Trends To Watch…June 2018

I love the warm, long days of summer…and they’re officially here! We’ve been talking about self-tanners (for those of us who don’t sit out in the sun anymore), pretty off-the-shoulder tops, and getting outside for exercise and fun. The sun exposure is a good thing, but for some, it can be a danger especially if you’ve already been diagnosed with skin cancer. So a HAT is a must!

A good sun hat should provide shade from the sun for your scalp, face, neck, head and ears and preferably have a high UV barrier factor.

Good news — there’s a style just for your head shape, size, and personal style!

When I talked about hats a couple weeks ago in a Monday Mornings Live With Linda chat, I went into my closet to pull out all my hats. I had more than I thought! My hats are either a floppy sun hat with a wide brim, or I have visors and hiking hats with built-in UV barriers.

Let’s all make a commitment this summer to wear a hat when outdoors in the sun. There’s more and more skin cancer being detected these days, and why take a chance?

How to Choose a Hat

1 – Color Palette

I recommend wearing hats in your color palette because a hat is close to your face. At least wear a warm color or cool color to match your skin tone temperature. If your skin tone is warm, look for neutral colors such as warm beige, light brown, camel, or olive green; or wear a pop of color like orange, orange-red, or teal! If your skin tone is cool, your neutral colors are black, dark blue, gray, and white. Add a pop of color with true red, deep navy or hot pink!

2 – Face Shape

Find a hat that complements your face shape. If your face shape is longer than it is wide, your best hat shapes have a wide brim to balance out your head length. If your face is round or heart-shaped, and you have a wide forehead, wear a hat with more height on top, and play with angles. An irregular brim or prominent crown will give you height, as well as vertical accessories, like feathers.

All you diamond-shaped ladies should look for hats with a wide brim and side band to make your narrow forehead appear wider. A  fedora with a medium brim, worn at an angle will look smashing!

3 – Signature Style

You want a hat that completes your look, so your hat should fit in with your signature style. Are you a conservative, tailored gal? Or a bohemian, natural dresser? How about sporty, cowgirl? Find a hat that expresses your personal style!

Note: When buying hats online, sometimes you can specify the size. For example if you’re buying a customized hat on Etsy the designer may ask you for the size you want. Measure your head first with a soft measuring tape to get the right size, putting the tape approximately 3/4 of an inch above your ears (you don’t want your fedora to sit too low). Get within an 1/8 inch. And always size up.

Let’s Explore Summer Hats!

Here’s a cotton/linen blend hat with UPF 50+. It is approximately 22.5″ with a 6″ wired brim. Fully lined with grosgrain sweatband and elastic string for adjustment. Travel-friendly.

 

There’s the straw hat with a wide brim for warm summer days, and it’s lightweight and breathable. This hat from JOSENI and sold on Amazon is 100% paper straw, foldable, with a detachable chin strap for windy days. It’s one size fits all, but the adjustable tape built inside the sweatband will fit 22″ diameter.

There’s the floppy sun hat, or the wide brim sun hat both of which will look good and give you good protection. If you’re going for a bit of style then you might rock a Panama hat, and don’t forget to tilt it an angle. You might need a hat more suited to sporting action which offers high UV protection or something suitable for your hiking, travel or watersports.

 

Did you know that the fedora, or panama, hat actually began with a woman. According to the “History of Hats,” the fedora style came about because of a play written by Victorien Sardou, which was named “Fédora”. Stage actress, Sarah Bernhardt, wore the felt hat on stage, and as a result, women’s fedoras grew in popularity.

A few tips on how to wear it: If the brim of the hat is smaller, tilt the hat toward the back of your head leaving the front of the brim sitting on your forehead. If it’s wide brim fedora, sit the hat directly on top of your head. I love wearing a fedora with edgier outfits, like ripped jeans, booties, and a leather moto jacket. Then, again, the fedora looks great with a sundress, too!