The honest truth is that hat sizes vary from brand to brand and even style to style within brands. For this reason we measure the circumference of all of our hat and list that in centimeters (more accurate than inches and no weird fractions).
A few generalities to help find the right fit for you:
- Fit is personal.
- There's no wrong way to wear your hat.
- Some of us like hats that we can tuck one or both ears in, some like a jaunty tilt, some like a classic 1940s high and tight fit.
- Some styles are firm and some are soft.
- As a general rule, stiff hats tend to fit smaller, soft hats are a little more forgiving.
- Where appropriate, we put a recommendation to size up in the product description.
- Sweat band material effects fit.
- Leather will give a snug, close fit. Leather sweatbands warm up and adjust to your head, much like leathers shoes adjust to your feet.
- Cloth and grosgrain sweats give a relaxed fit. If you like to get an ear in your hat, opt for cloth or grosgrain.
- Our heads aren't all shaped the same.
- Some of us have long heads (you might hear us say that you have a 'long oval'), some very round, some of us have flat squarish foreheads (called a 'German brow' in the industry).
- If you have a long oval, opt for softer hats and choose a center crease over a teardrop crown.
- If you have a German brow, go for softer hats.
If you have a question about fit or sizing, call us at 937-222-HATS and we'll walk you through styles and shapes and help you understand what to look for when you're shopping, or drop us a line and set up a FaceTime or Zoom consult - sometimes it's easier to shop than to tell.