 6:11 pm

A fedora properly worn should look as if its about to fall off the head. Its derrière is higher than its prow and it is rakishly tilted. So there are tilts in two directions: back higher than front, and to the side.

Fedoras that are pulled down over the head anywhere near the ears look like WWII German combat helmets and anyone wearing a Fedora in this manner should expect to be shot on sight.

M Alden
Guest

Fri Feb 29, 2008 5:03 am

Alden has put it well as regards the need for asymmetry in deployment, but if, as I take it, the OP is trying to determine at what level to measure (with tape or conformateur) to get accurate sizing on a hat, one might regard the earline as a reasonable fulcrum--the hat will dip below it in front and perhaps rise above in the rear.

Art Fawcett advised me to measure on a horizontal level "just above your ears." Whether that means a quarter of an inch above or some other increment depends partly on the shape of your head: how high the top of your ears are placed relative to the curve of your skull, how vertical or sloped your forehead is, etc. I have a very straight forehead, and I've found the degree of inward taper on most hat crowns troublesome--the hat fits perfectly at the bead of the sweatband but becomes too tight half an inch above it, and wants to squeeze up in back. I'm still working on this. Hats that do fit me well just feel "right" at a certain height, and when I check in a mirror they look best there as well. This would probably be true for you too.

It's a good question, because, at least in Philadelphia, New York, or Chicago, there is enough wind that one wants to have some snugness available by pulling the hat a bit lower without having to wear it uncomfortably tight all the time. A really good hatter with long experience in fitting, like a good tailor, would be invaluable to consult in person. Alas, there aren't so many of them around anymore.
Guest

Fri Feb 29, 2008 9:00 am

So does this mean that a hat should 1) fit snug so as not to blow off in wind and, 2)when worn for fitting purposes, not styling purposes, be worn horizontally to the ground come right to the ear?
Guest

Fri Feb 29, 2008 8:08 pm

The crowns of most felt hats are not cylindrical (or whatever an oval-sectioned cylinder is called) but rather slightly conical (check the bevel on any hat stretcher to confirm this--though the stretcher bevel is enhanced to avoid leaving marks in the felt). So in theory, the farther down you pull the hat, the more snugly it will fit. The ideal is for the hat to fit comfortably at its normal wearing height, but for you to be able to pull it down some in windy weather, and have it stay on your head when you do. To stay put in any significant wind, the hat will need to fit tighter than would be comfortable for prolonged wear in clement weather.

In my case, normal wearing / measuring height is about a quarter of an inch above my ears (parallel to the ground, as you say). At that height one does not want the fit so tight as to leave marks on one's forehead when the hat's removed, but neither should the hat slide around. The fit should become snugger if pulled it all the way down to one's ears.

But as I say, individual configuration varies so much (how tall are your ears?) that this can only be a very rough rule of thumb. My forehead shape means there's not much difference in tightness available when I move the hat up or down by half an inch, so I seem to have less margin for error in getting the "normal" fit exact.

So: 1) comfortable fit at normal wearing height, snug fit if you pull it down some (kind of the hat equivalent of turning up a collar and/or using a throat latch)

2) fit the hat horizontally, parallel to the ground, but your normal wearing height will probably be slightly above the ear line (a quarter-inch or so in my case) but it could be at the top of your ear depending on ear and head shapes.

If you can find a hat with a wind trolley (a cord that can be unlooped from around the ribbon and attached to a coat button or through the lapel buttonhole) you'll have additional flexibility in deciding on fit.

Dopey or Matt Deckard may be able to elaborate further on these points.

- Couch
Guest

Fri Feb 29, 2008 8:46 pm

I entirely agree with the two-tilt prescription (in my case back and left side). I believe that hatters often measure a head around the crown 0.25 inch above the ears.
NJS
Guest

Fri Feb 29, 2008 9:31 pm

NJS got it right on the measuring point, here is the rub: sizes vary enormously from maker to maker and model to model within one maker's offering. It's alot like shoes, you have to try them on to know. I am a 7 3/4 in some models and an 8 in others.

M Alden
Guest

Fri Feb 29, 2008 9:41 pm

Michael,

Thanks for the explanation. I have always felt cartoonish in a fedora, but your double tilt did the trick.

Matt
Guest

Sat Mar 01, 2008 4:00 pm

As with many RTW garments, I agree that there can be very noticeable differences in sizing between different manufacturers. Just to add that, in the same way that trousers obviously become loose with weight loss, so head size can shrink with general weight loss (or even expand with weight gains).
NJS
Guest

Sun Mar 02, 2008 6:07 pm

Thanks for the explanation. I have always felt cartoonish in a fedora, but your double tilt did the trick.
Hi Matt,

Good news. Welcome to the Fedora club. When worn correctly they are pure magic.

It just goes to show that clothes are inanimate objects until we learn how to breathe life into them.

As my dear Honore said "Elegant dress has little to do with clothes, and everything to do with wearing them well."

Cheers

Michael
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