head adornment.

as i briefly mentioned in my recommendation post, i found something fanciful at kaivarin kanuuna. although i am convinced you'll see more of this later (hopefully in the form of better pics), i'm too anxious to wait any longer to present my new treasure to you. i quickly snapped some shots before running out the door last friday night.

for someone whose style is more androgynous than anything else and who has lately felt preoccupied with head issues, a 40's hat is more than fitting. the decade of great division in both world history and fashion, it saw the taking over of men's closets while they were away fighting, the celebration of creativity and frugality, and was definitely an era of hats and gloves. together with the expansion towards menswear, 1940's also became the stepping stone to re-establishing the extravagant hourglass in the 50's with the introduction of dior's new look in 1947. it was definitely a decade of extremities and contradictions, but also a decade of eroding class differences and camaraderie.

hats are not my customary selection of accessories, but seeing people like sugar kane wear theirs with such grace and ease, i've been on the lookout for something flattering and suitable. i really love kirsi nisonen's designs and after getting used to wearing something on my head, i'm sure to purchase some of hers. (and, yes, now is the time to do it because her handmade pieces are still very affordable.)

but let's talk about my hat.


as i browsed through the selection at kaivarin kanuuna i came across this exquisite monochrome satin hat. it is handmade and the satin's hues develop from the lightest of grey to black and are wrapped around like a turban while retaining a structured shape. as was customary in the 40's, it is constructed to be worn tipped to one side. "eugh!" you may think and the thought definitely crossed my mind: second-hand hats can be quite icky. but this one was in immaculate condition probably from only a few wears and proper storage and, most importantly, fits my head like a, ahem, glove.

it will look better once i have hair again, but with the right dress(y top) it might just work even baldheaded. here it's worn with a mango dress and earrings bought from the street in manhattan i wore to my friday night party.

do you wear hats? do you stick to washables in your second-hand shopping?