Justin Timberlake looking gentlemanly in his Borsalino hat…I don’t know about the scarf though.

I like real hats, but with so few men wearing hats these days it’s hard to learn proper hat etiquette. If only my grandfather were here to set me straight. Under what circumstances does one remove his hat? When I was younger, my parents taught me to take off my hat when I went indoors. I see men wearing their hats indoors, on airplanes and even while dining! Also, once the hat is removed, where does one store it? It is a rarity to find a coat-and-hat rack in public places these days. And where I live, few restaurants have coatrooms.

In a public building, a man may keep his hat on in the corridors and in elevators. When one enters a room, one should remove one’s hat. Once upon a time, a man was supposed to remove his hat if a lady entered the elevator, an elevator being analogous to a room, but today elevators are so crowded, often with ladies, that it is more prudent to keep it on one’s head, where it doesn’t compete for floor space. In Grandpa’s day, a gentleman removed his hat when greeting a woman friend on the street; this was usually done with the left hand in case she offered her hand for a shake. If they should happen to walk together, or if the weather was bad, he would feel free to put his hat back on. In this benighted age of adjustable baseball caps, the practice of such niceties appears even nicer. My grandpa always removed his hat for the national anthem (my country, right or wrong) and for the passing of a flag or a funeral procession, and he lifted it when passing a church. Today one also removes one’s hat (and shoes) when being frisked at the airport. As for hat storage, a restaurant should be prepared for the possible onslaught of civilization, and so, if there is no proper storage, one should ask the host, hostess or waitperson where one might temporarily store one’s hat. If the facility provides no suitable accommodation and no unused chair is handy, a gentleman is justified in leaving it on, at a rakish angle proportionate with his degree of displeasure.

I LOVED this question and LOVED the answer even more.  I think a hat just looks so gentlemanly, and I don’t mean a baseball or skull cap.   There was a time when men always wore hats up until President Kennedy – who didn’t wear them.  Imagine, one person completely destroyed an American industry.  Although, it was bound to happen eventually.  Now, we wear our hats disrespectfully in restaurants, when the national anthem is being played, and around women.

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I’ve never owned a watch, but I’m ready to invest. My question is, can I buy just one, or do I need several? One for the office, one for active weekend situations (pool, ocean, softball field, etc.), one for formal occasions? What do you have in your watch rotation?

I have a lot of watches, but I wear only about four of them. The main reason is that in recent years I developed a nasty allergy to leather bands, so I can wear only metal bracelets or fabric bands. Being a bit of a literalist, I go for sports watches when the occasion is sporty (I’ve got a TAG Heuer steel-bracelet dive watch for such moments) and when I dress more formally I wear a more formal watch (like the Hermès Arceau watch my wife gave me). I also have a few that can go either way. I think it looks silly for a man in a slim, smart suit to wear a giant watch on his wrist that screams he can wear it on the ocean floor.

This question was posted on GQ.com and when I read this question I wanted to put my two cents in (obviously).    The Tag Heuer (HOY-ER) watch I placed on the left, the Hermès (pronounced AIR-MEZZ) on the top.   Two completely different watches, both beautiful.  I consider myself more Victorian in my thinking as well, but I’m also a realist.  If you are going to get your FIRST watch, then get something you can wear both sporty and with a suit.  I would also rather you spend all your money on one good watch than split it and buy two sub-par watches.  It doesn’t make sense.

Also, more and more men have stopped buying watches (and wearing the ones they have) since our mobiles are stuck to our hips and can give us the current time in ten zones.  A few recommendations:

• Never ever, ever EVER pay full price for a watch.  Even a one-of-a-kind found in a boutique on Rodeo or Madison Ave can be discounted just for asking.
• DON’T wear a fake watch.  It’s awful.
• Leather or steel is your personal preference.
• Go for automatic than battery or wind up.
• Don’t buy because it’s a “brand-name”.  Buying something because you want others to know what it is shouldn’t be a factor of why you buy something anyway.  Buy it because of the quality.
• You want a watch that fits your personality and lifestyle, next to your shoes, your watch says a lot about you.

My choice for a first watch?  You can wear this with anything, anytime, anywhere.  You don’t have to worry about banging it up.  In no particular order:

Classic – Rolex Submariner.  Timeless, beautifully made.  Awesome first watch.  Probably the most affordable.  This was my first watch.  About $4K

The Bomb – Cartier Pasha.  A true work of art.  Many replicas so even though it stands out, it doesn’t.  This will set you back a good $10K and up.

Man’s Man Watch – Breitling Chrono.  It may looks like a sports watch, but don’t be fooled.  It’s like thinking a Bentley is just a sportcar.  By they way, they do have a Bentley addition.  This will set you back $5K

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