• About Us
• MAXstyle
• Hat History
• Hat Style
• Hat Care
• Media
• Events
• Stores

Hat History

THE GATSBY. This hat defines an era, a memory, an emotion, a time and place. Its roots lie in that extraordinary, beautiful, intricately patterned, and above all, simple novel “The Great Gatsby” which was written in 1922 by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The novel portrays the Jazz Age in all of its decadence and Gatsby's rise to glory and eventual fall from grace which is both a love poem and a cautionary tale about the American Dream. Thanks to a novel and a movie Fitzgeralds Gatsby entered our lexicon as the “Gatsby Cap” which looks great on men and women!. Who can forget the “lassique grand” of them all which was the 1974 Paramount Pictures movie with Robert Redford as “Gatsby”, and Mia Farrow as “Daisy” (with a screenplay by Francis Ford Coppola!).

THE FEDORA The classy, classic fedora has been around more than a century. This amazingly versatile hat is simply never out of style -- cool as a casual topper and razor sharp as dressy evening wear. The fedora is made from felt with a crown creased lengthwise, a "pinch" at the front and a brim of various widths that can be snapped up or down.Traditionally sported by actors and politicians it's now favoured by musicians, entertainers, and anybody wanting a touch of class. Glamour and charisma go with this one. Think Humphrey Bogart in the thirties and forties, think Usher today.

THE HOMBURG The favourite of bankers and of gangsters! The Homburg is a formal dress style originally from late nineteenth century Germany.Made of soft quality felt, the crown is creased from front to back with a rolled brim and a bound edge. Associated with affluence and power hip hop artists discovered the Homburg in the nineties and have given it new life, rocking it with a whole new attitude.

THE BOWLER The famous bowler hails from nineteenth century England and is still going strong! Also called the Derby after the Earl of Derby who first popularized it, this dressy hat is dome shaped and made of stiff felt with a small curved brim. The bowler was a big hit with executives and stockbrokers in nineteen fifties England as part of a power dress statement. For that edge of elegance, a la Avengers, the bowler can't be beat.

THE PORKPIE A Big it Up speciality, the ever-hip Pork Pie has been around since the thirties. A low flattened crown with a groove encircling the top makes this felt hat distinctive. Comes with a short snap brim usually flipped up. Jazz and blues misicians dig this lid -- Lester Young, Charles Mingus and nowadays, Andre 3000 have all added to their cool with the help of a Pork Pie.