A stylish rain hat. Asking the impossible?

[BlameItOnTheBogey]

This is a plea for help!

I have a job that means that I sometimes spend hours outside at formal gatherings. Having just spent 4 hours standing in the rain at the back end of last week, I have concluded that I need a decent rain hat (can't use umbrellas because they block the view). The criteria are:

• Needs to be fairly water proof
• Needs to have a wide brim to deflect water onto my shoulders and not just channel it back down my neck
• Needs to work with a formal outfit (suit or smarter).

Does such a thing exist? The drowned rat look is not working for me at all and really doesn't look professional...

Seasalt do some nice rain hats but not sure if they are the style you want.

I'll watch this with interest...

Thanks 5Hundred - just looked at seasalt which I hadn't heard of before. I think they are nice but probably not smart enough and the brim isn't wide enough. The water would just trickle back underneath and soak my neck and hair. (Still quite traumatized by 4 hours in a torrential downpour last week…)

www.outdoorandcountry.co.uk/Womens-Barbour-Waxed-Liberty-Print-Wide-Brim-Hat.html

not sure if any on here would be smart enough?

www.etsy.com/uk/listing/126808761/waxed-cotton-rain-hat-brown?ref=shop_home_active_24

Maybe not a wide enough brim though.

what about fedora hat, mine is lether/felt fedora hat and I wear it in light rain to protect my beautifully blow dried hair looking quite cool ( well I hope lol)

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-ZARA-2013-NAVY-BLUE-BLACK-FAUX-LEATHER-COMBINED-ZIP-WOOL-HAT-SOLD-OUT-RARE-/111255129580

that's the one i have

I was going to suggest the Barbour one. Not sure it is smart enough though.

What about this one - can't find in UK though

There's a plain black one on Amazon with an extra wide brim which might be suitable. Sorry I don't know how to link to it but I googled extra wide brimmed rain hat and it came up.

I've got a barbour plain black one but the olney ones look smarter I think if needed for work. john lewis has some.

I have an Olney waxed hat, which keeps my very frizz-prone hair dry. Some of the styles are reasonably smart and have quite wide brims. I have the "Lizzie" style.
www.olney-headwear.com/ladieswax.html

www.marksandspencer.com/Limited-Collection-Flirt-Lace-Non-Padded/dp/B00AB7VB7I?ie=UTF8&ref=sr_1_13&nodeId=42966030&sr=1-13&qid=1389554889

Fail! That search was for a bra thread, oops. I think the joke is on me. I meant to post this!

www.amazon.co.uk/LADIES-SOUWESTER-STYLE-LARGE-SIZES/dp/B00CP3D8GI/ref=sr_1_235?s=clothing&ie=UTF8&qid=1389565880&sr=1-235&keywords=rain+hat

I'm not especially stylish, but I noticed these earlier this evening so thought I'd link them:

www.joules.com/Women/Hats%2C-Scarves-Gloves/Anora/Womens-Wax-Hat/Brown?id=P_ANORA|BROWN

www.joules.com/Women/Hats%2C-Scarves-Gloves/Keighley/Womens-Wax-Hat/French-Navy?id=P_KEIGHLEY|FRNNAVY

The reviews for the second one remark on how wide the brim is.

I've got one of these fedora esk ones at the moment, they do a waterproof version, but to be honest mine just dries out..

wiltshire hat

leather version
leather fedora

My hair is long and frizz-prone: I wear a beret in the rain and just bundle ALL my hair up into it. It has to be a proper felty beret, not a beanie, so that it's impermeable to rain! This can look a bit odd but with the right earrings and big eyelashes I usually get it to work. It also allows me to create a Moment of Drama when I get indoors, whip it off and shake down my tresses at least in my head, nobody else ever notices

If you find a hat that is the right style but not waterproof spray it with Scotch Guard or similar. I've sprayed hats and it works brilliantly.