What is the average hat size for men?

The average men's hat size in the UK is 59 cm, typically a size Large. Measuring your head ensures the most accurate fit.

How do I measure my head for a hat?

Use a soft tape measure and measure around your head just above the ears and across the forehead. Keep the tape level and snug to determine your size in centimetres.

A flat cap is a rounded cap with a small stiff brim at the front, traditionally associated with British heritage style.

What is the difference between a fedora and a trilby?

A fedora typically has a wider brim and softer shape, while a trilby features a shorter brim and a taller crown, offering a sleeker silhouette.

Can a felt hat get wet?

Felt hats are naturally water-resistant but should not be exposed to heavy rain for extended periods. Allow them to dry naturally at room temperature.

Do you offer in-store collection?

Yes, orders can be collected from our London, Cambridge, or Oxford stores within 3-5 working days.

Straw Hats: Classic Summer Headwear Styles | Laird Hatters

March 31, 2026

A straw hat can refer to any Brimmed Hat that is woven out of Straw, but ever popular are Raffia and Toyo (paper) hats. Generally a summer weight hat, styles can be quite traditional, such as:

Panama Hat - a fine and expensive hat made in Ecuador. Prices start from £60 up to £1,000+ for a Superfino

Conical Hat - the distinctive hat worn primarily by farmers in Southeast Asia.

Straw Boater- a formal straw hat with a flat top and brim. Olney are specialists in this type of hat and prices start at £65

Cowboy Hat – the Original Stetson cowboy styles are still the best on the market and range from £60+

Increasingly, other styles of hat are also being made of Straw, Raffia or Toyo, and include Trilby, Top Hat, Homburg, Pork Pie.

Straw hats are commonly blocked into shapes usually found in felt hats.

Straw Hats are generally designed to protect the head from the sun, as well as protect against heatstroke, but fashion has also dictated a range of less practical, but stylish alternatives.

Woven straw hats are formed in a similar way to felt hats; they are softened by steam or by submersion in hot water, and then formed by hand or over a block. Finer and more expensive straw hats have a tighter and more consistent weave. Since it takes much more time to weave a larger hat than a smaller one, larger hats are more expensive.

Straw hats have been worn consistently in Europe and Asia in the Summer since antiquity, and arguably are the least-changed form of headwear, since many medieval examples would draw no special attention if worn today.

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