Cheaps: Hat Revolution & Fanueil Hall gets LIT

Two-thirds of my weekly Cheap Thrills column in the Boston Herald, with the third item getting its own post in a few... On tap this week: a Hat Revolution and Tree Lighting down at Faneuil Hall. Oh la laaaaaa!

WEEKEND HAT TRICK
Boston Hat Revolution get-together and headgear love-in
Saturday at 5 p.m. at 29 Newbury Street Restaurant and Art Gallery, then at 9 p.m. at Clink at the Liberty Hotel, 215 Charles St.; 21-plus. FREE
A tip of the cap to the folks in the Boston Chapter of online networking site meetup.com, which decided to create a Boston hat revolution this Saturday on unsuspecting hair-boasters and style-coasters. In a city rife with lid-aphobia - where the only true hat-trickery can be found at TD Garden - chapeaux connoisseurs are invited to show off their fabulous headgear in a bonnet march that starts at 29 Newbury and concludes at Clink. Salute old England with a bowler cap, roll straight gangster with a classic fedora, or go all Lady Gaga and place a peacock on your noggin - any type of hat will do. Don’t have a proper lid for the occasion? Hit up Toppers on Tremont Street, Salmagundi in Jamaica Plain or Marchi Inc. at Faneuil Hall Marketplace and deck yourself out. It’s a Saturday night head trip of a different breed, indeed.
Info: meetup.com/Brunch-Lovers-Wanted, 29newbury.com, libertyhotel.com

TREE-LICIOUS
Faneuil Hall Marketplace Holiday Lighting Ceremony
Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. (tree illumination at 5:30 p.m.), 1 Faneuil Hall Marketplace; all-ages, FREE
Sure, the Thanksgiving turkey is still strutting cluelessly around the farm, but that doesn’t mean we can’t get knee-deep in the season of holiday spirit, which kicks off officially this weekend when Faneuil Hall lights up the tallest holiday tree in all of New England. Join Santa Claus, members of Boston Ballet’s “Nutcracker” cast and Red Sox [team stats] mascot Wally the Green Monster for an afternoon of caroling, bell-ringing and various jolly happenings before performances by r & b group Jada and rockers Ernie & the Automatics celebrate the Big Tree That Glows. It’s a day not only for the kiddies, but all the ugly sweaters, reindeer earrings and flasks filled with Bailey’s the adults can possibly handle. And it sure beats hanging with the in-laws, which we’ll all be forced to do this time next week.
Info: faneuilhallmarketplace.com, 617-523-1300