I absolutely loved watching Season 1 of The Crown on Netflix, the drama about the early years of Queen Elizabeth’s reign. One of the things that was total eye candy for me was her gorgeous wardrobe from the 1950’s, including the hats.
Old and glorious live oaks in Forsyth park.
I’ve never worn hats–(and I’m now talking about the utilitarian kind, not the pretty kind). Partly because as a kid, my parents were constantly telling me to not go out without one and partly because I have the kind of hair (curly) that develops instant HatHead on wearing one. I do wear one at the beach or disaster ensues (I pretty much go straight from pale to burn). But I’d love to imagine living in an era where you get to wear hats for fun–the artistic, cute kind.
Forsyth Fountain, which dates back to 1858.
There is a display called One Hundred Years of Ladies’ Hats in Savannah, Georgia, in the lobby of an iconic hotel called The Mansion across from Forsyth Park, with its famous fountain and huge live oaks and its Civil War monument. (You can read a bit more about the exhibition here.) I discovered this exhibit by accident on a recent visit to Savannah when we sort of randomly walked into the fabulous lobby of this historic hotel.
I could have stood there for hours reading about all of these hats but here are just two that caught my eye. In the first photo below, all the hats are lovely, but take a look at the hat with tiny yellow flowers hanging down simply from a leafy top. Simple, whimsical, and bright. I love this hat! In another life I would wear it to church on Easter Sunday.
In the next photo, take a look at the biggest hat. This beautiful lace-covered hat in the center of this case came with a story. It was made for a “Northern Lady” for her wedding to a “Southern Gentleman.” The lace is very fine, high quality, and handmade. The two colors of blue ribbon are symbolic of the North and the South. I was very touched by this symbolism and stared at it for quite some time. Like maybe if I stared at it long enough I would feel whether or not they got their happy ending, that Northern Lady and her Southern Gentleman. I sure hope so.
Hat with tiny yellow flowers is in the middle.
The Northern Lady’s beautiful lacy wedding hat is in the center.