So no hat ever?

[nwone11]

I just joined but I've been reading this forum for a long time and think you guys are awesome. I've been shaving for years now but never been really confident about it until now. I started losing my hair almost right when I graduated High School. Thank God for that because I don't know how I would have dealt with having to go to school everyday.  I'm in my late 20s now but I look a bit younger.

I shave my head about every other day because it's really sensitive. Sometimes it's awesome (when I let the hair grow out and then shave) and most times it's not perfect how I like it. All  through my teens I usually got my hair near a skin fade on the sides and had hair on top. Transitioning to shaving my whole head shouldn't be so weird but it is. I never wore hats back then but I wish I did. I'm mixed black/white and so I think most people might be used to seeing my ethnicity have a shaved head but I don't know.  Most times if I'm going to the store or wherever I like to wear a beanie or baseball cap. It's not ideal weather for having a bald head up here in the Northwest. I try my best to be confident  but sometimes I catch people staring. Most times I just want to blend in and not stand out. So can I now never wear any hat without people thinking I'm trying to hide something or not being confident?
 
I think If I was buff like Vin Diesel or something I'd be so good with being bald. I'm just slim and I'm trying to work out but I have slim genes. Thanks for letting me get all of that out. I hope I posted in the right forum but if not please move it for me.

[leighmundo40]

Hey there. Don't worry, there are no rules that say you have to do this and you shouldn't wear that! I wear hats/caps a lot,  because I like to and feel more comfortable.

Other guys dont.

It's your choice and you go with whatever makes you feel better.

[Adamski1972]

I think the same thing as Leighmondo. Nothing wrong with wearing a hat if you feel more comfortable doing so. You'll probably find with time you will wear a hat less and less as your confidence grows :-)

[buddha]

I wear a hat all the time. After I had a chunk of dome removed due to basal cell carcinoma it really changed my outlook on hats. I use sunblock, too, but if I'm gonna be out for a long time like hiking or golf I always utilize the cover.

[TheSlyBear]

I wear hats all the time.

Especially when out in the sun. Skin cancer is not sexy.

Worry a bit less about what other people think.

[benlen]

Just look at this picture of U2's The Edge––he's an epic bald guy who made the skullcap cool.

If you like to wear hats, do so! Personally, my head is enormous, so its difficult to find hats that actually fit, so I generally go without unless in extreme conditions, and apply sunscreen to my dome if the day calls for it.

[buddha]

Worry a bit less about what other people think.

  TheSlyBear is on target, yet again.

[bud]

sometimes it's good to wear a hat

[nwone11]

Hey, thanks for all the responses I really appreciate it.  Sometimes it just feels so stark and plain that I use a cap. I'll always remove it in places tradition dictates though. Not trying to have someone guilt me or embarrass me into removing it. Yea, I try less and less to care what people think but it's really hard to shake. I grew up in a very insular religious environment so it's kind of me against the world. I know whether I wear a hat or don't someone may have something to say. I'll try to just do what I feel. I am worried about the skin cancer thing for the summer because I'm not in the habit of wearing sunscreen. I just  spend 20 min or so in the sun to get some colour as I'm pretty pale.

[pjm789]

I definitely wear a hat especially this time of year in this hot, Florida sun.  It can get pretty brutal even with SPF 30. 

[stasiu]

If you like to wear hats, do so! Personally, my head is enormous, so its difficult to find hats that actually fit, so I generally go without unless in extreme conditions, and apply sunscreen to my dome if the day calls for it.

Big head and big heart here so I'm not much cap guy ... but love wrap around bandanas + straw hats in summer and woolie berets in winter and ALWAYS ... sunscreen protection ... that lotion shine is worth a lot in protection 

[slybeard]

When you catch guys staring, consider that most of them are jealous and wish they had the guts to shave, and are looking with envy.  They may even be tryng to get the nerve to ask you about your experience shaving.  I know, because I was one of those guys for several years.

Wear hats when you want, and show off the dome when you like.  No rules.

[Vash]

I use the Micheals/Jackson Rule, myself:

Brett Micheals - Wears hats/bandanas wrong. He does it to hide or disguise the fact that he is bald/ing. You NEVER see a pic of him without a hat or bandana on, EVER! and he's always got that whispy bleached thing hanging off the back of his hat/bandana. The point is, he is CLEARLY trying to hide something and that's wearing a hat for the wrong reasons.

Samual L. Jackson - Shaves or buzzes his head most of the time and frequently wears a Kangol in public. However, we regularly see him in movies with varying degrees of hair and hairloss. We know he's losing his hair and he makes no effort hide it. He wears hats a part of his personal style. He's doing it right.

The point is, when you look at Micheals you get the feeling he's hiding something, covering up. It's like Shatner's toupee. He's not fooling anybody. With Jackson, you don't get that feeling of "he's hiding something". And, consequently, if a pic of Brett Micheals hat/bandana-less surfaced tomorrow, it'd be all over the internet and tabloids and he'd be a laughing stock, BECAUSE of the lengths he's gone to to cover it up and the sense of shame that goes along with it.

You can only be shamed by what you are ashamed of.

I'm almost 40 (so, not exactly young anymore) and I was raised by my great-grandparents who were raised in the 20's & 30's. I was taught that a man should ALWAYS wear a hat outside the house, but to ALWAYS take it off indoors or when talking to a lady.

My Granddad (an Irish Immigrant) used to complain that John F. Kennedy murdered hats for men by being the first president EVER to NOT wear one to his inauguration in '61. He swore that after that young men stopped wearing them and they just sort of went away. I think he may have been right! If you look at movies and TV from the 50's ALL the men have hats!

Sorry, got sidetracked...

I live in Portland, OR. and I have a cotton flat cap, a felt  pork pie, a wicker fedora and (most recently) a Carhartt Irvine Cap that all get pretty regular rotation in my wardrobe. I pretty much NEVER leave the house without a hat, because it's a part of my style.

We lose a lot of heat from the top of our heads, so a hat in Winter makes a lot of sense. In the Summer, too much Sun exposure is dangerous, so a hat in Summer makes sense.

Do what is both comfortable and honest to YOU and don't worry about what anyone thinks. Confidence comes from comfort. Be comfortable in your skin and confidence will follow.

And welcome aboard  

[Cave Dweller]

They may even be tryng to get the nerve to ask you about your experience shaving.  I know, because I was one of those guys for several years.

Slybeard beat me to it.  I am sure several Sly guys wondered why I was staring at them during the time I was getting up the nerve to shave it off.

Like TheSlyBear said:  Quit worrying about what other people may be thinking.  If you want to wear a hat, then do so.

[jedge01]

I agree with everyone else. You'll get used to it easily. I carry a hat in the airplane I fly for those days I end up somewhere unexpected. I also have a good quality skull cap for those cold days.