A party hat is usually a playful cone-shaped hat made of a rolled piece of cardboard, usually printed on the outside, with a long elastic band like a chin band that extends from one side of the cone bottom to the other to secure the cone-shaped person's head. Its name comes from its usage: party hats are usually worn at birthday parties, especially in honor of distinguished guests, mostly for New Year celebrations. In England, hats are made of paper, in a crown, and are usually worn at Christmas dinner. The origin of party hats is the clumsy hats worn by schoolchildren who misbehaved or understudied from the middle of 19th century to the beginning of 20th century. The decoration of festivals and the positive attitude of the society towards the wearer show that such hats relax, emaciate and even reverse some social norms: in the relevant fields, the wearer is allowed or encouraged to conduct reckless and stupid behaviors, rather than stop them from doing so. This In other cases, some behaviors must be punished by wearing work caps. Party hats originated in England

Non conical hats for informal and festive occasions include decorated top hats, ballooned hats, beer hats or "beer helmets" (invented by Buffalo Bills fan Jeremy gumbo in 1983) and Mickey Mouse Ears. In more extreme cases, people at parties may wear other items, such as lampshades or beer boxes, although wearing such items often causes social opposition.