Dating an old hat

acceber

acceber

VFG Member
I bought this hat at an estate sale the other day, in a box with a bunch of 1950s hats. I suspect this hat is older. I also think it's mostly hand made. The flowers are silk. I'm not sure what the fur is. Any idea as to how old it is? Thank you!

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If it should be worn forward and tilted, should the band go across the back of the head to counter balance it?
Marian
 
This is an odd hat. Hard for me to say, but my first thought is that it is a young girl's winter hat, possibly the flowers were added at a later date. The fur looks like some sort of faux fur? I cannot say when it was made, unless I perhaps could handle it. Maybe mid century? It looks altered as well. I am not seeing this as a woman's tilt hat. A home made hat to match a girl's winter coat, is my guess. Looks sort of like a beret style with ear flaps.

Can you show us the entire interior of the hat, please? And maybe a photo of it laid on its side, flat?
 
I don't see it as a tilt hat either. It snaps under the chin and it would be impossible to adjust it. I think it is a faux fur. Also, the flowers are original to it as they are made out of the exact same silk as the chin strap. I turned it inside out as best as I could and got pics of the inside. I also got pics of the fur backing. I discovered what may have been a label at some point, unless it's a loop sewn in for some reason.

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Do I have it right? I think the back looks kind of odd. I'm going to try pressing the flowers so they're more flowery.

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I can see now why it should sit the way you are saying. There's only about 3" between the flaps in the back, and almost 7" in the front. You think it would be a mistake to try washing it? Not in the washer, obviously, but maybe by hand?
 
I started out thinking it was an Edwardian era child's hat too. It sits far more comfortably and neatly just put on straight and snapped under the chin. I measured it at 20" which also makes me think it might be for a child.
 
PRYM is a German company dating back to 1559. I usually find items with Prym zippers that are from the 1950s to 1970s here in Canada.
I unfortunately don't know anything else about the hat.
 
After you steam out the flowers, try tilting it slightly to the right side, to open up the blooms. In your last photo you have it tilted to the left. Yes, 20 inches around is a tiny size for an adult head. Unless it was meant to sit in some strange way atop the hair, but then the tsraps would not work properly.

Its an odd one!
 
Looks to me like a winter bonnet for a child. Faux fur. Adult hats don't snap under the chin. I think it looks just like you see on image of little girls skating on a frozen pond. Bet it had a matching coat and muff.
 
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