Legendary Panama Hats and Classic Retro Hawaiian Print Aloha Shirts
DID YOU KNOW? – In the book “Panama, a Legendary Hat” Newt in Honolulu is listed among the most prestigious international hatters – Gelot or Motsch in Paris, Herbert Johnson or Lock & Company in London and Borsalino in Milan that provide a selection of the notable Sombreros Montecristi.
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At the shop, Newt at the Royal, located on the grounds of the elegant Royal Hawaiian Hotel, we met hatter extraordinaire Jim Tomasi. Tomasi knows all there is about the fine straw hats known as Panama’s that are really from Ecuador. Prices range from $300 to $7,500 depending upon the weave. I tried on a $575 rakish number that was heaven but unlike Warren Beatty and William Hurt, I left mine behind.
Sue Purdy is a freelance writer specializing in travel, food, and lifestyle topics. Read the full article by clicking here
If you need something classier than a baseball cap, head here…. “There’s an art to fitting a hat.” Tomasi says he’s selling an increasing number to 20-somethings who appreciate the style. “As a young man is walking out of the store with a hatbox under his arm, I like to say to them, there’s hope for your generation.”
Best of Honolulu March 2010. Read the full article here.
PEOPLE IN PARADISE: That was singer Seal (of “Kiss From a Rose” fame), his model wife Heidi Klum and their kids …stopped by Newt in the Village; Seal and oldest son Henry left as proud owners of Panama hats. Seal’s hat size, like his persona, is impressive at 7 and 7/8, said Jim Tomasi of Newt. While trying on hats, Seal and Klum serenaded each other with a sweet duet with lines that go, “Where did you get that hat, Henry? Isn’t it a jolly one! I would like a hat just like that, Henry.” …
SHOW BIZ 8/23/2009
Show Biz by columnist Wayne Harada is published in the Honolulu StarAdvertiser.
It’s the 1927 Royal Hawaiian hotel, the pink palace, as it’s known. I slide Baby onto my finger and walk over, but before I even hit the lobby I discover Newt, a hotel shop that looks as if it has been around since the 1920’s. In the window there’s something called a Dorothy Lamour sarong; inside are what seem like hundreds of panama hats. It turns out that the place opened less than two decades ago, but the effect is deliberate…
Lynn Yaeger is a contributing editor of Travel+Leisure. Read the full article by clicking here
PEOPLE IN PARADISE: when I made my usual pilgrimage to your shop and bought my third set of shirts, you let my daughter try on one of your hats. I promised to send you the pictures. As you can see I am wearing one of my favourite shirts from 1994, but I think I am eclipsed by my beautiful daughter! Hope it’s not too long before I can get back to Hawai’i and Newt again …
A Pilgrimage 8/30/2007
PEOPLE IN PARADISE: Richard Roundtree, still remembered for “Shaft,” picked up a Montecristi Panama hat, planter’s style, from Robert Dewes, a sales associate at Newt in the Village …
SHOW BIZ 10/12/2006
Show Biz by columnist Wayne Harada was published Tuesdays and Thursdays in the Honolulu Advertiser. Read the full article by clicking here
PEOPLE IN PARADISE: That was actor Pierce Brosnan shopping at Jim Tomasi’s Newt at the Royal shop at the Royal Hawaiian hotel, trying on and purchasing a Montecristi Panama hat. “I didn’t recognize him at first and was instructing him about the way to wear a hat, how to handle the hat, proportions of a hat that would suit him,” said Tomasi. “Then I really looked at him when I put this hat on him … and realized, oh my gosh, this is 007 in my shop.” Keely Shaye Smith, Brosnan’s wife, was patiently waiting. Brosnan agreed to pose for a photo with his purchase, something Tomasi generally does. For the record, according to Tomasi, “Brosnan has a larger than ordinary size head (7fi”), which, of course, fits his larger-than-life persona.”…
SHOW BIZ 8/11/2005
Show Biz by columnist Wayne Harada was published Tuesdays and Thursdays in the Honolulu Advertiser. Read the full article by clicking here
George H.W. Bush – Although currently unavailable, perhaps one of our most popular Aloha Shirts was the Fern Aloha Shirt. With its soft understated tropical pattern, Hawaiian styling evocative of the 1940s, suggesting simple ferns moving in the trade winds… its popularity depleted our stock… a favorite among many people in public and private life.
Take Two – Manager of the Newt store at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel (where they sell these famed hats) wasn’t too surprised one day when he received a call from Warren Beatty who asked for a size 8 Fedora. Jim sent two to the film star. Beatty picked out the least expensive. Only $450 bucks…
— Eddie Sherman 4/13/2005
Columnist Eddie Sherman is published weekly in the MidWeek. Read the full article by clicking here