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A good hat is like a billboard that instantly communicates to the world the interests and social standing of the wearer underneath. Whether it’s a silk spoon bonnet decorated with lace and organdy flowers from the mid-Victorian era or a weathered...
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A good hat is like a billboard that instantly communicates to the world the interests and social standing of the wearer underneath. Whether it’s a silk spoon bonnet decorated with lace and organdy flowers from the mid-Victorian era or a weathered beaver-felt Stetson from the 1960s, hats tell us a lot of the people who wore them, as well as the styles and fashions of the day. When the Victorian Era began in 1837, bonnets with large, hooded coverings that framed the face were made out of satin and silk. Wide-brimmed straw hats trimmed with handmade fabric flowers were also popular. By the 1850s, circular bonnets became more sculptural and stiff—a decade later, these drawn bonnets had become oval, framing the face more naturally than the round ones that had preceded them. Straw skimmers, also known as rounds, were worn outdoors—the best of these had patterns of silk braids, real feathers, and other decorative embellishments sewn onto their tops. At the same time, simple straw boaters with flat tops and brims came into vogue for both men and women. The origins of the design are difficult to pin down, but the Venetian gondoliers, who tied brightly colored ribbons around the crowns of their hats, were probably their inspiration. In the middle of the century, top hats came into prominence. One of the hat’s most famous customers was Abraham Lincoln, who favored stovepipes, as the tallest top hats were often called, for formal occasions. Meanwhile, magicians reveled in what they could hide (or appear to hide) inside their top hats (white rabbits), while authors such as Lewis Carroll created top-hat-wearing characters like the Mad Hatter. Throughout the Victorian Era, particularly after the death of Prince Albert in 1861, mourning hats to go with mourning jewelry and similarly somber attire were common ways for women to express their grief. Some of these mourning hats included veils to hide the face. On the other side of the Atlantic, a Philadelphia hatter...
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