I have to say that everytime I go into that JJ Hat center in NYC, I am very tempted to get a hat, especially a summer one. I never do because I dont really wear hats and I would probably leave it somewhere. Of course, i approave of summer hats for anyone who likes hats and some sort of panama optimo and/or coconut weave pork pie hat sounds natty.

A Panama is really the only halfway dressy summer hat I like. Unfortunately, it seems the good ones are awfully expensive. I have a rather cheap Panama that has lasted me about seven years. Unfortunately, the crown is cracking, and I'll have to deep-six it soon. This leaves me with a dilemma. Should I fork over about $300 for a halfway decent one, or get another cheapie. By the time I wear the cheapie and a similar replacement replacement out, I'll in all likelihood be dead...and money ahead as well.

Last edited by Bob Loblaw (2008-05-08 13:14:31)

I love Panama hats.  There is something very alive about them that really appeals to me.  Unfortunately, this has only translated into my buying them and requesting them as gifts, and not into my wearing them.  I think this is my year, as I have taken delivery of a few cotton and linen suits over the last months, so I have something that strikes me as a better match.

Like iammatt I keep buying them but never wear them. I love the concept but always lose my nerve at the last moment.

There is something particularly stylish about a battered C Crown ideally worn with a suitably rumpled linen suit. Maybe for me it is partly daydreaming of walking along the promenade at Nice, or being Uncle Henry in the film A Good Year and growing old disgracefully.

Last edited by Russell_Street (2008-05-09 01:24:08)