Our peers during the 50s and 60s "dressed up" for work, church, travel, meetings, and other social functions. Men and women wore hats and their ensemble wasn't complete without one. I remember my grandparents dressed this way to go to church, always. For women gloves were required as well, white in the spring and summer and darker colors in the fall and winter.
Grandmother had some interesting older hats that she let me wear to play, along with some vintage style dresses with vintage fabrics - dimity, matelase, viscose, jersey, and rayon.
Grandmother had some interesting older hats that she let me wear to play, along with some vintage style dresses with vintage fabrics - dimity, matelase, viscose, jersey, and rayon.
I don't remember my brother or his friends wearing hats to church, but the girls did, especially at Easter. My favorite hat was a white head band style decorated with lace flowers and rhinestones. My mother hated hats and was glad to be rid of the standard protocol. When my paternal grandparents and aunt visited, they always wore hats for the train trip.
Women's hats could be annoying if you were sitting behind someone with a broad brim at church or a movie. Unless women came to a function and started working, such as serving food at a covered dish luncheon, they rarely took their hats off.
Women's hats could be annoying if you were sitting behind someone with a broad brim at church or a movie. Unless women came to a function and started working, such as serving food at a covered dish luncheon, they rarely took their hats off.
Head gear also included scarves for women. Mother wore them when going out on a breezy day especially after having her hair done, all curled and coated with hairspray. Scarves were an easy option for gift giving. I didn't like the way they smashed your hair down and made your head seem so small.
We even wore swim caps when going to the beach, lake, or a pool. I liked one that had brightly colored dimensional floppy flowers, but the caps pulled your hair painfully when taking them off. They kept your hair dry but wouldn't protect any specially styled coif.
Because we lived in sunny Florida, wearing a hat for protection was always acceptable. And of course the men wore hats during hunting adventures.
We even wore swim caps when going to the beach, lake, or a pool. I liked one that had brightly colored dimensional floppy flowers, but the caps pulled your hair painfully when taking them off. They kept your hair dry but wouldn't protect any specially styled coif.
Because we lived in sunny Florida, wearing a hat for protection was always acceptable. And of course the men wore hats during hunting adventures.
Some women really knew how to wear a hat, and looked so good like entertaining Carmen Miranda, and Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, and of course, the First Lady Jackie Kennedy O.
Thinking of hats reminded me of the popular ceramic lady head vases from the 1950s. The very small vases were introduced as a florist's ruse so that patrons would have to keep purchasing flowers for refills. Most of the ladies wore hats. Mother had one on her dresser as a catch-all and it was odd to see pencils, pens, and emery boards sticking out of a woman's head. I recall the lady had very delicate protruding eyelashes. You can still find some of the vases in thrift shops, antique stores, and online.
The only headcovers we wear now are an occasional winter hoodie or a gardening hat. Those formal dress up days with hats and gloves seem to be a thing of the past for most people.
"...a woman should cover her head." 1 Corinthians 11:6
"...a woman should cover her head." 1 Corinthians 11:6
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