Unisex Clothing

Reviews

I bought this hat for my 3-year-old grandson and he loves it. Because it only comes in one size, I had to pad it a little to make it fit him. Now, when he and I go out on our "adventures" we have matching "Indy" hats! Although it is only intended as a costume hat, it is of high enough quality for a child's play hat.

Reviews

Clearly in the description of this hat, it is listed as a medium in size, however, when we received the hat it was a size large. This is misadvertisement, so when people purchase something, they expect to get exactly what you have advertised. No one wants to turn around and spend additional money returning an item because the retailer decides to send the wrong size. This was a xmas gift for my nephew.

Reviews

I'm not so sure I buy the author's main thesis that outlines that the hat died because of anarchists, bald men and communist groups that wanted to overthrow Imperialist culture. Bald men didn't even exist in the years before 1970 when nuclear waste was dumped in all communities, thus creating genetic mutations in the human gene pool. It'd probably be better to examine the economic cost of producing hats in the years from 1929-1945, where you will notice that all materials went up in costs. Alpaca hair, goat mutton and felt from camels shot up because of the depression. The economic collapse of the hat was inevitable. To place the blame on 60's "hippies" who had long hair and fleas is blatantly absurd. Bald Men Always Come Out on Top: 101 Ways to Use Your Head and Win With Skin

Steinberg has written a thought provoking book about how men's hats went the way of the buffalo in America. He views the event largely through the lens of JFK and his aversion to hats, something that seems to be largely an urban legend magnified by newspaper writers eager to perpetuate Kennedy's youthful and maverick image. When it sticks to recounting the history of hats the book is fascinating, and reading about such forgotten things as the sometimes violently enforced "Straw Hat Day" and the hat check racket powerfully convey how prevalent and important hats used to be. More images would have helped here, since the most modern readers will have little clue as to to the difference between a boater and a stingy brim fedora. Less interesting is the recurring thread of the hat industry trying to get Kennedy to feature a hat more prominently in his wardrobe. It gets repetitive as the requests must have seemed to JFK. The backdrop of the history of the hat is better than theme of Kennedy as an icon rebuffing the hat industry as it tries to turn back the tide of bare headed men. Hatless Jack failed to convince me that Homburgs and fedoras were cast away because they were inconvenient symbols of soulless conformity, and the lack of hats nowadays is a symptom of windblown free spirit and more liberated times. The author makes more sense when he sites an increasingly indoor, motorized and informal society moving almost unconsciously away from a fashion than when he tries to show some sort of meaningful revolution against hats. It's a well written, interesting book and it only drags when it goes to the JFK/Hatters angle too many times. I'm glad I read it, and it has prompted me to consider aquiring a real hat, baseball caps be damned.

I'm of two minds about this book. Neil Steinberg has produced a great history of the form and content of hat-wearing, and the decline of the behatted male in the United States. I learned a great deal about the industry, the importance of hats to the idea of the well-dressed man, and the many forces that came together to send the noble fedora and its cousins into their long decline. And also about John F. Kennedy. But while the author has done a fine job with the facts, I'm still not sure I buy all his interpretation of them. He strikes me as far too willing to buy into the cliché -- true in its most basic form, perhaps, but far too exaggerated in the popular mind -- of the dull, conformist, gray 1950s and the lively, individualist, color-saturated '60s. Perhaps he should, as the Randians would say, check his premises -- particularly his evident assumption that informality equals authenticity and self-expression. But if it is "conformist" for a man to wear a hat at a time when all men wear hats, why is it a sign of rebellious nonconformity to abandon hats when all men are abandoning them? Are we really any more individualist today, when forty-something men go to the mall dressed in the same long t-shirts, baggy shorts, and giant sneakers worn by their twelve year old sons? If you want to demonstrate individuality and self-expression through your dress today, gentlemen, the best way to do so is with suit, tie, and a well-maintained snap-brim. But, check out this book first to make sure you know when to tip the fedora, and to whom.

I can't distinguish between Trilby's and Fedoras, I'm not sure I want to. They may even be the same thing. I was born in the same year that President Kennedy was assassinated, and I didn't know that there was a generally held belief that, because he didn't wear a hat at his inauguration, that he was responsible for the worldwide decline in hat wearing. Steinberg's book shows that this proposition is untrue on two counts - that hat wearing was declining throughout the Twentieth Century, and that, in fact, President Kennedy did wear a hat during his inauguration - in the procession up to it, tipping it to his father, and in the parade after it - but not in the memorable portions of it. Steinberg's book accumulates a significant amount of information that might be classified as social history or even incidental detail - the change in fashion for hats from top hats to less formal attire; the expense of owning a hat - hat check stalls were leased out by hotels and restaurants, and the leasees were accused of keeping both the fees and the tips; the vain, though valiant efforts, of hat companies to fight the tide of hatless-ness. He counters the view that hatless-ness was inevitable, pointing out that tie-wearing could be seen as equally obsolete and yet continued through the twentieth century. I think he's on thin ice with this argument, given the increasing popularity of `smart-casual' tieless-ness and `dress down Friday's'. The book also paints a picture of how Kennedy represented youth, vigour and change in 1960. His bareheadedness was part of this, so, apparently were the two-button suits which he favoured. His patrician-cool style was also apparent in his dislike of the usual hoopla of politics, he vowed never to raise both of his arms together, and politely refused to don almost all headgear - hats, Indian feathers- which he was offered on the campaign trail. There is a quite effective description of the impression left by Kennedy, especially his inauguration. Steinberg poses, but does not answer, the question as to why we remember him as hatless, when in fact he had a hat, and wore it for some of the occasion. Having read it, I am not sure why I did so, I have no interest in fashion or social history. However I would recommend it as a good, off-beat read. I think the book (I read the paperback version) would have benefited from pictures, which might have helped identify the various types of hat being referred to. One effect of this book however, is that I have started to watch black and white movies with renewed awareness of the hats, I recently watched a Jimmy Stewart movie, and was quite taken with the fact that he kept his hat on in the car.

