# Is there any kind of hat I could wear that doesn't identify me with some subculture? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 5, 2006, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604 "2006-05-05T21:31:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cagey\_Drifter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@Cagey\_Drifter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cagey_Drifter)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/1 "2006-05-05T21:31:06Z")
Isn’t there any hat I can wear without being some kind of a-- a-- FREAK? And ball caps don’t count. ---
**Author:** ![yBeayf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/e274bd/32.png) [@yBeayf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yBeayf)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/2 "2006-05-05T21:33:32Z")
Just generic, plain hats? A fedora, or bowler, or homburg, or tweed cap or something? I would think most hats aren’t associated with a particular subculture. ---
**Author:** ![Cagey\_Drifter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@Cagey\_Drifter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cagey_Drifter)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/3 "2006-05-05T21:36:18Z")
Most hats have some kind of image associated with them. If not subculture, then time period or fashion style. Obvious? Maybe. But I think what I’m getting at is: what is the “jeans” of hats? ---
**Author:** ![jawdirk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df705f/32.png) [@jawdirk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jawdirk)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/4 "2006-05-05T21:37:02Z")
A simple ski hat, like [this](http://www.millerhats.com/productimages/484.jpg). I’ve got one that is straight black. It’s cultural message, in it’s entirety, is “I want to keep my head warm.” ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/5 "2006-05-05T21:37:52Z")
Well, the jeans of hats is what you eliminated in your OP-- baseball hats. There are very nice baseball hats (the dark, designer jeans of the world) to dirty, worn out, beat up old hats (the comfy, faded jeans of the world). ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/6 "2006-05-05T21:39:44Z")
It depends on what you mean by “freak.” A snap brim fedora may make some people think you’re old school, but others will think you’re hip. Same with a narrow brim porkpie. Do you want to keep the sun out of your eyes, or just off the top of your head? Do you need it to keep warm? Please clarify your need. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/7 "2006-05-05T21:44:52Z")
> [@Cagey Drifter](#): > > Most hats have some kind of image associated with them. If not subculture, then time period or fashion style. Obvious? Maybe. But I think what I’m getting at is: what is the “jeans” of hats? Anything you wear–a baseball cap, jeans, a three-piece suit–is sending messages and creating an image. If you want a hat that looks like what most other people would wear, you’re looking at baseball caps and ski hats. ---
**Author:** ![jawdirk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df705f/32.png) [@jawdirk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jawdirk)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/8 "2006-05-05T21:45:29Z")
> [@DiosaBellissima](#): > > Well, the jeans of hats is what you eliminated in your OP-- baseball hats. There are very nice baseball hats (the dark, designer jeans of the world) to dirty, worn out, beat up old hats (the comfy, faded jeans of the world). I’d wear jeans, but I’d never wear a baseball cap. Baseball caps say that you are into baseball, that you lean towards the social, “jock,” segment of society, or that you are blue collar (or all three). ---
**Author:** ![Cagey\_Drifter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@Cagey\_Drifter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cagey_Drifter)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/9 "2006-05-05T21:46:33Z")
my need. well, how can I put it with the least element of shame…? To… hide the… onset of… baldness. (quietly weeps) ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/10 "2006-05-05T21:49:42Z")
I didn’t see your post 3 when I wrote that. The newsboy cap is very informal, and it has been in and out of fashion for over a century. Kangol takes a slightly puffy version of a sports-car cap and turns it around so it looks like a beret from the front. There’s the cloth bucket hat you see on golfers and tennis folks. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/11 "2006-05-05T22:06:53Z")
> [@Cagey Drifter](#): > > my need. well, how can I put it with the least element of shame…? > > To… hide the… onset of… baldness. (quietly weeps) Oh, that. Well, friend, you’re going to have to either get a very good hairpiece, or **learn to look cool with baldness.** Be at one with your scalp. It shows you are a grownup. Let your scalp flag fly. 🆒 Don’t get me wrong. Hats are very cool, but if you wear one all the time to hide your pate, folks will see you as vain or scared. (Or Jewish ;j ) ---
