Sindhi Cap

The Sindhi cap 

This is a hat worn mainly by people in Balochistan Sindh and by Pashtun people that live in Pakistan and Afghanistan. 

It is a part of Sindhi and Saraiki culture.

In Sindhi culture, the hat is given as a gift of respect.

Fully authentic Sindhi caps are handwoven and involve many hours of hard work  

Intricate patterns are embroidered on the hat, and very often small pieces of mirror and gemstones are also sewed into it.  

The hat is almost a typical pillbox shape, (similar to a smoking cap or Kufi hats) the big difference is the arched shape cut out in the front to expose part of the forehead.

 

Blue Beret

 This is a blue beret, the lighter blue, not the darker navy blue used by British naval forces.

The Blue Beret is use by various military and some police forces around the world

The most notable use is by UN peacekeeping forces.

In the photo below and start of this post, I'm using for a character in a post-apocalypse lrp 

Beret are the best hats for military or revolutionary groups

Dents and Creases

 Hats particularly fedora's / cowboy hats get much of their looks from the creases and dents put in the crown. 

Below are the 6 main types in my opinion

Open crown

Also called a round crown, open crowns don’t have any creases at all, basically a dome shape prior to creasing.

 

Centre dent  

This crown shape is also called a centre crease, a shape that features a single crease down the centre of the crown

Telescope  

Also called a flat crown or flat top, a telescope crown is marked by its simple circular indentation

Diamond dent 

The crown is diamond-shaped  when viewed from the top

Teardrop dent  

This crown type can be identified by a teardrop shape that is more pointed at the front and curved at back.

Cattleman dent 

This crown type has a main centre dent/crease with 2 smaller creases on either side   

Ankh-Morpork Hat

This hat makes me think of characters from Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels

A fantasy wizards hat I found at a Harry Potter fair in my village

Made of some sort of thick cotton or wool fabric shaped over a former of some sort, but not felted.

The hats online blurb says women wizard hat, but I don't really understand why, it certainly fits and suits me.

Nice wide foldable brim, with a nice little kink in the point of the crown, gives this cheap hat a great look

Now off to practise my spell casting.

 

Black Hood

 Black hood with large mantle

I would like to say more, but see previous posts about hoods.

Black and White Hood

 Another hood, this one is made of thin cotton fabric and sewn in separate panels of black and white fabric.

The mantle that covers shoulders has the colour reversed, which gives a pleasant look.

The fabric really makes this more a fancy dress costume item than a historical reproduction or useful hood.

White Hood

This white hood made from some cotton-based fabric.

 Hoods are thought to have been imported from Normandy during the 12th Century. 

Medieval Hoods were mostly worn for protection against wind, rain, and cold weather, but in some cases, they were a protection from bladed weapons.

This white hood is not typical of a medieval hood because it ties at the front.

The ties at the front serve no obvious purpose, you don't need to loosen to get the hood on your head, you can't pull tighter to close against the wind, so the ties are purely a decorative item.

Monks Cowl

A Monks Cowl, in this case, the cowl is separate from the robe, they can be one garment.

 Cowl or Hood.  What's the difference between a Hood and a Cowl well not much really

There seem to be many definitions and the garment changes they refer to also change over time, these are my definitions.

A cowl is a hood that is generally worn by monks, it can be attached to a garment such as a robe and can be pulled forward to cover the face.

A hood is a soft covering for the whole head with a hole for the face and neck and is usually part of another garment such as a coat or cloak, but can also be a separate  garment all on its own

So if you read the description the only real difference is perhaps a cowl is worn by monks, but otherwise, it's the same garment.