At Chanel’s pre-fall 2024 show in Manchester, the storied brand sent parade of models decked out in tweed suits with matching newsboy caps down the runway. Not long after, Penélope Cruz wore one to a photo call for Ferrari in Madrid. Af first, it seemed isolated to just Chanel. But during the fall 2024 season, it’d become clear: the newsboy cap is back.
The flat cap was originally favored by the American and European working classes in the early 20th century, including the young paperboys it was named for. The hat even found fictional fans in Nick Hornby from The Great Gatsby, Fiddler On The Roof, and Oliver Twist.
Around five or six years ago, the hat seemed to be having a renaissance. What the characters on Peaky Blinders used to conceal razor blades was a sudden sartorial sensation: Idris Elba, Harry Styles, and Leonardo DiCaprio all tried it on for size; David Beckham and Brooklyn Beckham shared more than blood—they shared a love of the flat cap. Anecdotally speaking, college-aged women also seemed particularly fond of it around this time (myself mercifully excluded).
A hat with over a century of history is bound to have some naysayers. In 2019, this very publication called it “hokey,” and far too reminiscent of Newsies, and The Cut questioned if wearers were suffering an existential crisis. The hat, indeed, is a largely sexless item of clothing, which is fine. But it also comes with connotations about the wearer. As one Reddit user put it: “Like the fedora, a small handful of people can pull it off in the right context, and the rest of us look like tools.”
But these associations seem largely relegated to men. Could women wearing it be the answer? Whether that’s true or not, fall 2024 seems to at least be giving it the old college try. Anna Sui, whose collection was inspired by the 1920s, included the period-appropriate headwear in her collection, pairing brightly colored caps with miniskirts and knee-high boots. Dolce & Gabbana attempted to sex it up with a lot of black lace, netting, and daring cuts.
Celebrities seem game this time around, too. Friend-of-Chanel Margaret Qualley wore one while promoting her new film, Drive-Away Dolls, and Meg Ryan sported one on a shopping outing. But there’s arguably nobody better to rehab a controversial piece’s image than Addison Rae, who seems to imbue her fashion choices with a playfulness and a healthy dose of camp. We’ll be eager to see if it’s enough.
