Unlock 10% off on your first order and gain access to exclusive, limited-edition projects.
ONE PIECE · CHARACTER DESIGN · HAT ANALYSIS
Every Iconic Hat in One Piece and What It Tells You About Its Wearer
In One Piece, hats are never random. From Luffy to Chopper, Ace, Shanks, and Roger, every silhouette reveals something about the character beneath it.
We make hats. That is what SUPERDUPER has done since 2011 — studying shape, material, crown height, brim curve, and what all of it says about the person underneath.
So when we look at One Piece, we do not just see an anime. We see one of the most thoughtful collections of headwear in fiction. Every major character wears something on their head, and none of it is accidental.
Here is what we see.
Luffy's Straw Hat
The most famous hat in anime. A wide-brim straw hat with a red ribbon — simple, weathered, and irreplaceable.
From a hat-making perspective, this is a classic boater-meets-farmer silhouette. Wide enough to shield from sun on the open sea. Light enough to travel. The straw weave is open and breathable, made for someone who lives outdoors and does not sit still.
But the hat is not really about function. It is about identity. Luffy received it from Shanks as a child, and Shanks received it from Gol D. Roger — the Pirate King himself. The hat is a lineage, passed down like a crown, except softer and worth infinitely more.
We built the real version of this hat. Natural raffia, handwoven in Italy. Every time we shape one, we think about what Oda intended: something that looks ordinary but carries the weight of an entire world.
Chopper's Top Hat
Season 2 brings Tony Tony Chopper to the screen — and with him, one of the most recognizable hats in the series. A pink top hat with a white X across it, oversized for his small frame, instantly lovable.
In classical hat-making, a top hat signals formality and authority. On Chopper, it signals the opposite — vulnerability, warmth, a creature trying to be taken seriously in a world that does not quite know what to make of him. The X across the crown is a mark given by his mentor, Dr. Hiluluk. It is not a fashion choice. It is a scar worn with pride.
The contrast between the formal shape and the character who wears it is exactly what makes it work. Oda understands that a hat is never just a hat.
Ace's Orange Cowboy Hat
Portgas D. Ace — Luffy's older brother — wears an orange cowboy hat with two face ornaments and a beaded band. It is bold, wide, slightly reckless. Exactly like him.
The cowboy silhouette in hat-making is about open space and confidence. A cowboy hat says: I have been somewhere, and I am not afraid to go further. Ace's version adds personality through color — bright orange against his dark hair — and the ornamental faces on the brim, which feel almost ritualistic.
It is the hat of someone who does not need to explain himself.
Shanks and the Absence of a Hat
Here is something most people miss: Shanks does not wear a hat anymore. He gave it away. And that absence speaks louder than any accessory could.
In the world of One Piece, giving up the straw hat was not a casual gesture. It was Shanks betting everything on a child he believed in. When you see Shanks without a hat, you are looking at a man who placed his trust in the future and is still waiting to see if it was deserved.
From a design perspective, this is the most powerful move Oda made. The hat that defines the entire series is defined by the moment someone chose to let it go.
Roger's Straw Hat
Before Shanks, before Luffy, the hat belonged to Gol D. Roger — the man who conquered the Grand Line and became the Pirate King. We see it in flashbacks, worn the same way Luffy wears it now: slightly tilted, casual, as if the weight of the world is something you carry lightly.
The fact that the Pirate King wore a straw hat — not a crown, not a helmet, not a tricorn — says everything about the world Oda built. Power in One Piece does not look like power. It looks like a hand-woven hat made from grass.
Why it matters
In a world of devil fruits and sea monsters, Oda chose to make headwear one of the most important visual languages in his story. Every hat is a biography. Every missing hat is a story of sacrifice.
We understand that language. It is the same one we use every day in our workshop in Florence — where the shape of a crown, the curve of a brim, and the texture of a material all say something about who will wear it.
One Piece is fiction. The craft is real.
Related reads
The SUPERDUPER x Netflix One Piece Luffy Hat — the only straw hat built by hat-makers, not merchandise factories. Handwoven natural raffia, approved by Eiichiro Oda.
