Let's Talk with Nancy J. Cohen
National Felt Hat Day
September 15, 2022
Today is National Felt Hat Day. According to the National Day Calendar, felt hats used to be made from wool. Rabbit and beaver were other popular choices. Nowadays, they may be created with synthetic fibers.
The phrase “mad as a hatter” came from the use of toxic mercury in hat-making that caused users to exhibit signs of dementia. Unfortunately, the hat makers in those days didn’t realize they were poisoning themselves.
I admire all styles of hats and learned more about them for Star Tangled Murder, my work in progress. Before this, I’d never heard the term fascinator or perch hat. I tend to wear sun hats with wide brims whenever outside under the Florida sun. Hats protect your face from wrinkles and sunspots and your skin from cancerous growths. It’s important to cover your neck as well, so nix the baseball caps except as a source of shade for your eyes. You can even buy hats with sunscreen now.
When you watch old movies, note the types of hats worn by the characters. I miss those days when hats seemed to make an elegant statement. Millinery making is an art and a skill. Look for craftsmen selling handmade hats at local festivals and stop to admire the artistry.
What is your favorite kind of hat to wear? Do you miss the days when a hat was an essential piece of wardrobe?
Also, while you’re here, click over to enter our September contest!
Posted in Let's Talk, with Nancy J. Cohen • Tags: Let's Talk, Nancy J Cohen, National Felt Hat Day | 10 Comments
National Felt Hat Day! I love it! My favorite traveling hat has about a 2 1/2 inch brim. It’s a bit narrow, but the cool thing is that it can be folded for packing. I’ve also got one that I use for working in the yard. It’s got a nice, wide brim and the crown is made of a mesh, so it vents nicely for hot days.
Hats that can be folded for packing are useful. Sun protection is especially important, and some hats even come with sunscreen in the fabric. It’s good you wear a hat for gardening.
I had no idea that today was National Felt Hat Day. I feel that I should since I have about fifteen in my collection. The remaining dozen are straw and cloth summer hats. Coincidently, I’m wearing my first felt of the season since it was only 76 degrees out on my walk to work. Fall is coming! Thanks, Nancy.
I love your hat collection. They complete your “look” and make you stand out in a conference crowd. Your outfits always look so well coordinated.
I love hats but with bangs it’s hard for me to find one I can wear without having to shove my hair back or to one side (hat hair is almost as bad as helmet hair!). That’s why I love fascinators. I’ve made myself quite a few of them and back when I attended formal-ish events more often I enjoyed wearing them. I have an all-black one complete with tiny crow for Halloween that I hope to break out again this October!
You must be highly talented to make your own fascinators. I like watching the royalty in England with their hats. Here’s a question for you – How does one fasten these hats onto the head?
Nancy, if you have slick hair like I do, you can attach the fascinator to a coordinating headband and it will never slide out of place. Or you can sew on combs or hair clips that work fine, too, depending on your hair and hairstyle.
Interesting. When I watch the royalty in England, I am always amazed at how their hats stay on.
I have three felt hats, but it is often too hot for me to wear them. Plus, when you commit to a hat, you wear it all day or suffer from hat hair. I’m more likely to wear the cloth/poplin hats with a circular brim. I have lots of them, mostly in neutral colors, but a few splashy turquoise ones. I’ve always loved hats, though I don’t think I had any other than beach visors until my, ah, maturity. Now every day is a hat day, and some winter days are felt hat days.
The only hat I’d wear in winter is a knitted cap type. Otherwise, I wear sun hats every day in Florida. These are mostly straw hats with different colored bands.