June 09, 2008

Graduation Caps

So the other day, I went to buy my graduation cap/gown. This is the first (and probably the only) time I will be wearing a graduation cap/gown, because my high school never had it and at the moment I don't plan to pursue any further studies. So I was super excited to try on my cap/gown and see how it looked.
I was a bit disappointed to find that apparently undergraduates in the US only get to wear plain black gowns, because the pretty color stripes I'd always imagined myself wearing are reserved for people with higher degrees than mine. But then, I remembered that even Rory in her Yale graduation had to wear the same black monstrosity (probably made of cheap plastic-ky unbreathable material as mine too) and felt a bit better. Though even
the people over at Tufts have bits of blue in their tassels. Mine is just all black.
But the thing that bugs me the most is my graduation cap. I look like an idiot. It is an one size fits all cap, it is too big for me and the elastic-ky things on the side don't work. I wear it and there are irregular poofy bumps coming from all sides! A bit like how there is a bumpy bit on the back of Ashley's (right) cap, except multiplied by 10.
How come everyone else's (i.e. Rory and Marissa above) caps looks so nicely fitted on them? Is there something I am missing? Or is the cap from my school just badly designed?

Image Source: TV Addict

43 Comments:

Blogger Winnie said...

I've still got to order mine as my graduation is on the 11th July. Although I am in the UK and I know we have coloured hoods that differentiate my (art history)department from others. I have still got to find out what colours mine are though...

6/09/2008 6:04 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Mine is white and the guys get dark blue. I think it's a pretty cute color combo. But, anyway, I think on TV they try extra hard to make everything perfect - you know, teams of stylists and hairdressers - while in real life we've gotta fend for ourselves with those silly hats!

6/09/2008 7:40 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

My graduation cap was pinned to my hair, and even then I had to balance it. One size does not fit all!!

6/09/2008 9:02 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

In Berlin we dont even have graduation caps:(
My graduation will be in about two weeks and we will wear whatever we want...I dont like that.
I'm sure you'll look good even if your cap doesnt fit 100%.

www.nadineandthecity.com

6/09/2008 10:57 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Some graduation caps are fitted. In high school I had to sent my head measurement in and the cap I got had no ugly elastic band and fit nicely on my head like Marissa's.

My college cap was like yours and looked really bad. But my tassel was yellow! At the University of Michigan every college has a different color tassel.

6/09/2008 11:56 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

bobby. pins.

6/10/2008 12:09 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

My hat never fit properly, it kind of fell off a few times during the ceremony. Just try to work it with a lot of bobby pins

6/10/2008 12:24 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Bobby pins are your best friend when it comes to grad caps. (In addition to helping it fit, they also help it stay in place against wind, movement, etc.)
Be proud of your cap and gown. It may not be the latest couture, but you've worked so hard to earn it!

6/10/2008 1:04 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Congratulations Barney's Girl!!!

6/10/2008 1:22 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

No you are not missing it, I think black caps and gowns are just ugly no matter how a gal looks at it. I agree with rest of the gals, bring bobby pins....

6/10/2008 1:43 AM  
Blogger awongwong said...

ugghh i have the same dilemma too! my graduation cap is one size fits all but it is HUGE. and the cutting of it makes me feel like i am working at those 60's burger shoppes where they had to wear those paper hats. my graduation gown is enormous as well, i feel like i am a gospel singer whenever i put it on.

6/10/2008 2:29 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm not sure if this is going to sound stupid, but maybe you can get it tailored? If they tailor graduation caps...

6/10/2008 3:36 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm not sure if Graduation caps are necessary here. I do know we do get those weird stripe things, and I am pretty sure mine is going to be some hideous green with white fur trim!
Blech!
Congrats on graduating =)

6/10/2008 3:48 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

i think marissa's and rory's look so much better because they are T.V. CHARACTERS! haha. the producers can afford to get them hats that fit properly.. i just went to my brothers graduation on saturday, everyones cap looks a little goofy but who cares, you're graduating! besides, since he's just graduating high school, he had to wear school colors-- marroon. blech.

6/10/2008 7:31 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I graduated high school from a private school, so our gowns were rentals (really nice silky stuff) and our caps were really nice too. They look like Rory's and Marrisa's.. They didn't have the elastic binding, they were fitted and the part that goes around the head was cardboard-y so it REALLY cupped the head.

My friends that graduated from a public high school had the graduation caps that you had which bunched all over the place and had the elastic that was not helpful at all. I suggest bobby pinning it; I had to do that on mine as well since it was really windy when I graduated.

Try finding a different cap? X_x;

6/10/2008 7:51 AM  
Blogger Unknown said...

For my college graduation last year (American University), we had rental caps and gowns out of thick (but quality blue cloth) we were also individually measured for our cap size, so I'm guessing that's what's wrong with yours. my roommate and I are the same size clothing, but even our hats were different.

6/10/2008 8:08 AM  
Blogger JuliaFuentes said...

love the pictures you put:*
and good luck to your graduation:]

6/10/2008 8:41 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

At least yours wasn't bright red, which was the color for my university (Stony Brook).

6/10/2008 11:29 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

For my graduation in May, I tucked the front point of my cap under so it didn't come down so far. It helped a bit, but really the cap is just hideous--no way around it!

6/10/2008 2:15 PM  
Blogger alis said...

Both my high school and college graduation gown and caps were rentals. Both caps had to be secured with a lot of bobby pins. You shouldn't try to pull it all the way down to your forehead, it tends to look more stupid that way.

My college graduation gown was navy and it had a nice blue satin sash that hangs around the neck. It looked cute but I was sweatin' like a pig in that thing!

