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If it's stiffness you want, you want want to avoid a panama proper; they're made of toquilla fiber, and woven tight and fine so as to be crushable—too floppy for my tastes, as well as a bit too broad in the brim. A panama would be fine for gardening, I suppose, but overall a disappointment, snappy grosgrain bands notwithstanding.
I favor a simple raffia John Brown hat, myself: the one I've got now has a slight turn-up at the edge of the brim, sort of like this one:
I take decent care of it, but really, it's cheap enough that you can buy a new one every couple of years.
When I worked at the College, running sound for outdoor events in the spring and summer, I'd wear a white shirt and ecru trousers with my straw hat. The event crew, who were mostly from Mexico and Colombia, took to calling me abuelo—grandfather—because I looked like somebody's old papi strutting around the hacienda. |
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