HOW TOWEAR A HAT
You can kill a hat by putting it on wrong and that can be an
issue in certain shops because if the customer – who’s not
sure about wearing a hat in the first place – puts the hat on
wrong, they think it doesn’t suit them. But if they have
some guidance and advice to put the hat on right, they can
be surprised.
The amount of ladies that think the elastic of a hat
goes under the chin because of their school days… no! The
elastic goes under the hairline at the back, and then tease
your hair over the elastic, so you totally lose the elastic.
In general they come forward on the face – there are a
few that go on the back like the 1950s’ style halo – but in
general, they come to the front of the face because they are
about framing the face, not the whole head.
Wear a hat on an angle, in symmetry to the eye shape.
When you’ve got a brim – you can follow the eyes,
eyebrows and eye shape. Most of my brims would be in line
with the eyeshape, and with the slant of the jawline; it has
a natural symmetry with the face.
If you wear it straight, to me it’s not right – it draws
attention just to the nose and makes the eyes look very
horizontal. The moment you put it on at an angle, it just
softens and enhances the face.
Men, put your trilbies at a slight angle. It’s so much less
severe. When you’re wearing a day hat, tilt it back so you’re
talking to a face. When you’re then out and about you can
have it over the eye. It’s about face and body language.
When you’re not used to wearing it, you get it home
and you think – 'Is this a mistake?' What you should do is
wear it at home – wear it doing the housework. Wear it for
any excuse. You’ll catch yourself and gradually get used to
seeing yourself in a hat.
For the first two weeks you’ll get people looking at
you, and you’ll think, 'What’s wrong with me?' But then
you have to remind yourself why you used to think others
looked cool in hats – because they did, and that’s why
they’re looking at you.
It takes a while to get used to it, but it’s all about how
you deal with it. It won’t be long before you realise just
how fantastic you look.
Visit Philip at Walter Wright for the complete studio
experience of an expert consultation on choosing your
perfect hat or headpiece. You can also order online. Full
details at www.walterwright.com
pink weddings magazine » 37
Magnificent Millinery
‘A hat is the statement – you can
have the most fantastic dress,
but without a hat you’re a good
looking person in a great dress.
With a hat, they’ll forget the
dress. They will remember you
as the statement and they will
always remember the hat.’