Hat Trick: On the Endurance of the Bucket Hat
One of my cardinal rules is to never begin a piece of writing by talking about how difficult it was to begin the piece of writing. Leave that to the bad wedding speeches. But when Vogue asked me if I would write an article about bucket hats, I had no choice. I wanted to do it, but I couldn't muster a single thought on the subject. I mean, it's a hat. What more is there to say?
Of all the hats, the bucket hat in particular was completely meaningless to me. I tried to spark something by researching the history. I learned that the bucket hat was originally created for Irish fishermen and became fashionable in the 1980s when it gained a foothold in the hip-hop scene, finding fans among LL Cool J and Run-D.M.C. That was what I had. One sentence, for an entire article on bucket hats.
As I was thinking of a good reason I could tell Vogue why I wouldn't be able to do it, they followed up on their original email, telling me they would be sending me different bucket hats for the article: two hats from Prada, two from Tory Burch, and two from The North Face. Maybe the reason bucket hats were so meaningless to me was because I never tried the right one. Maybe I needed a bucket hat from Prada. I immediately emailed them back, saying I'd love to do the article along with my address for the hats. It was about to be summer, and I wasn't going to pass up six designer hats just because I couldn't write more than a sentence about them.
A few email exchanges later, I realized the hats would need to be returned after the article. So not only would I not be keeping any hats, I was also on the hook for returning them—a task I am even more incapable of.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
Ex-FC Barcelona Ace Dembele Makes Ballon d'Or, Lamine, Messi Admission
Ex-FC Barcelona star Ousmane Dembele spoke to France Football and made confessions about its Ballon d'Or award, Lamine Yamal, and Lionel Messi. Dembele is one of the favourites to be handed the highest individual honor in soccer after being a protagonist in a treble scoop for PSG that also took in its first Champions League crown. Asked if he sees himself as a frontrunner, Dembele stated: 'It's difficult to say. But winning a Ballon d'Or when you're a footballer is obviously the holy grail on an individual level. It's something you dream of as a child. I remember when I saw the players appear in Telefoot to receive him. It was incredible. Only the object, the ball, is exceptional.' Dembele added that he hopes to be 'among the thirty nominees, to begin with'. 'I've had difficult years with injuries, weak performances as well. This season I think I've been consistent, so we'll see what happens. It would be exceptional to have my name on the list. And to be one of the favourites is already a great victory, although I hope to win it one day,' he said. 'Personally, I always play the same football. Since I was little, I want to give joy to the people who come to the stadium. I like to dribble, but I'm also someone who helps the team a lot, who wants to score goals and assist. Then, everyone thinks what they want and votes what they want. If you like Ousmane Dembele, great; if not, life goes on. We'll see.' One of Dembele's main rivals for the Ballon d'Or is his former Barca teammate Lamine Yamal, who he recalled 'was already talked about from a very young age' in Catalonia. 'When he arrived at the professional team, we understood that he was exceptional and took on another dimension. In training, he dribbled, assisted, scored.' Dembele confessed that he is now 'a little more professional' than when he donned Blaugrana. 'I was already a professional, but now I am a little more so. Now, even on rest days, I like to go to the training center, recover, work with the physios. Before, I would go home, play NBA 2K, watch a little TV. I was also younger, it's normal. But, in the end, you pay dearly, and I saw it especially in Barcelona,' he confessed. 'I arrived there young, I played from 20 to 26 years old, I had a lot of physical problems. I learned a lot, it helped me. Now I know my body much better, and that's why I get injured less. I know when I'm good, but also when I need to slow down, dose in training.' As for the greatest player of all time, Dembele has no doubts as to who it is in his eyes. 'I grew up watching FC Barcelona, so naturally [it's]
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
The Ad Industry's A.I. Reckoning
The Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, an ad industry conference, awards show and schmoozefest that begins on Monday, is known for its beaches and its sunny atmosphere. This year, attendees can also expect an existential debate. For years, ad executives have understood a technological takeover of ad creative was coming, and with it, a power shift from creative agencies to the tech giants that control the platforms. Now, with companies like Google, Pinterest, Snap and Amazon steadily adding powerful A.I. ad creation tools, it feels uncomfortably near. Anxieties peaked this spring with reports that Meta would soon allow advertisers to make A.I.-generated ads without any agency involvement. Some believe agencies can effectively embrace generative A.I. (Agencies are a 'critical partner' and 'an essential channel for the industry,' Dave Dugan, Meta's vice president of global clients and agencies, said when asked about the company's new A.I. tools.) Others warn agencies will be displaced by it. 'The advertising world might be at their funeral without even realizing it,' said Geoffrey Colon, an entrepreneur who spent two decades at creative agencies and tech giants. To sum it up, he said: 'Iceberg ahead.' Agencies are dependent on tech platforms for distribution. For years, Madison Avenue's relationship with Silicon Valley has been somewhere between symbiotic and codependent, with agencies and tech companies working together to buy, sell and serve ads across various platforms. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
New York Times
2 hours ago
- New York Times
Molly Recommends 2 Very Male New Novels
By Molly Young Dear readers, In a startling break with tradition, we're examining two new (not antique) books today, both of which happen to offer glimpses into the male psyche. Feeling frisky and contemporary as summer approaches! We'll be back to regular programming in coming editions; in the meantime, please enjoy this detour into the present. —Molly PS: Read Like the Wind will be on hiatus for the next few weeks, but will return in July. 'Flesh,' by David Szalay Fiction, 2025 After finishing 'Flesh' in under 48 hours I tried to figure out how it worked, why it moved so quickly, what it was doing. Came up with a few possible answers but nothing conclusive, and would welcome any hypotheses from readers who felt similarly catapulted through its pages. 'Flesh' is the story of a Hungarian man born in (probably) the early or mid-1980s, with each chapter excavating a meaningful period in his life. Then the chapter ends and a silence is imposed, and the following chapter picks up a few years later. A reader interpolates what has occurred during the elided time. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
