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Straw Hat Day

Fun · Seasonal · May 15

Straw Hat Day is about the light, woven summer hat: what it is made of, how it keeps the sun off, and how to wear one well.

Straw Hat Day falls on Saturday, May 15, 2027. That is 200 days away.

A straw hat is woven from dried plant fibers, braided or plaited into a crown and brim that let air pass through. That openness is the whole point. The hat shades your face and neck while your head stays cooler than it would under felt or wool.

The styles are many. The boater has a flat top, a stiff brim and usually a ribbon band, and it looks like it belongs on a porch with lemonade. The Panama hat, despite the name, is traditionally woven in Ecuador from the leaves of the toquilla palm. Farm hats and garden hats go wide and floppy, trading style points for shade, and nobody minds.

Marking the day is mostly a matter of putting one on. People pull last year's hat off the closet shelf, check it for dents, and wear it to a picnic, a ballgame or just around the yard. Others try a new shape for the first time and discover that a hat changes how you walk.

Straw is sturdier than it looks but does not love water. A soaked hat can lose its shape, so it helps to let it dry on its own, crown up, away from direct heat. Picking it up by the brim instead of pinching the crown also keeps the weave from cracking over time.

A good straw hat, cared for gently, can last through many summers, picking up a little sun-faded color each year.

Ways to celebrate

• Wear a straw hat outdoors for the afternoon.
• Try on a hat style you have never worn before.
• Look closely at a hat's weave and guess how it was braided.
• Share a photo of your favorite summer hat with friends.
• Reshape an old straw hat and give it a fresh ribbon band.

Dates

Categories: Fun daysSeasonal days