What elements make a quality fedora? Materials are the first key. A quality hat is made from identifiably better materials, and will also be sturdier and fit much better. It is also partly the price point that makes an outstanding fedora, because you do get what you pay for, and the hat industry is still largely results driven, free from prices driven by brand names. Fine materials make a great hat, and fine materials cost just a bit more.
A larger size run is more expensive, so hats made in Small, Medium, and Large, can be made much at a lower price. A hat made in eighth of an inch increments (seven and one eighth, seven and a quarter, etc) is going to be more expensive because it necessitates a larger size run. As a result, only quality hats are made in smaller size increments. What this means is that a quality hat allows for a perfect fit, where a more inexpensive hat will be more likely to be a poor fit and be either too large or too small.
The greatest single defining difference between a quality fedora and a more inexpensive piece is the material from which it is made. While a good wool felt fedora is nice, common wool loses its shine quickly. Of course, nothing beats a fine men's fur felt fedora for winter wear, and the hat’s lustrous shine and durability will speak for itself. Likewise, a straw or paper summer hat is fine for everyday street wear, but nothing beats a panama straw fedora for quality and style. The author has several panama hats on his shelf that have been dressed up and worn as street wear for four or five years, and are just now starting to show their age.
So, it's true that a hat with a better fit and a more expensive material will cost more, but in the case of a quality hat this is virtue. When you break down the cost of a quality hat versus the cost of an inexpensive or, common hat into Price Per Wear, then the quality hat wins. Price Per Wear is the cost of the hat divided by the number of times that it may be worn before the hat deteriorates or becomes unwearable.
For instance, a wool felt hat, at a cost of sixty or ninety dollars will probably be in good shape for five or ten years. A fur felt hat, at a cost of two or two hundred and fifty dollars, will probably be in good shape for forty or sixty years. What that means is that, even though the fur felt hat will cost three or four times more than a wool felt hat, the fur felt hat has a Price Per Wear worth at least four times that of a wool felt hat. In a sense, the two-hundred-dollar hat is more inexpensive than the common wool felt hat.
The last reason that the fedora hat might have a bad rep in the fashion world is that sometimes people skimp on the purchase of a hat, making it look like an afterthought. Just as you wouldn’t pair bonded leather shoes with an expensive suit, or wear a plastic watch with quality street wear, there is no reason to put a costume hat on your head when the rest of your outfit is on point. Contrary wise, a good hat brings the whole outfit up a level. A quality fedora and a good pair of shoes can make a ten-dollar t-shirt look sharper than a designer suit.
