Wondering why people don't wear hats?

High SPF broad spectrum sunscreen? Hat hair? Not out in the sun for long periods of time?

Even here in southern AZ, people only seem to wear hats if they expect to be in the sun for hours, regardless of season. At least most of our outdoor venues have sunscreen readily available in dispensers for people to slather on.

Something non-hat wearers often forget is that a hat, along with adequate hydration, can help prevent heatstroke. People die every year from going on hikes in the mountains around Tucson inadequately prepared.

A history lesson for you: Since John F. Kennedy went hatless at his inauguration, American men have given up hats. They're coming back into fashion, but everyone seems to have forgotten that men don't wear their hats indoors. And some men in Fedoras look like they should be in Brooklyn, getting a tattoo. Even though I'm old enough to wear a baseball cap all the time, I do think it makes me look like a combine operator.

John Hamm's good looks affect how his hatted appearance is perceived, by the way.

Two pieces of head gear go with me on every trip, a rather plain baseball cap and a tweed flat cap. The former was bought at a university in Poland and the latter at a famous country clothier in Edinburgh.

really Tim? look like a combine operator ? baseball caps are probably the prevalent hat all over the world ...and I am old enough to have seen JFK on a b&w TV ...in real time

When we were in Italy in May hats were being sold on every corner. I take one with me every where I go!

I am "hair challenged" (in fact, back in 2001 I decided to forego paying a barber for a half haircut and started shaving the entire thing). As a consequence (and being conscious of skin cancers), I either take a hat or, having forgotten to take a hat, must buy one. In warmer weather/climes, I tend to prefer my Scala fedora style straw (it covers mt ears better than a baseball cap and lots classier (IMHO). At my age (61) seems like a no-brainer.

They don't wear hats because they are guys who have hair.
If they are guys who don't have hair, it won't be good in 10 years.

Some do, some don't. For myself, I don't go outside without a brimmed hat since I turned 30 many years ago but that's due to 1) glare sensitivity, even with sunglasses, and 2) avoidance of wrinkles. It's what you get used to doing.

Hats can be the difference between a day of borderline misery and happiness. WE travel a lot in spring and fall and the sun always seems to be at a low angle shining directly into my eyes -- a few hours of glare can really get you down and sun glasses don't fill that need.. Something as simple as a hat with a bit of a brim takes care of it -- but I see few women in France, Italy or Spain wearing such hats. I think baseball caps make almost anyone who wears them look like a rube but they sure are easy to pack and effective -- I try to carry a hat that serves the function but it more attractive.

Jim,

I always pack my venerable Tilley hat along on trips and if the sun is "blazing" when I leave the hotel, I always bring it with me. It's not the most fashionable hat, but it does a great job of keeping the sun off and provides some shade.

It is now universally agreed that what killed the hat was another three letter word: the car.

With mass car ownership wearing a hat was no longer necessary, since people didn't need to cover their heads from the elements for long periods of time.

In addition in the late 1950s and 1960s there was a trend of building cars with roofs much lower than was prevalent before the war, and wearing a hat with low roofs became awkward.

To these circumstances add the youth protest movements of the 1960s, where young hippies considered hats a symbol of the older generations whose conformism they intended to go against.

So if there is a president who killed the hat, it wasn't Kennedy, but rather Eisenhower, who built the Interstate highway system, and Johnson, who escalated the Vietnam war.

If you mean locals in Southern Europe, it's probably because they aren't planning to be outside for very long at a time. Tourists spend their days outside, locals don't. In Northern Europe, the rays aren't as strong and there aren't as many sunny days - remember that Rome is about as far north of the equator as New York.

I think you'll find that Italians do wear hats when they know they're going to be in the sun for a long time. We went to the Italian Open tennis tournament in Rome this past May, and many if not most people were wearing hats.

Hats make a complete mess of my husband's hair. What with the amount of time we spend ducking in and out of interesting churches and whatnot, he'd look terrible by midmorning what with all the taking off and putting back on again. He wears one when we hike but never on city trips.

Men's hats are forbidden for wear inside the Vatican Museums, are customarily, respectfully removed inside Italian churches, and are generally frowned upon indoors most places.

Vatican website:
"Access to Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Gardens and Saint Peter's Basilica is permitted only to visitors dressed appropriately (no sleeveless blouses, no miniskirts, no shorts, no hats allowed)."

I don't wear a hat or cap here. In Europe I've never worn a hat of any sort, even though that has been suggested to me. In a word I go hatless everywhere...in museums, churches, in town, on the beach, riding the trains, etc.

The Tilley hat that Ken mentioned is what I wear. Baseball caps do not give any coverage to the neck and ears, and very little coverage to the lips and nose, where a lot of skin cancers start. L.L. Bean sells a hat that looks much like a Tilley hat, for about half the price.

One of the interesting thing I've noticed in NYC is more people wearing hats. Not everyone of course, and not probably even 50%, but when the temps get high--above 85 degrees--the hats do come out. I expect that is because this is walking city and even the locals spend a fair bit of time out in the sun. I've got my sun hat that I bought in St. Remy and was made in Italy. :)

Pam

I wear sunblock 40 on my face every day. I have long thick hair so unless it is cooler weather, I boil if I am wearing a hat for a long period of time.

If you are going to be out in the sun, sunblock is a more reliable skin protectant than a hat. Hats help but your face is still getting sunlight, both direct and indirect. Have you ever seen a pro golfer remove his or her hat? The forehead is MANY shades lighter than the rest of the face. So the sun is sneaking in there.

Saw two snappy ones in DC this afternoon--one straw fedora and one boater--on the heads of two Asian female tourists. The hats and parasols do come out on the Mall in the summer.

Hat's are actually extreamly stylish. Wide brimmed hat's on a lady is always in style and used frequently.
My husband wears a hat all the time due to shaving his head and being very fair skinned. We bought two hats just for our Europe trip for him, he will wear one on the plane and figure out hat #2 (one is stylish for daily use and one is for hiking-wide brimmed for Cinque Terre). I don't wear hats because they keep in my body heat and will cause me to become over heated. I MAY do a Visor. But good to know about hats being sold on every corner, that sounds like a great idea to just buy there if I really feel I need one. My face lotion is SPF30 and my makeup is SPF 30, so I am covered until it all melts off my face.

My husband the doctor ( oncologist!) won't let me out of the house without a hat when the sun is shining. And he wears one too.

I love my Tilley hat but only take that to Alaska---too hot and too heavy for Europe. In the past I have just used a visor for hiking and city visits, but now that I have this Capetown hat by Wallaroo I think I will take it to Europe.

https://www.wallaroohats.com/products/capetown

It is very lightweight, not hot, and packs flat without getting wrinkled or ruined.