Imagine if all of a sudden men starting going outside without pants on. (Let's for the moment ignore the teenagers who wear them so low they are essentially pantless, wearing tall socks rather than trousers.) We would be startled, shocked, confused, and wonder what had happened. Well, this is what occurred during the 20th Century with hats. Look at old photos of busy New York streets and you'll see every head covered. Rich, poor, young, old. No difference. Yet this essential piece of attire virtually disappeared within a generation. And no one really noticed. The traditional tale is that Kennedy's inauguration did it in. But this book clearly establishes that is not true. No, it was a gradual slide that picked up steam, and in my father's generation (born in 1930) completely vanished. For him a hat was what old men wore, and though he had one for the rare occasion when he wanted to look more mature, after about 1960 he never wore it again. Look at the famous photo of Ruby shooting Oswald. The old guys in authority, and Ruby himself, are all wearing their hats; the younger guys are not. A fedora today is an affectation, an attempt to stand out. Whereas, as Steinberg so vividly points out, NOT wearing a hat, or wearing the out of season hat, could bring anything from insults to assaults. I was fascinated by the entire book. Well written, well organized, well constructed. I only wish there had been illustrations to show me what all these various headpieces were. But as social history, this is one of the most illuminating and insightful looks at cultural change I've ever read.

Reviews

I got an acrylic-woolen hat instead of 100% cotton. Got prompt refund, and I got to keep the wrong hat. Customer service good. It works in New England cold, and has sort of become my signature hat these days. Decent quality. No complains for a free hat. If you are looking for just cotton, oops... good luck.

Bought this for my boyfriend, hes been wanting a fedora, looks good, good quality,no rips tears or anything. black on black. I think its more of a theatrical hat but thats okay, I put a yellow feather in the side and he loves to wear it. sweet hat.

its perfect, just how i wanted it look and looks great with pretty much anything i try to wear it with.

Bought a fendora hat as a Christmas present. He loved it! Everyone else loves it too! It is the perfect fit and the fantastic quality was unexpected for the low prices they offer at Private Island. This is the place to shop for the BEST online customer service and quality. Believe me, I've looked!

My mother ordered this for me for a Christmas present - an XL 100% cotton black fedora. What was delivered was a small 100% polyester grey pinstripe porkpie hat. I contacted the seller and they said they would send a replacement if I agreed to send the original hat back. They refused to provide a pre-paid postage sticker, only to refund the shipping paid by my mother. They then shipped the replacement hat to my mother, not to me. Which meant that she then had to ship the hat to me specifically because she was only visiting for the holidays and lives almost 400 miles away. Well I finally got the hat yesterday...and it's STILL too small. And it's still a porkpie hat, just with the front brim bent down. The quality is horrible and it looks atrocious. I wanted this hat as a supplement to my hand-crafted $120 wool porkpie hat I wear for special occasions. I like the hat and wanted something cheaper I could wear day-to-day that I wouldn't worry about losing/getting damaged as much. This hat is worthless, doesn't fit, and is just awful. Unless you're wanting something for a cheap gangster costume and don't want something plastic, avoid this hat and this seller. Even then, I'd think twice as I don't even think this hat would stand up to a single night out without getting completely ruined and unwearable.

Reviews

O wow this hat is amazing, its just what i wanted and it arrived pretty fast with no complictions or delays. It fits me perfectly and goes really well with my face, and im not much of a hat person becuase i have a pretty narrow face and hats just make it look smaller but this one didnt! It fits and looks great and goes with like any outfit, i got ivory, so look no further, this is the hat u need

Awesome quality and service. Although I am living overseas the item arrived in one week. I own approx 12 fashion hats and this is by far the best one that I have purchased. I will wear it with pride and let everyone know when I purchased it from. Outstanding quality and customer service. Everything I wanted in both size and quality. By far five stars in my books!!! Ted

I needed this hat for a white party and called Gravity trading to see about shipping faster. Answered phone immediately and they hooked me up. Great Hat! This can make any guy with a fat ugly head look cool.