fashion quandaries Pt. 2: oh, that HAT

Ok, so after looking at clothes for a few months, and thinking about clothes, and even finally purchasing a few clothes, I was feeling pretty satisfied that I had some idea of what I was doing, style-wise. I was getting simple but nice and attractive things, that looked good on me and were comfortable and practical.

But remember my earlier post about my first, young forays into fashion? In that post I wrote about noticing a trend when I looked back on my fashion sense in high school--simple, comfortable, and easy to wear, but also slightly edgy.

Hmmmm. These new clothes have the first part down, but they are not yet giving me style. And I want style. Not fancy or frivolous or impractical or ostentatious style, but some bits of flair that make me feel, well, more like the me I am inside. Not just a mom but also a person. In fact, I think my somewhat shapeless, drab clothes (i.e. black and grey, the staples of my wardrobe!) reflect my inner tendancies recently to dwell on the grit and scour and gray of my days, and not the vibrant and shiny and rich of my days. My inner self is really comfortable in black and grey (grey is my favorite color), and in the past two years, dark brown. I like these colors, they look good on me, so there is nothing wrong with basing my wardrobe on them. But these colors are also very safe, and not at all creative, or free spirited, or celebratory, or liberating. And my heart, at its best, is all those things.

So, in the spirit of encouraging myself to embrace life more fully--which is one of my goals for this year--I want the colors on my outer self to symbolize the colors of my inner self. I want more color in my life, in my heart; so I want more color in my wardrobe.

And I want my clothes to be fun.

But I did not have all this in mind when I started looking at clothes this past Fall; the ideas and little revelations have sort of crept into my consciousness from various places. But I can tell you exactly where it started: with watching the movie Iron Jawed Angels, a work of historical fiction about the American women's sufferage movement during the 1910's. Hilary Swank plays the young activist Alice Paul, who pretty much gives up her entire life for the cause of women's rights--and who also practically lives in the most cunning hat:


In the movie, when Alice sees the hat in a shop window, she and her best friend and fellow activist fight for it. Alice won. As soon as I saw it on Alice, I wished I had one just like it. Seriously--I love hats. I used to wear hats. Ok, so I do wear hats all the time now, but they are all practical hats, weather-specific hats, hats that are great for what they are supposed to do, but which you take off as soon as you can. No, I am talking about millinery, which I have not worn for a looooooong time, and once I saw this hat, I realized I want a hat. Because a good hat--like Alice's--is fun, and unusual, but practical too. And a hat like hers--the idea of it, at least--fits my insides. : )

So, of course, where do you go when you want to find a vintage-ish, ecclectic hat? Etsy.

Flapper Style Cloche Hat by Creations by Gail

Cute! But not sure of that color on me. . .


Another adorable hat also by Gail. In fact, after scouring all the hats of this style on etsy, I can say authoritatively that Gail has the loveliest hats available on that site. Some of her creations were even more lovely than these--these are just the two I could actually see myself potentially wearing.

Knotty and Nice by If The Hat Fits by Jackie

It's very cute, and black, which is a safe bet for me ; ). But it is a bit too tailored, too upright. . . I am more, um, slumpy in my style.

pink cloche by McHats

This one is also tailored, but simple and nicely retro--and I like the pink, and think it would actually compliment quite a lot in my wardrobe, but if I was only going to get one hat, would this be the best one. . . ?

cashmere cloche in reds by The Alternative Design Studio

This one is more money than I would want to spend--unless of course I was completely in love with it! I do love the fabric (cashmere being the only wool I can wear), and love the colors (fantastic on me, too!) and love that the fabrics have been upcycled. It would be strictly for winter, however, but that is okay. . . but would it be too warm to wear indoors anyway? I am looking for a hat you wear comfortably as part of your outfit for the day--or at least out on when you go out and about. It comes in another color combination too:

Although maybe the red and black is not actually as versatile as the red and red.

Noir et Noir by Annie's Wearable Art

Then there are all the multitude of knit options. My first choice of a hat would be one of the more structured styles pictured above, but knit hats are easier to store and carry around with you. This one is a great color on me ; ) and has a little more millinery style to it than your average knit hat. Not for wearing in the summer, but cute for wintery clothes.

alpaca wool cloche by Annmag

One benefit of a tailored hat is that it does not smush your hair all awry and static-y. Flattens, yes, but that is workable. So I would only get a hat like this knit one if I was sure I would not want to take off the hat at any point. . . (but isn't it pretty?)

Amelia hat by Lindsey Ferguson

But while I am at it, might as well get some color into it!

So, my dear readers, sister-friends, fashionistas--please comment at will! I would love to hear your thoughts, what you like and don't like, and whether or not you think I am veering into dangerous territory. Because it all started with the hat, but goes on from there.

To be continued!


(And anyone already sick of this topic has complete freedom to ignore the rest of this series!)