Did your mother or grandmother have a hat box on the closet shelf, with a little velvet hat and a puff of veil tucked inside for church and weddings?
For much of the last century, a woman didn't leave the house for anything important without a hat. Small hats in particular, the perches, half hats and pillboxes, were the finishing touch on a suit or a dress. Many were saved long after the habit faded, which is why they still turn up in estate sales and closets today. Here's how to tell the styles apart, how to date one and how to look after it.
We have 3 small hats in the shop right now, a pillbox, a half hat and a perch, starting at $24.
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The styles, decade by decade
- 1920s: the cloche ruled, worn low over the eyebrows to suit bobbed hair.
- 1930s: hard times brought plainer, closer-fitting hats. Milliners introduced the modern pillbox in this decade, and by the late 1930s toques, turbans and tilted berets were growing taller.
- 1940s: wartime shortages kept hats simple, and many women working in factories wore snoods and kerchiefs. Milliner Lilly Daché is credited with the half hat, which became a must-have in 1941. After the war, small hats that covered only the crown and were held with hatpins were the fashion.
- 1950s: hats stayed small and close to the head, often with a short veil, and were still seen as the accessory that completed an outfit. The half hat was a favorite, worn over the pin-curled hairstyles of the day.
- 1960s: hats grew bolder but were worn less often, partly because bouffant hairstyles made them hard to wear. Jacqueline Kennedy's pillboxes, designed by Halston, became the signature look of the decade.
What each style is
- Pillbox: a small, round hat with straight sides and a flat top, and no brim. Pillboxes came in wool, velvet, fur and more, usually in solid colors, sometimes with a veil.
- Perch hat: a small hat made to sit on top of the head, often tipped slightly forward. Flat, round versions are also called calots or pancake berets. Many have wire combs or grips inside to hold on.
- Half hat: also called a clip hat, it covers only part of the head, often curving over the crown like a wide headband. Wired edges help it stay put. Dressed up formally, it's considered a cocktail hat.
- Veils: fine net, often called birdcage or face veils, added a little mystery and could be found on all three styles.
See it in person: small hats in the shop
One of each style, side by side. Each one is a single piece, so when it's gone, it's gone.
Labels and milliners
Look inside the crown and along the inner band. Department stores and milliners often sewed in their own labels, and some hats have a small union label. The United Hatters, Cap and Millinery Workers International Union label was used from 1934 to 1983, so it points to the mid-century years. Plenty of small hats have no label at all, which is common and doesn't mean a hat isn't vintage.
How to date a vintage hat
- Shape: match the silhouette to the decade above. A tiny perch or half hat built for pin curls leans 1940s to 1950s. A deep pillbox worn at the back of the head leans 1960s.
- Labels: a union label or a store label you can look up can narrow the date.
- How it holds on: hatpins, wire combs, velvet-covered grips and thin elastic are all period ways of keeping a small hat in place.
- Trims: look at how bows, feathers, veils and brooches are attached. Hand stitching and trims that show the same age as the hat are good signs.
- Wear: real age shows inside first, as fading, wear on the band or grips, and softened edges.
Sizing
Most perch hats, half hats and many pillboxes sit on top of the head rather than around it, so they're often one size fits most. Measure around your head where the hat will sit, and compare that to the inside of a hat with a full band. For small hats, a bobby pin or hat pin does most of the work. A low bun, chignon or pin curls give them something to hold on to.
Look-alikes and reproductions
Fascinators and vintage-style hats are still made today, and some are sold as vintage. Very bright, unfaded materials, glued-on trims, plastic combs and modern synthetic netting are clues to a newer piece. Labels can help, but so can simply looking closely at the inside.
Caring for vintage hats
- Handle a hat by the brim or edge, not the crown, and keep it out of direct sun, which fades velvet and feathers.
- Brush velvet gently with a soft brush in the direction of the nap. A light hold-it-away steam can lift crushed velvet, but never soak a hat.
- Treat veils and feathers gently. Old net tears easily and feathers can be brittle.
- Store each hat in a box with acid-free tissue stuffed inside the crown so it keeps its shape. Don't stack hats or seal them in plastic.
For more, see our guide to cleaning and caring for vintage finds.
Vintage hats in the shop
Our emerald green velvet and cream lace pillbox hat has a rich velvet band around a delicate lace crown, 7" across and one size fits most. The black velvet half hat with a feather bird and net veil is an open-back bandeau, with long tail feathers sweeping down one side and a fine veil over the face. And our black velvet perch hat with a rhinestone brooch, from about the late 1940s to 1950s, has a grosgrain bow and an openwork floral rhinestone spray across the front. Every piece is the only one we have.
Keep browsing:
Women's clothing & accessories →Vintage brooches →Rhinestone jewelry →
Keep reading: How to Date Vintage Costume Jewelry · How to Date Antique Photographs · Spooky Victorian Finds
Do you remember the hat your mother or grandmother wore to church, or the one you wore on your wedding day? We'd love to hear about it.