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Monday, March 9, 2009

?An Icon In The Making - The Australian Outback Hat

By Josh Arnett

The Australian outback hat is symbolic of the exciting and untamed terrain of the Australian outback. Moreover, it is the icon of the wildly thrilling, romantic and daring lifestyles represented in modern movies by such character actors like Paul Hogan, who played the rough around the edges, Crocodile Dundee and Harrison Ford who played the educated, adventurous and tough, Indiana Jones.

When you think of Crocodile Dundee, you are sure to picture his well-known oiled, waterproof leather outback hat adorned with a band of crocodile teeth. Indiana Jones wore a wide variety of outback hats in his movies. At various times, he could be seen sporting the famous whip hatband outback hat, the crushable wool outback hat, the bao outback hat and others.

You will find a four inch high, teardrop shaped crown on an Australian outback hat. Three or four inches is a typical width for the brim. You will find outback hats made of a variety of materials such as oiled, waterproof leather or even snake skin, or more traditionally, rabbit fur felt or other animal fur felt, crushable wool felt, canvas, or straw. You can get an Australian Outback hat that has a chinstrap, or you can get one without a chinstrap. You can also have your choice of hatbands.

An outback hat is kind of like a Safari Hat. In fact, the two are often confused. But there are some differences. For one thing, the crown of the Outback hat is quite a bit like the Safari hat, but the brim is more like the American Cowboy hat.

The outback hat has a flat top. It also has a wider brim than a Safari hat or a fedora (which is well-known for its stingy brim.) In fact, the Australian Outback hat is often thought of as a "down-under" version of the American cowboy hat. The Aussie outback hat has a good wide brim that shields the wearers head and face from the merciless sun and beating rains of the outback. It also provides good protection against the harsh wind and snow you will find in rural Australia.

When you compare the American cowboy hat to its counterpart, the Australian outback hat, you will see the differences. For one thing, the Aussie hat has a wide brim that just curls up a bit at the sides. The American cowboy hat, on the other hand, has a far more dramatic upward curl on the sides. You can curl your outback hat down in the back and the front to give you even more protections from the wind, rain and sun. As a matter of fact, the Australian outback hat was originally designed for the simple purpose of protecting the wearer from the unrelenting heat and sun that are typical of the Australian outback.

Of course, the outback hat that is most popular today is the Snowy River style. This type of hat became famous when Disney released the movie, "The Man from Snowy River". This hat is a stockman hat. It is pre-creased and has a three-and-a-half-inch brim. With rolled up sides and downward curving front and back, this will offer the most protection from the elements.

While not everyone can look good wearing the American cowboy hat, it is said that virtually everyone seems to look great in the right Aussie outback hat. When you?re looking for a hat to protect you from the wind, rain and even snow, as well as provide maximum protection from the sun, tryout the Australian outback hat. As a matter of fact, I venture to say that while wearing the Aussie outback style hat it is quite possible that you will find yourself inspired to capture just a bit more excitement, romance and adventure

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