Homburg vs Fedora

[Sir Dobbs]

What kind of look a homburg give you vs the fedora?

 

[Tony in Tarzana]

Here are a few of mine, click on the thumbnail for a larger picture:




I love 'em. They're generally more formal-looking than a fedora, but I wear 'em everywhere.

 

[epic610]

I woul ask Tony....

what do you think of the straw or milan weave homburgs? i have two and i cannot make up my mind up i like the look.

 

[jamespowers]

Homburg or Fedora is a choice each person has to make on their own. It just depends on how it looks on you---witness T in T(looks fine). The issue of occasion and what you wear it with also tends to come up. I wear a Homburg or a black Fedora with a Tuxedo. For every day clothing I tend to use a fedora more than a homburg because the fedora fits in better for me. However, with a suit, either a Fedora or a Homburg work. Homburgs come in various colors but the most common colors you will find are black and gray with a less common brown. I really like the brown. They should have produced more.
My brown Homburg is a Jolly Rounder by Dobbs. I mention that because of your name Sir Dobbs. Dobbs is one of my favorite brands as well. Dobbs and Cavanagh ended up together under the watchful eye of John Cavanagh. He was probably one of the most knowledgeable hatters in the industry for his day. He knew how to make a hat from fur to a completed hat and he could do it all himself! Quite a guy. If I ever had the chance to go back and interview a master hatter from the Golden Era it would certainly be him. I have a feeling that it would be an enjoyable chat. He had a reputation for being quite a character with a sense of humor and wit.

Regards,

J

 

[DOUGLAS]

Here is my Stetson Homburg in Midnight Blue. I don't think that homburgs are only for formal wear.

Here is a fedora for comparison.

 

[Sir Dobbs]

Thanks for the valuable information and pictures! I am thinking I may have to look into the world of homburgs soon.

 

[Fedora]

Personally, I hate Homburgs. Period. IMHO, they are an extremely formal hat, very set in the style, and unlike a fedora, you only get one primary look from them. And, as I said, I do not like that look. I have always associated this hat with the power dressers of their day. Nothing wrong with that concept, but I lean more toward an all purpose hat. One that looks good with casual, as well as dress clothes. And one that you can nuance to suit your particular style.

Plus, the brim configuration on the homburg is great for collecting and holding rainwater.lol Wear that hat in a driving rain! Perhaps that is why a serious homburg wearer should always sport an unbrella. You gotta admit it, certain hats are are meant for one thing only-style. And as one famous mathmatician once said to a comrade, lifting his glass high, "Here's to pure mathmatics. And may it never be of use-to anyone." That covers it in a nutshell, for the noble Homburg. lol Fedora

 

[McPeppers]

Yeah I was just looking at those awesome comparison photos by DOUGLAS and I have to admit... I'm gonna stick with the Fedora. Not that the Homburg doesnt look good on all of you Gents but I don't personally like that brim. Its giving me a "Hey look at me, I'm better than you" vibe whereas the Fedora is giving me a "Hey, lets go get a drink at the bar" vibe. lol

The brim style is really what's got me edged over towards the Fedora, the Homburg is just too...big (Not big wide...its that upturn that makes me twitch lol)

 

[feltfan]

Yeah I was just looking at those awesome comparison photos by DOUGLAS and I have to admit... I'm gonna stick with the Fedora. Not that the Homburg doesnt look good on all of you Gents but I don't personally like that brim. Its giving me a "Hey look at me, I'm better than you" vibe whereas the Fedora is giving me a "Hey, lets go get a drink at the bar" vibe. lol

The brim style is really what's got me edged over towards the Fedora, the Homburg is just too...big (Not big wide...its that upturn that makes me twitch lol)

There is a style of homburg, a pinched thin felt homburg,
that was associated with some jazz players in the bebop era.
It was considered to be pretty casual I think. Remember that
a lot of fedoras (Stetson's Whippet and Stetsonian or the
Adam Executive, for example) were marketed as just the sort
of hat you object to- "I'm better than you".

Don't let today's preconceptions color a fine hat style. Try one.

 

[McPeppers]

Yeah but its not a preconception that is placed upon me by anyone but myself, its just how the brim style rubs me lol.

