What to wear - advise please.

[mattface]

As for one of your original questions about wearing a fedora...I wear one with business casual, but would not wear one with "street casual", such as blue jeans. I just think a fedora looks mis-matched with that level of casual, and one just looks like they're wearing a hat for fashion reasons rather than practicality, a la the hipster goofball look, which is probably not what you're wanting. I typically wear a flat cap when wearing anything less dressy than dress trousers and long-sleeve button up shirt.

I go very much the other way on this one. I don't think of a fedora as necessarily a "dress hat", I wear a fedora with almost everything, dressy or casual. Felt in the winter, straw in warmer weather. I think they look great with jeans as well as with a suit. If we're talking about emulating classic styles, men wore fedoras with everything, not just with a suit. For my part I am bald as a cue ball, so I find hats very functional, but also fashionable. I'm not trying to hide anything, and I don't generally wear them indoors, but they do a great job keeping the weather off my bald head. I've tried flat caps, and they just don't suit me. When I'm going very casual I'll wear a cadet cap.

P.S. I think I pull it off, and I think you will see a lot of folks nailing the casual fedora look on these forums.

 

[HudsonHawk]

I go very much the other way on this one. I don't think of a fedora as necessarily a "dress hat", I wear a fedora with almost everything, dressy or casual. Felt in the winter, straw in warmer weather. I think they look great with jeans as well as with a suit. If we're talking about emulating classic styles, men wore fedoras with everything, not just with a suit. For my part I am bald as a cue ball, so I find hats very functional, but also fashionable. I'm not trying to hide anything, and I don't generally wear them indoors, but they do a great job keeping the weather off my bald head. I've tried flat caps, and they just don't suit me. When I'm going very casual I'll wear a cadet cap.

P.S. I think I pull it off, and I think you will see a lot of folks nailing the casual fedora look on these forums.

Fashion is in the eye of the beholder. What looks great on you might look silly on me. That's why they make such variety!

Though I'm glad to hear you comment on a hat's functionality. I find that 99% of the fellas out there who wear a hat for strictly fashion, without considering functionality first, look like a doofus. And the only acceptable times to wear a hat indoors are 1) religous reasons, 2) if you're a participant in a sporting event and the hat is part of the required uniform, or 3) you are an actor in a play and it's part of your costume.

 

[mattface]

1) religous reasons, 2) if you're a participant in a sporting event and the hat is part of the required uniform, or 3) you are an actor in a play and it's part of your costume.

Generally agree with this, but I have arrived at a couple of exceptions for my own convenience, namely when at a bar, or sitting at the bar in a restaurant if there is not a hat rack handy. Better to keep them on your head if there is not an appropriate place to put them. Also I believe that was the accepted protocol back in the heydey of hat wearing.

 

[HudsonHawk]

Generally agree with this, but I have arrived at a couple of exceptions for my own convenience, namely when at a bar, or sitting at the bar in a restaurant if there is not a hat rack handy. Better to keep them on your head if there is not an appropriate place to put them. Also I believe that was the accepted protocol back in the heydey of hat wearing.

It frustrates me to no end when an establishment has no place to hang my hat. But this is just symptomatic of the "casualling down" of dress in general (my friend calls it the "curse of the cargo shorts"). It's to the point where the dressiest thing many men own is a pair of khakis and a polo shirt. And it's not just restaurants and bars, but about going out in public in general. I am appalled at what many people believe is acceptable dress on an airplane these days.

 

[highway66blues]

...and These are All the Beauty of Opinion...
NONE are wrong & none are right & we each got at least one & i LOVE 'em ALL


"I am appalled at what many people believe is acceptable dress on an airplane these days."

I am Appalled at what many people believe is acceptable dress in damn near ev'ry & ANY Public place.
I see it Ev'rywhere...grocery stores,department stores,banks,mom & pop shops,Ev'ryWhere
=modern cheap work boots,sandals/flip-flops with sleep/"lounge" pants or sweatpants & some crappy t-shirt

REALLY ?!?!
This is the best we can do ??
THIS as good as it gets !?!?!

My Appologies...HAD to get that offa me

 

[Broccoli]

...and These are All the Beauty of Opinion...
NONE are wrong & none are right & we each got at least one & i LOVE 'em ALL


"I am appalled at what many people believe is acceptable dress on an airplane these days."

I am Appalled at what many people believe is acceptable dress in damn near ev'ry & ANY Public place.
I see it Ev'rywhere...grocery stores,department stores,banks,mom & pop shops,Ev'ryWhere
=modern cheap work boots,sandals/flip-flops with sleep/"lounge" pants or sweatpants & some crappy t-shirt

REALLY ?!?!
This is the best we can do ??
THIS as good as it gets !?!?!

