One winter night, two years ago, I made an offhand comment to my husband: “I want an orange beanie.”

At the time everything in my closet was what a fashion person would describe as “dark neutrals”—black outerwear that matched my collection of black boots and beanies in every shade of gray. It felt safe. It also made dressing for winter feel just as bleak and miserable as the weather.

My husband got the hint. That Christmas he gave me a neon orange Carhartt beanie as a gift, pleased with himself for having tucked away this little tidbit and remembering it weeks later. (He’s really good at that.) I, however, could barely feign excitement. Oh God, I thought, now I actually have to wear color out in public. I hadn’t thought it through. Now I had to figure out how to break my “dark neutrals” streak with the loudest shade of orange available, so bright that my entire complexion tinted tangerine when I wore the hat. It’s an introvert’s worst nightmare—in other words, it was my worst nightmare.

Not long after, another question popped into my mind: Was I even cool enough to pull off Carhartt?

The 130-year-old Michigan-based brand was born out of a need for long-lasting coveralls and durable work jackets that could stand up to the demands of being a blue-collar manual laborer or a railroad worker—“honest value for an honest dollar,” read its tag line. The company has upheld its promise through the years: As technology evolved, so did the quality of garments, introducing of flame- and wind-resistant clothing, denim with reinforced rivets, and outerwear woven with heavy-duty thread.

In the late 1980s skateboarders discovered Carhartt and started wearing its pieces; by the 1990s it had become a part of hip-hop culture. The founding of Carhartt Work in Progress, which fused the workwear aesthetic with streetwear silhouettes, in 1989 made it a phenomenon—and certified cool. Celebrities like Rihanna were photographed wearing Carhartt, and the brand even got the Rizzoli book treatment.

It all made me, a fashion writer, feel very intimidated to wear a simple (if traffic-cone orange) knit beanie.

My first outing with it on, I was with my husband, on our way to meet up with his friend at a party at an art museum. I was wearing a tie-front top from Rouje and a pair of high-waisted vintage Levi’s. And everywhere I turned, there was a hypebeast in an orange Carhartt beanie just like mine—I must have counted at least 10. A stranger passed by and gave me a nonchalant nod: “Nice beanie,” he said. I’m not gonna lie, I felt weirdly very cool about my outfit.

Once I finally owned a Carhartt beanie, I started noticing them everywhere. This was also at the height of gorpcore, the movement that spotlighted utilitarianism in fashion during which a slew of salt-of-the-earth brands like Patagonia, North Face, Dickies, and yes, Carhartt hit the fashion set. The easiest and cheapest way to co-opt the look was with my very beanie. The Acrylic Watch hat rings in at $28 and it’s available in practically every color, including my beloved orange. It got to the point that, during Fashion Week, a Carhartt beanie became just as ubiquitous as a colorful teddy coat.

I get it. There’s a neat high-low element that’s achieved when you wear a Carhartt beanie—a cool, down-to-earth grittiness that can immediately offset a too-bougie, high-fashion look. And the brand has collaborated with Converse, A.P.C., and Stussy on collections tailored for the fashion set. Now it seems like every celebrity, millennial, and your casual social media users owns one. And once you spot one, you start noticing just how many Carhartt-branded hats are out on the streets.

Sure, it’s gone mainstream. But I still love my neon orange beanie. It’s a gift from my husband, first off. But I also credit it for breaking me out of my one-note winter wardrobe. It’s forced me to step outside my comfort zone when it comes to my style. I’ve even added more color into my outerwear: a mustard yellow puffer, a leopard-print coat, and a siren-red wool jacket. That’s a pretty big deal for me. And if all else fails, my bright Carhartt beanie does the trick.

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