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Top hats seem to be the must-have runway prop this season.

Grail was one of many lines to tap into the top hat for fall '07.
(Lawrence Ho / LAT)
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Times Staff Writer

Hat’s What I’m Talking About

As a serious part of a man’s wardrobe, hats have been out of favor since the Kennedy administration, but they — top hats in particular — seem to be the must-have runway prop this season.

The first pass of the hat came with Christian Audigier’s circus-themed Ed Hardy runway show on Monday afternoon when a model trod the runway sporting a magician’s cape, a drawn-on handlebar mustache and, you guessed it, a topper. Close observers would also find a tip of the hat in the embroidered designs of Ed Hardy: A skeleton stitched on the back pocket of the line’s jeans sported a chapeau as well.

On Tuesday night, Literature Noir accessorized a gent wearing gray jeans and screen-printed T-shirt with a stovepipe number, a pair of knee-length leather boots, cast-off suspenders and a jewel-topped walking stick that gave him a Daddy Warbucks meets Starbucks barista vibe.

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Wednesday afternoon, it became apparent that the hat was here to stay. Grail perched scuffed-up duct-tape embellished versions on the heads of men, women and children (literally as the runway show included children’s clothing).

Maybe it’s just the Mirror, but no matter how cute the kids, the sight of a toddler in a top hat gives him the same creepy feeling as those talking baby commercials.

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