Ukrainian headwear and accessories designer Ruslan Baginskiy is no stranger to the world of ornate, collectible hats. A staple of high-brow heads across the world, Baginskiy has narrowly tailored his area of expertise. This focus on luxury hats uniquely has allowed the brand to grow its presence, and make a splash within the fashion industry at large. New for the brand, though, is a sense of personal freedom. For this holiday season, Ruslan Baginskiy wants to empower individuality and inspiration, allowing its consumers to craft their own looks. While the brand never abandons its classic, upper-crust feel, it inherits a new sense of moldability. Enter your newest luxury headwear obsession: The Hat, Crystal Edition. 

The Hat, Crystal Edition empowers personal style on a basic, product-wide level. Retailing at $2,450, the luxury purchase comes with a variety of items, making it deeply customizable. Present within the purchase is that iconic felt canotier hat, which gives the brand its unique image. This is the hat that makes it a specifically Ruslan Baginsky output, something unique to the brand. Also present, however, is six crystal-embellished accessories. These include a necklace, hairpins, layered chain, RB earrings and ear-cuff set, monogram brooch, and two ribbons. These pieces can be worn as accessories to the hat, or as individual pieces. This is the personal piece of The Hat, Crystal Edition: you decide just how to wear it. 

The packaging itself imbues this individuality, marking The Hat, Crystal Edition with its mission. The box is classic Ruslan Baginskiy: sleek white, with a luxe black ribbon. When opened, though, the packaging speaks directly to the consumer. The opened box reads, “where inspiration brings you today.” What a way to encapsulate just what this project represents. 

For good or for worse, fashion is becoming more and more customizable. With luxury brands like Moncler introducing customization web platforms into their business models, the industry seems to be shifting towards a more personal, individual outlook. This has its downsides: garment caché and cultural infatuations begin to diminish, as our litany of options grows. But, in large part, this industry movement is an empowering one. How we dress reflects who we are, and we all hold such different, unique identity groups. We shouldn’t expect one luxury brand to create a monoculture of identity, to be able to encapsulate all expression in just one collection. Ruslan Baginskiy, along with the multitude of other luxury brands veering towards personalization technology, is emboldening a new generation of fashion consumers.