6/10/2008 2:44 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Personally I don't like blue in graduation fashion but black and purple are okay if they are good and fashionable designed.

6/10/2008 5:39 PM  
Blogger xA said...

You could put a couple of little darts in it to make it sit better.

6/10/2008 6:05 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

my grad gown and cap looks totally stupid on me too. at least gold stripes on blue is not a bad combi compared to other faculties i know. my grad's in july :)

congrats on graduating!

6/10/2008 8:47 PM  
Blogger Rebecca, A Clothes Horse said...

I agree with everyone else--it's all about the bobby pins. My school had tons of graduation rehearsals and they even spent one session helping us dress and pin our hats properly! It was worth it though, everyone ended up looking great.

6/11/2008 4:01 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Graduating is super exciting. You mentioned seeing a lot of girls wearing pearls which is fabulous because they are so classic.

I found this totaly amazing site for pearls called premiumpearl.com... I luv it ;)

6/11/2008 4:03 AM  
Blogger Unknown said...

I was just going to add that if you have very curly, kinky hair (especially if it's red!), the grad cap looks awful - I had my hair straightened (with the ends curled) before I wore it for one set of photos, only to have my family go, "Er, that's not you," send me back for a second set, which turned out terribly. It's much better to wear your hair sleek and wavy!

Luckily the colours were amazing - we had green and silver stripes against with the black gown and green and silver tassels on our caps. At my other high school the students wore purple gowns with black and white stripes (my guy friends hated it) and at a nearby one, yellow gowns with black and blue stripes, which leads me to think that it's a Canadian thing to have the stripes in graduation from secondary school?

6/11/2008 7:47 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

The only thing I suggest you be wary of: find out if you'll be required to remove your cap before you ascend the stage!

I graduated at the end of May and the tradition at my university was for students who were receiving their first degrees to REMOVE their caps for their walk across the stage. However, both before and after our walk across the stage we were expected to wear the mortarboards on our heads. Having your hat pinned nicely into your hair could result in a big mess if you have to undo it all while standing in line for the stage. Granted, I haven't seen any other universities do this, but it is worth double-checking your school's traditions!

Congratulations!

6/11/2008 7:58 AM  
Blogger Secretista said...

Aww, congrats! No caps and gowns for high school graduation?!

6/11/2008 9:01 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Try to use bobby pins... it may help. As far as the colors and academic hoods (the "stripey things") it may depend on the school you go to. I just got my undergrad degree and each school received different colors to represent each (Arts & Sciences, Business, Fine Arts, Communications, etc).

6/12/2008 4:37 AM  
Blogger Unknown said...

CONGRATULATIONSSSSS!!!!!!

In the US, it depends on hat school you go to. I know for NYU its cap and gown is purple. Most schools wear black tho. Also depending on the school you go to in the US, you get to wear the stripe things around your neck.

For example my school you get one if you were in a fraternity/ sorority (depending on the color of your frat/sorority), if you made honors, if you were in a different department, etc.

6/12/2008 4:51 AM  
Blogger Fashionably collaborative thought box said...

ohhh i wish we had 'graduation' in england! - definitionpoliticalspeakspace.blogspot.com x

6/13/2008 3:59 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

My hugs and kisses to all beautiful and slim white girls in U.K,France and India.27

6/14/2008 5:54 PM  
Blogger the lit slut said...

It's all in the tv editing. Rory and Marissa had professional stylists making sure they looked gorgeous and un-lumpy.

6/18/2008 12:09 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

If your cap is bunching in the back it's probably because you may not be wearing it correctly. That silly little point that goes in front is supposed to be pulled a mere inch and a half above your eye brows. At my graduation that was a big issue for all of us girls, we didn't want the weird baggy-ness on the back of our heads, but we still wanted our bangs to look cute. I have a feeling it's simply an all or nothing deal.

6/20/2008 7:52 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

My college we didn't get the stiff board hat, we got the floppy hat. Though we did get the colored "hood" as an undergrad. Which I get to trot out whenever we have alumni events.

Here's an example from someone's flickr account since I never got around to uploading my own.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/230/514054677_62dd501b51.jpg?v=1196341158

The floppy cap is kind of frumpy, but possibly better than the stiff board.

6/26/2008 1:50 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

It looks like you have it on backwards. If you hold the hat sideways, you will notice that one "end" is longer than the other. That long "end" goes to the back, to cup the underside of your skull. The point in the front goes right over your nose. The hat seam goes slightly above your eyebrows. This will make the hat fit better, but it will still not be a "fashion statement." It is a statement of accomplishment and follows in centuries of tradition. With the newer hats being :one-size-fits-all" the elastic part will make your hat "poof" if you don't wear your hair right. You should wear longer hair down, and not in a pony-tail, or any other configuration that puts your hair anywhere on top of you head. I hope this helps you with your "fashion" sense. There IS NO fashion to a graduation cap and gown.

10/19/2008 12:07 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

To go along with graduation.....beautiful laminated wooden Diploma Plaques. Please check us out and pass along our site, if you wish. Thanks! Fred
www.diplomaplaquelaminators.com

2/17/2009 11:32 AM  
Blogger Rinn Spencer said...

I too am wondering just how to make the graduation cap not make me look like a hot trannie mess. I'm thinking curls and pulling the bangs back. I guess the top should be level with the ground. My American robes are black to, the master's and PhDs get the hoods, but the honors chords and such are colorful, and not in a good way. I'm going to be a crazy clashing blob of black, maroon, 3 shades of blue, two shades of gold and red. Ew.

5/10/2009 12:31 AM  
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