HATS can be good for your social life.

Dina Wise knows this well, and uses her vast collection of hats to meet new people.

“Since not many people wear them on a regular basis, the right hat is a really great conversation starter,” says Wise, 28, special projects editor at Talk magazine.

“It’s an instant talking point. Someone comes up to you, asks you where you got your hat. You tell them, they might say ‘Oh, I love that store.’ After that, you might introduce yourself, and then that rolls into other conversations.”

This fall, stylish head toppers have transcended their role as practical cold-weather items to become the season’s must-have accessories.

Slick fedoras, jaunty chauffeur caps, even wacky raccoon tail hats are being snapped up by fashion-obsessed women of all ages.

This year is the first time since the 1950s that American women have seriously embraced hats, notes Vogue accessories editor Michelle Kessler Sanders.

Hats have always been a part of our country’s loose dress code, but mainly for utilitarian reasons. Now, she says, they’re trendy as well.

“Everyone seems to be searching for a way to express their individuality,” she says.

“In New York City, you can wear almost anything and people will be unimpressed. But when you wear a hat, it makes people stop and think, ‘Hey, what’s her story?’ Hats make a real statement.”

Victoria McMahon-Croce, the hat buyer for Henri Bendel, says hat sales are strong this year – among famous and nonfamous shoppers alike.

Floppy brimmed styles are selling especially well. “They’re flattering on everyone, no matter what their age,” she explains. (Bendel’s biggest-selling floppy is a $318 graffiti-covered hat by British milliner Christine Bec.)

Fedoras are hot (McMahon-Croce says Michelle Deborah’s sell well at $298), but with a younger crowd.

“It doesn’t look as good on older women – it’s even hard for women in their 30s to pull off,” says McMahon-Croce.

Which cap is right for you? McMahon-Croce says you need to try on several to know for sure.

She says hats look different on each person – and it has more to do a person’s style and demeanor than her face and body.

“There’s a whole attitude that goes along with wearing a hat,” she says. “They’re a very involved buy – a very personal buy. That’s the reason we have our hats set up in a separate room: People feel vain trying them on.”