The Active Historian

Hey friend, welcome back to another post! I was super excited to write this one and tell you about my favorite hats. I’ve been a hat girl for as long as I can remember. We grew up wearing bucket hats or baseball caps to prevent sunburns – thanks, dad.

As I’ve gotten older, my hat styles have evolved. I like to say I wear a lot of hats – literally and figuratively! In college, you’d be hard-pressed to find me without a baseball cap on. People wouldn’t recognize me without my hat and would laugh when I told them who I was.

Fast forward to when I started this blog, I wore hats as a way to express my style. I loved the Western felt flat brim hats and got a straw cowboy hat too. I would wear these hats when I went on museum adventures or when I made videos talking about history.

Sadly, I worked a few jobs where I wasn’t allowed to wear hats so they had to sit in the closet or hung on the wall for awhile. This past year, I started working at a museum and can wear a hat. Every. Single. Day. I’m truly living my best life!

So, I thought I’d take an opportunity to tell you a little bit about my favorite hats. The title of this blog post is a nod to Chris Ledoux’s “This Cowboy’s Hat.” Give it a listen if you haven’t already! Here are three of my favorite hats and a little bit about what makes them each special to me.

Orange Hat

If y’all have followed me for any amount of time, you’ve probably come to recognize me for the orange hat. It’s my favorite hat and I love when I run across people in real life that recognize my orange hat from social media! It has happened more often than I’d ever think for… and I’m so grateful every time I get to meet one of you! I count it as a huge blessing that you’re a part of my internet community.

I’m very particular about this orange hat. It has gone on some pretty cool museum/historical adventures across the state of Oklahoma as seen in the photos below.

Black Felt Cowboy Hat

This black felt cowboy hat is special because it was my dad’s wedding hat. He told me to try it on one day and it fit my head and he said I could have it and wear it to work!

It’s got a unique shape that he had custom made for him so you won’t find another one like it anywhere. I’ve had a few people stop me at the museum and compliment the shape of this hat!

Now, this quail feather hat band was given to me by a friend at work. He asked if I would be interested in a hat band from the 70s! I said, absolutely and this is what he gave me. I wear this hat band to fancy events!

Straw Cowboy Hat

Finally, I wanted to show y’all my favorite straw hat! I love this hat because it matches literally everything. I’ve added different accessories as I’ve seen fit. I’ve been given two different feathers by two different people and I’ve also added a couple of hat pins that I’ve picked up.

“Brim Biter” = My new hat OBSESSION!

I have followed Matthew Herring & Hallet Peak on social media for a while and wanted to get one of his signature, “Brim Biters.” He was a part of a trunk show at Persimmon Hill store at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum this year and I was finally able to get one!

I told Matthew that I wanted something that would pop against the orange hat, but could also match my black felt cowboy hat. He suggested a Royston “Brim Biter.” I LOVE IT! The craftsmanship and attention to detail is amazing – I highly recommend his work.

Concluding Thoughts

I hope you enjoyed reading about my three favorite hats! I have several more that I’ve picked up at local stores that are mostly flat brim felt hats, but I figured y’all didn’t need to see them.

If you’re looking to buy a hat, make sure to try them on to make sure they fit. Not all hats are the same and one size in one hat may not fit in another! Now you also might say, “Kaitlyn, I can’t wear a hat” and I think that’s nonsense! I truly believe anyone can wear a hat – find one in a color and shape you like and then rock it!

That’s all I have for today – thanks for reading! I’ll talk to y’all soon 🙂