Royal Toppers

Find us at www.thedepartmentofstyle.com
In London's fashionable Chelsea, just off the King's Road, down a short flight of iron stairs, lives and works the man some call the Mad Hatter. He also answers to Martin Ellis Jones, and he is the proprietor of Hetherington Hats. Whatever you choose to call him, every year for about six weeks his small shop/living space is packed with the full spectrum of British society, all clamoring to buy a top hat, for the Royal Ascot.
Like strawberries at Wimbledon and Pimm's at Henley, the Royal Ascot races simply wouldn't be the same without the proper headgear. If you are lucky enough to get into the Royal Enclosure, gentlemen must - absolutely must - wear a morning coat (grey or black), tie, vest. Oh, and a top hat of course. But these sleek, high, round fashion statements are from another era, and are neither cheap nor easy. If you don't have one, the approaching social event of the year can be a frustrating deadline. Unless you know the man to know.
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The Department of Style is a field guide to the timeless, the adventurous, and the enthusiastic. We celebrate craft. We explore tradition. We find the creative imaginations that take classic forms and make them their own.
It is about understanding that in life, doing something right takes time, and skill, and effort. But therein lies the joy. Finding people who still do those things that way and telling their stories is the original Departmental mandate.
Semper Intrepidus

[@wayne2150]

I'm so glad he mentioned how a top hat is meant to rest on the sides of your head rather than the back and/or forehead. A wrongly fitted top hat can leave welts on your forehead.

[@dogge929]

I find a Homburg to be quite the opposite. A well fitted homburg for my head rests on the front and back, though it is much lighter in weight than a tophat.

[@dariel7001]

@@dogge929 a silk top hat is very light. A homburg is typically made of heavy wool or fur

[@AnAntiqueLady]

I am glad to be one of the few to won a silk hat

[@DapperSam]

Oh how I envy you people with small heads, it took me forever to find an antique top hat my size

[@CoxJoxSox]

yes i relate - small sizes are easy to find but anything over 7 1/2 is a bear

[@catmonsterguy8749]

While i may be a little late to the party i also had trouble finding a top hat to fit my head but i stumbled across one not to long ago and to my luck it fits like a treat. I haven't worn it out yet but i do hope in the near future i will get the chance to

[@heinzguderianbutmoreyounge9659]

@@catmonsterguy8749 try german or france ebay,i found a 62cm hat or 7 3/8 sell it on international ebay and got 1000 pound by selling it back,and they were really good.

[@elias7748]

Can people just live the present than the past. 21st century is weird.

[@heinzguderianbutmoreyounge9659]

@@elias7748 well hello there troll,just seeing you replying to the fox news top hat video,its up to people to wear what they want,the same to freedom of speech,we thankfully live in a society that no enforces us to do something

[@majorclassics2512]

The man charges a fortune for a topper!

[@cubat5437]

I wear top hat and bowler hat

[@ArtemisiaSayakaRandazzo]

Beautiful

[@gwrduck7975]

I now want a top hat now

[@CoxJoxSox]

OMG - We're kindred spirits - I love top hats and paint them quite often as well as collect them.

[@neil5551]

sell some of your stock and pay your debts!

[@gdostockley]

Not beaver! Silk plush!

[@CoxJoxSox]

Oh some are still beaver - silk plush is/was a particular processing

[@foretell6819]

It’s a beaver fur hat. Not like cowboy hats that are beaver felt, these look shiny because the actual beaver hairs are still on them. I thought they were silk at first too

[@dariel7001]

@@foretell6819 depends. Some are silk plush and some others are beaver. The only way to really tell the difference is to apply light to the nap and see the color. Beaver hats have a very very slight brown color. I collect and restore top hats

[@foretell6819]

@@dariel7001 oh nice, where do you buy them?

[@dariel7001]

@@foretell6819 all over mainly estate auctions but they’re becoming harder and harder to find. All my top hats are in very large sizes. I myself am a 7 1/4 and they’re all big enough for me to grow into them and then some (I’m only in my early twenties) which makes them even rarer. But they can occasionally be found on eBay but most of those are too beaten and have tears and things that can’t be fixed so they’re somewhat worthless.

[@johnmcmicking395]

At 0:52 this "expert" says "this is made of beaver" BUT it is, in fact, made of silk, NOT BEAVER.

[@parkerduncan1449]

The silk is added atop the beaver felt. It is not wholly made from silk.