**Author:** ![Cagey\_Drifter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@Cagey\_Drifter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cagey_Drifter)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/12 "2006-05-05T22:11:15Z")
Yeah, I know… but even aside from that, I’ve never felt comfortable with a hat because I feel like there’s all kinds of baggage associated with any given hat (jock, hippie, businessman, goth, frat boy, etc), but I want to enjoy hats, dagnabbit! ---
**Author:** ![Sal\_Ammoniac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8dc957/32.png) [@Sal\_Ammoniac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sal_Ammoniac)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/13 "2006-05-05T22:14:28Z")
I can’t believe nobody has yet suggested the tinfoil hat! Timeless, functional, cheap – what more could you want? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/14 "2006-05-05T22:21:45Z")
Shave your head. You’re going bald anyway. Embrace the change. Mach3 the whole thing. Cueball it. ---
**Author:** ![Cagey\_Drifter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@Cagey\_Drifter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cagey_Drifter)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/15 "2006-05-05T22:35:23Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Shave your head. You’re going bald anyway. Embrace the change. Mach3 the whole thing. Cueball it. Yeah, I’m planning on doing that eventually. But I’m only at the thinning stage now. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 5, 2006, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/16 "2006-05-05T22:44:41Z")
Then a baseball cap is your best bet. Maybe people will think you are Ron Howard. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2006, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/17 "2006-05-06T00:15:34Z")
Why not embrace a classic [Zero Mostel swirlie-combover](http://www.lileks.com/institute/publicity/zero.html)? ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2006, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/18 "2006-05-06T02:09:26Z")
> [@Cagey Drifter](#): > > my need. well, how can I put it with the least element of shame…? > > To… hide the… onset of… baldness. (quietly weeps) As I lose my hair I shorten it. This will sound stupid but what makes baldness look bad is hair, not the lack of it. In fact, lots of hair doesn’t guarantee anything. I give you Donald Trump and his pet rat Scruffy. Long hair on a balding head (vs no hair), I give you Gallager (before and after). By cutting your hair short you will look younger over time. Look at Ron Howard’s hair cut vs Patrick Stewart. Mr. Howard looks like he aged 30 years overnight. Patrick Stewart has acheived an almost ageless look. As for hats, you can’t escape creating an identity with one. All clothing creates an image. Pick one that works for you. There’s a guy I work with who lost a lot of his hair to chemo so he simple shaved it off. Looks really good and so does the hat that he wears (panama). It works for him quite nicely. keep your head held high and have fun choosing a new look. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2006, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/19 "2006-05-06T02:48:56Z")
I see a hat as a tool. Just like a coat is. Wear the right one for the right weather. I will wear a straw cowboy hat if I’m going to be in the sun all day. It protects my eyes and ears. I will wear a baseball cap under the hood of a coat if I have to be in wet rainy weather all day. Keeps the rain off my face. If it’s cold and I’m cross country skiing, I’ll take a head band. I donno. I’m 45 and have a full head of hair. Two of the guys that I work with do the ¼” shave on their heads, and I guess they are going bald. Not sure. I think it’s mostly convenience for them. And they where a cap (baseball type) everywhere. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [May 6, 2006, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604/20 "2006-05-06T04:13:39Z")
I love hats like [this one](http://www.landsend.com/cd/fp/prod/0,,1_2_1931_59140_99021_77468_5:view=-1,00.html?CM_MERCH=PAGE_62&sid=4456188226888133090). I tend to think of these as the “jeans” of hats. You can get 'em plain or with logos (like [this](http://hrccornerstore.myimagefirst.com/store/product.asp?sku=271%2D10%2D0969&id=595&mscssid=DHKC13PLF1H78N2BGMRXPU2KQRTJ27C2) or [this](http://www.flickr.com/photos/misnomer971/78778100/)), and they only say what you want them to say. I’m not a huge hat-wearer, but I have about 9 of this kind of hat. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-any-kind-of-hat-i-could-wear-that-doesnt-identify-me-with-some-subculture/355604.md?page=2)