When I started working on How to Style a Hat, the last thing I wanted to write was a rulebook. There are already plenty of those! What I really wanted was something that gives people permission to try something new, mix pieces that “shouldn’t” go together, and follow their instincts about what they love.
The best style moments come from experimenting, trusting your gut, and discovering what feels good. They don’t come from following the rules!
At its core, How to Style a Hat is about helping people feel confident. Hats can be intimidating at first, but they’re actually one of the most fun accessories to experiment with. A small shift — a different brim shape, another feather, a hatband with a story behind it, a tilt forward or back — can change the whole vibe. My hope is that when you flip through the pages, you start to see hats the way we do at The Original Hat Bar: not just as something to wear, but as a canvas for creativity and an avenue for expressing the uniqueness of wonderful you.
And now: behind-the-scenes moments you won’t read in the book!
‘You’ve Got a Book Deal!’
The funny thing about this book is that it almost wasn’t about hats at all. A friend of mine who’s a book agent — and a Flea Style fan — had been encouraging me to write a book for years. We were actually working on something totally different, more about the Flea Style lifestyle: how to style your home, your closet, your table, the whole vibe. I even flew to New York City, holed up in a hotel room for a few days, and started building it out.
Then, out of the blue, she said the book industry wanted a book about hats. There really wasn’t a modern book about hats, and when she called and said, “We need to pivot”? Well, OK! Next thing I know, I’m standing in our Fort Worth store on a FaceTime call with someone at Abrams, turning my phone around to show them the hat bar. The store was in full swing, and within days the woman on the phone said, “We don’t need a proposal — you’ve got a deal.” Mind. Blown.
It was the easiest yes in the world and a validating experience.
And don’t worry! A Flea Style lifestyle book is still on my list.
It’s All One and the Same
So the book isn’t about Flea Style — which was the original idea, right? But really it is.
Flea Style and How to Style a Hat aren’t two separate things — just like Flea Style and I aren’t two separate things. I am Flea Style and Flea Style is me. Flea Style is at the heart of everything I do. It’s all intertwined, so bringing that spirit into the book felt natural.
Hats are just one more canvas for the creativity I use when I style a house or a store or an outfit. That’s why you’ll see Flea Style all over the pages of How to Style a Hat. We shot photos for the book in our stores, used photos from past openings, and pulled from years of images captured through our photographer’s lens. Some of our team members are in the book; one even has a knot named after her in a chapter!
I really wanted the book to reflect the whole world of Flea Style — the people, the spaces, the energy that makes the brand so special. The very first page after the intro is a dreamy photo of one of our stores. It’s not a traditional styling shot, but to me it perfectly captures who we are and invites you right into our world.
Nobody Does It Alone
I knew from that first phone call that writing a book was bigger than just me. If it was going to feel like Flea Style — and if I was going to actually get it done — I needed to bring in my people. The ones I trust most. The ones who understand my vision and know how to bring it to life without a lot of micromanagement or handholding.
Our in-house photographer and videographer, Nichole, was an obvious yes. She has this incredible ability to capture things in a way that feels natural and a little perfectly imperfect, which is exactly the look I love. Nothing about her work feels forced, and it’s always stunning. I also called in our creative genius, Carolyn, who has been with Flea Style for nearly seven and a half years. Anything she touches turns beautiful. I knew she was the one for the illustrations and hand-drawn elements, and she absolutely knocked it out of the park. And my friend and very first editor, Allison, stepped in to help shape the structure of the book and refine so much of the writing and content. The best part was that these women just got it. I could share an idea and they’d run with it.
In the end, it was a small but mighty team — a four-girl band bringing the whole thing to life — with help sprinkled in from all corners of the Flea Style family. Team members jumped in to help style shoots, pull pieces, and capture moments we knew had to make it into the book. It truly became a company effort, and watching everyone’s talents come together on these pages felt pretty magical.
Core Memories Made
This project took about two years from that day at the Fort Worth store to the moment it was finally off my plate, and there were so many memorable moments along the way.
One of my favorites was spending time in Round Top with our photographer and our buyer. I knew being there had to be part of the book, even though I couldn’t tell you exactly what we were going to shoot. I just knew that capturing me in the field — literally in the wild — finding the things I love most in a natural, organic way was important. And it ended up being exactly that. Those photos are some of my favorites in the book, because they really show the Flea Style spirit and how we approach making hats.
Another memory from the shoot is a little sad but also incredibly beautiful. One of the days we were in the studio capturing a big portion of the book — flat lays and styled shots — I stepped outside to take a call from my dad and learned that my grandfather had passed away. We knew it was coming, but it still hit hard. When I walked back onto the set, Carolyn and Nichole had styled a scene on top of a vintage trunk with some playing cards.
What they didn’t know was that the trunk was from an Air Force base where my grandfather had once been stationed — something I had randomly found at a flea market. And sitting right on top of the card deck was the King of Hearts. In my family, that was my grandfather. We play cards together every Sunday when we’re all in California, and he was always the king of hearts to us. I had just learned he was gone, and in that moment it felt like he was right there with me. It still gives me goosebumps to think about it.
My Miranda Moment
Singer, songwriter, and musician Miranda Lambert has been a friend of Flea Style for a while. We’ve worked with her at a few events, she’s visited our Frisco store, and we’ve even collaborated remotely with her music label Big Loud in Nashville. I’ve always loved her music and admired her spirit, so when it came time to think about who should write the foreword for How to Style a Hat, she was an immediate yes in my mind. She loves hats, she’s someone I truly respect. She carries herself with the kind of confidence this book is all about.
I sent a thoughtful email from the heart and hoped for the best. It took a little while to hear back from her, and one afternoon I was sitting in the long carpool line waiting to pick up my daughter, scrolling through emails when there it was — not only a yes, but the book foreword attached right there in the email. I really believe in following your heart and shooting your shot. When it all works out it’s the best.
The Hardest Part
The most challenging part of writing How to Style a Hat probably isn’t what you’d expect. The writing itself wasn’t hard — in fact, it was a joy. Writing is what I went to school for, and it’s probably my most natural talent. What was difficult was carving out the time to actually do it. My days are full, so I had to be really intentional. I’m a deadline-driven person, so I set deadlines for myself and had a standing weekly call to keep the project moving and hold myself accountable.
The other surprising challenge came after the book was technically finished. There’s this whole publisher process that no one really prepares you for, and it can take close to a year. It’s incredibly detailed — reviewing every page, checking colors in photos, catching tiny caption errors, making sure everything is exactly right. It requires a lot of focus, and that was tough to squeeze into a busy day. Most nights I found myself going page by page, word by word, making sure it all felt perfect after my kids were in bed.
How to Use This Book
There’s no wrong way to read How to Style a Hat. You can flip through the style profiles to see which one feels like you. You can use it as inspiration when you’re ready to build a custom hat. Or you can simply enjoy the stories, photos, and ideas and let them spark something new in your own wardrobe.
You’ll also find plenty of easy DIYs throughout the book — simple ways to personalize a hat with pieces you might already have or can easily find. Think of it less like a manual and more like an inspirational conversation about style.
How to Style a Hat has been such a fun project, and I’m excited to share more of this journey with you. Yes, you can follow along on the socials, but I want to see your face somewhere along the book tour — I want to say hello and make a hat together!