And I dont doubt that there were Fedora's marketed along that line of thought, but when i look at em I don't get that feeling ^_-

 

[DOUGLAS]

I have a couple of Borsalino Homburgs with wider brims that are softer. I like them as a style but I guess it is what ever floats your boat that counts.

 

[Tony in Tarzana]

Personally, I hate Homburgs.

"Hate" is such a strong word, Steve!

 

[Dinerman]

don't know why- but your avatar reminds me of ed roth...

 

[McPeppers]

Well as much as I stated I disliked Hombergs I just got a friend to buy his first non-cap hat...and It was a Homburg lol.

Myself...I grabbed another Temple-style ^_-.

 

[Fedora]

"Hate" is such a strong word, Steve!

Sure it is. There are few hats that I actually hate, and of course, the homburg is one of them. There are some hats that I dislike, but only a few that I get to hate.lol I hate homburgs and dislike derbies. Perhaps part of it is that I hate black dress hats-period. I also detest those stingy brimmed things that some folks call hats. I classify them as caricatures of real hats. But, I am in the camp of seeing hats as a protection device, and stingy brimmed hats would be a joke considering this. But, this does not mean that I find the sombrero attractive.lol While it may be a great hat for keeping the sun and rain off a guy's head, to me, it is a god awful ugly hat. I lump it into the same camp as the umbrella. Umbrella hats are not attractive, and like stingy brimmed hats, often elicit laughter from me. But, to each his own. Variety is the spice of life, or so they say.

Being the common person that I am, I detest the whole premise of early hat wearing, and personally am gratified that it died. For some reason, the hat back in its heyday was similiar to the status conveyed by automobiles in todays culture. They were both intended to convey the social status of the wearers, or drivers. You could determine the social status by the sort of hat a guy wore back then, as you can determine that today by the type and price of the car a person drives. And it is something that folks want other folks to know, i.e. that they are sucessfull in material things. I never was one for this outward display of wealth.

I know of one hatter who trys to play upon this "hat snooty" mentality, as he realizes there is a small market for his outrageously priced hats. He told me once, when he sold his hats for a reasonable price, he did not sell many. Once he quadrupled his prices, he started selling hats. Or so he says.

To me the homburg fits squarely into this realm of status, back in the old days. I don't like the looks of the hat, and I detest what the purpose of dress hats originally was years ago. Those hats were not for protection for the city folks, as much as they were a sign of prosperity. The major hat manufacturers were very aware of this, and used it to sell hats. I think the demise of the hat actually involved the sociological factors more than we are willing to admit. I find the current attraction towards hats a much healthier trend. The reason we are wearing hats have changed, and for the better, IMHO. Fedora

 

[Mojave Jack]

Like any thing else, I think homburgs are just a matter of taste. Tony, I think you're homburgs are great, and they fit you well. I think they can look good under a number of circumstances, too. Take The Chairman, for example:

Definately not formal.

And some people look good in anything! I think Bing can even pull off the sombrero!

 

[Fortino37]

Fedoras and Homburgs

I really love fedoras some are more formal than others, but the Homburgs are different, I like them very much, but as I see, still this kind are much more formal than the rest of the styles, bowlers included.(Top hats excluded)
I use any opportunity to wear them all.

My Stetson Vita felt from the 40's

My Stetson Whippet

My Stetson Playboy from the 40's

Fortino37

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Ironically, the once mighty homburg of yore is now the bargain of bargains on eBay. You can get a vintage Borsalino homburg for a fraction of the price of a Borsalino fedora. eBay is full of vintage homburgs, including those of excellent quality, and plenty of them don't get sold at any price.

.

 

[metropd]

Personally I like the classic wide brimmed fedora, like fedora with a teardrop crown and big bad front and center pinch. Homburgs have their place but if I'm going to dress casual its gonna be a suit tie and fedora. IF I dress up and I want a pencil curl brim its a top hat not a homburg. Although a homburg is more pragmatic than a top hat. Fedora do not tell me you don't love the top hat. Of course the classic 37' stetson wippet was a great all purpose hat, so was 1940 Citation( Citation made great fedoras)but come on a Locke and co. silk topper.

 

[metropd]

Fortino you look absolutely marvelous. Sorry I haven't got back to you about the hat but I've been very busy in fashion design school. If that grey wippet is a 2 3/4 brim you might want to help a brotha out, cuz if ya got paypal you got a deal, name the price brothaman.