My Appologies...HAD to get that offa me

Well, just take advantage of the situation. It's not as hard to be the one most well dressed, and it's very easy to recieve compliments.

 

[highway66blues]

Take 'em when I get "em,fer sure.
As we all should

Speakin' of.....over this past weekend i was at a local small town history celebration day festival,was in my usual
http://www.flickr.com/photos/96251424@N02/8815706751/
and was stopped by a resident,who proceded to take my photograph (w/cell phone) & told me was gonna post me of facebook or so damn place,coz i was dressed not like ev'ryone else.
Was just my ev'ryday work (and bummin' round) clothes. But i did mention to her that seems folks nowadays dunno how to dress anymore.
She agreed.

 

[Matt Crunk]

It frustrates me to no end when an establishment has no place to hang my hat. But this is just symptomatic of the "casualling down" of dress in general (my friend calls it the "curse of the cargo shorts"). It's to the point where the dressiest thing many men own is a pair of khakis and a polo shirt. And it's not just restaurants and bars, but about going out in public in general. I am appalled at what many people believe is acceptable dress on an airplane these days.

I'm with you 100% on this HudsonHawk. I hate dining out in a fine restaurant and having to look at people at the tables around be in t-shirts, shorts and flip-flops. I really miss the "jacket and tie required" places I went to with my parents when I was a kid. Even back then I felt like we were somewhere special because everyone was dressed up. There doesn't seem to be any places that enforce real dress codes anymore.

And to the original poster . . . From all I've seen Brown and Blue was a common color combination in the Golden Era.

 

[highway66blues]

Even with Matt Crunk's thoughts just raised a few more of mine
I just got back from attending Sat.eve Mass and couldn't help but notice all the untucked shirts.
Button down dress, short sleve button downs, "polo"s, Tee's (in church-god Help Us), you name it.
It HARDLY not only there but, Everywhere.
"Dress down" and "casual" are the "Now" or "me" or what the hell ever generation anymore.
Laziness and sloth is what I see it as.

And Hats ? Yeah...most CERTAINLY used for a so-called "fashion statement"

I can tell yinz fine fellas, if you all saw the current state of my Stetson, it'd probably set ya ta cry .
My hat is worn As Functional First (as seen in my avatar**worn inside ONLY for the pic)
...& well...then also to go along with what I'm wearing

 

[EliasRDA]

Even with Matt Crunk's thoughts just raised a few more of mine
I just got back from attending Sat.eve Mass and couldn't help but notice all the untucked shirts.
Button down dress, short sleve button downs, "polo"s, Tee's (in church-god Help Us), you name it.
It HARDLY not only there but, Everywhere.
"Dress down" and "casual" are the "Now" or "me" or what the hell ever generation anymore.
Laziness and sloth is what I see it as.

And Hats ? Yeah...most CERTAINLY used for a so-called "fashion statement"

I can tell yinz fine fellas, if you all saw the current state of my Stetson, it'd probably set ya ta cry .
My hat is worn As Functional First (as seen in my avatar**worn inside ONLY for the pic)
...& well...then also to go along with what I'm wearing

Here in lower Sussex County Delaware, we see a lot of beach shorts/cargo shorts, tshirts & sandals, but thats to be expected in a beach/resort area. I'm sure FL & NC beach areas are the same at their high season.
But it bugs me to no end to see it on the locals in the "off season", when they could affect at least a short sleeve button down with khaki's.

The other day, it was around 90 with heat index nearing 100, & a gentleman walked past my vehicle wearing a sharp creased white long sleeve button down with undershirt, & dress pants. He looked to be maybe mid 50's, but he didnt appear to be the local chain pharmicist which would have been the only higher end store where I was at the time, but could have come up there as it was a very small town (Milton area). It shocked my mother & I to no end to see that, as it was so out of place for the heat & area.
But it was nice to see that there are still some men who care about their appearence & that is not just some "work" uniform.

Eli

 

[Tomasso]

Brown & blue is a good combination. But shoes and hat should be coordinated. I'm all for 'throwing out the rulebook' at times (since a lot of the so-called rules are nonsense) but hat and shoes is an area that I would not personally compromise on. Similarly, I do not wear brown leather gloves with black leather shoes. I know most people won't notice, but I will.

I wholeheartedly agree on all points. And I would include leather watch bands, belts and briefcases into the equation.

 

[dhermann1]

To get back to the original question, I agree that the brown hat and shoes look fine with the blue suit, and that the suit does look a little loose.
And I agree with all of the above rants, including the ones that disagree with other ones.

 

[Shangas]

It's my experience that brown and blue go together extremely well. So long as it's blue clothes and a brown hat. I don't know about the same colour-combo vice-versa.