How to wear the flat cap

How to wear the flat cap

One of the most used hats by our customers is certainly the flat cap. In Italy the coppola hat is often linked to a southern imaginary. In reality the flat cap was born much further north and precisely in England.

History tells us that in the 16th century there was an ordinance whereby all males over the age of six were obliged to wear a wool cap. Because? To support domestic wool production against foreign imports. Ancient problems yet very modern. Flat caps, thrived until they reached their peak between the 19th and 20th centuries. Even men of noble rank began to wear them favoring fine yarns. It was the moment in which flat caps became a status symbol linked to the pastimes of the aristocracy such as golf, hunting, horse riding and up to the first automobiles. The yarns become tweed, warm and resistant to bad weather thanks also to the small visor.

In America, flat caps were the predecessors of baseball caps: worn by everyone in the 20th century, they were also included in school uniforms. Newspaper sellers especially wore the flat cap still known as the Newsboy Cap.
Today the flat cap is still one of the most widely used hats around the world and so the question is: how do you wear the flat cap? We have seen that historically the flat cap has been used by all social classes. The difference was the yarns. This is still the case today: there are more sporty flat caps that are created from more common yarns such as wool and straw and more formal ones such as tweed wool caps and linen caps that make the flat caps suitable for more sophisticated occasions. In our collection of flat caps you will notice that the price varies depending on the material used and in the description of each product we recommend the most suitable use.

How to wear the flat cap for men

In general, we would like to tell you that the flat cap is a hat for everyday use that goes well with most of the clothes worn during the day. We recommend summer flat caps because they will protect you from the sun in style and some yarns, such as linen, are thermoregulatory. Men's winter flat caps are usually made of wool and are lined inside: they are an ally of style and against the cold.
The 8 segments caps, also called Irish caps, are slightly more casual than traditional flat caps, commonly called duckbill: made up of eight wedges of fabric that meet in the center of the hat with a small fabric button and a small visor. Today they are very much back in fashion thanks to the successful television series Peaky Blinders, starring Cillian Murphy. The name of the historic gang "Peaky Blinders" derives from the custom of hiding razor blades in the visor of hats, so that they can also be used as a weapon. We have created a dedicate workshop to crete your unique Peaky Blinder Hat: book it now!

Who can wear the flat cap

A question that many of our customers ask us is whether or not it is appropriate to wear a flat cap. Although still very privileged by a male clientele, the flat cap has now become a unisex hat. The flat cap is a hat for men and women. Perfect for those with a square or oval face, we recommend the model with a visor if the face is elongated, while for a round face the goose-bill flat cap model, i.e. without a visor. In our blog you will find the guide on which hair fits your face best.

Who can wear the women's flat cap

Our customers have been choosing our flat caps for years for a slightly androgynous look. Or simply as a women's hat to combine with more sporty jackets. In fact, the flat cap can also be worn with anoraks or, in our opinion, the perfect and very English combination, with waxed jackets. Summer flat caps for women are usually clear and made of light materials such as linen and cotton, we also like to play with textures like our perforated flat cap. For the winter the flat caps that never go out of fashion are with the fabric commonly called tartan, and we have even produced a 100% waterproof flat cap.

Where not to wear a flat cap

The flat cap, like any other headgear, follows the rules of etiquette. It should not be worn indoors by men for example. Many, in fact, choose the flat cap because it is easy to fold (here our video how to fold the flat cap) and takes its original shape as it is an unstructured hat. It fits in your pocket and doesn't take up much space. Although the precious materials such as precious wool or high quality straw mean that flat caps can be chosen for even more formal moments, we advise against using them during elegant ceremonies. Other types of formal hats such as the trilby hat or the veil hats are much more suitable.

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