A Bit of Millinery on Memorial Day

My summer uniform: floppy hat, cropped top,
high waisted maxi skirt & sandals.
(You'll have to excuse my wrinkly skirt, it was a busy day)

Nothing says it’s the start of summer to me quite like a floppy hat and sandals. With Memorial Day being the unofficial start to summer, it’s time to take those warm weather staples out of hibernation.

Hats on a woman in a America seem to be a thing of the past, they often only make appearances earlier in the month at Churchill Downs (I'm talking about the Kentucky Derby of course). I think it’s high time we took a cue from our friends across the pond and extend our headgear beyond a day with the ponies.

My hat of choice, being wide brimmed and moderately floppy, is a well known favorite of Derby attendees and has actually been around for centuries. It's the perfect accessory for long days in the sun. The material is light weight and breathable, it’s also pliable letting you bend and manipulate the folds and waves of the brim to perfectly shield your brow from the changing angles of the sun’s rays. Not to mention it lets you cover just enough of your face to give that extra bit of coy mysterious-ness.

This hat, just like many of the others you find today is actually made of paper straw, not real straw.  Shantung paper (that is generally made of Manila hemp plant fibers) is rolled into yarn to simulate straw. It is actually more resilient, and easier to manipulate than real straw. It also accepts dyes better, allowing for more vibrant colors. The use of paper straw to make hats became widely popular in the mid 1900's when real Panama straw (used of course to make the most famous of straw hats, the "Panama hat") became scarce. Now, paper straw constitutes 65% of the straw hat market.

Traditional Panama Hats

Straw (or what resembles straw) hats have come a long way over the decades. They have evolved not only in shape and size ranging from traditional to avant garde, but also in the materials used to produce a quality product. Paper straw has cornered the market for so long because of its ready availability, durability, and cost effectiveness... but of course there must be something out there that's a bit more luxurious than paper and a bit more transportable (while fairly pliable paper straw hats can still loose their shape if not handled with care). The ability to pack a hat is an essential quality for the warm weather jet-setter. If you think about it, whether you are a regular globetrotter or a more infrequent traveler most of us only bring out our hats when gearing up for vacation! How had no one thought of this sooner??  One of America's most well known hat designers (or if you really want to sound well-versed, milliner), Eric Javits, saw a niche in the market. He realized a need for a high-end straw sun hat that could be packed for travel without cracking or losing its shape.

Thus, Javits invented what is now coined the "Squishee" hat: a hat that resembles the look of straw but can easily be packed, squished, and crushed and bounce back to its original shape. Squishee is the actual trademarked name of the material used to create the hats (now also a full line of handbags and shoes.) It is a super resilient blend of  manmade fibers that are squished and crushed several times before they are woven (in a braided fashion) together to make the hat, thus increasing its flexibility after final production.  Eric Javits also produced a line of hats made from this material that have a 50+ UPF rating, providing maximum UVA/UVB protection. (A reason why these toppers cost around $325).

Leighton Meester wearing an Eric Javits Squishee hat
on the set of Gossip Girl

It’s no surprise that with his ultra functional materials combined with strong sense of fashion Eric Javits has become a regular name among the hat wearing elite.  His designs can be found adorning the heads of everyone from Britney Spears, Zoe Saldana, to Hillary Clinton...even Kim Kardashian.

I can't help but point out, that Kim reminds me of another of my favorite fedora wearing femme-fatales- Carmen Sandiego... I mean that in the best way possible.  Maybe it’s just me?

While not one of his creations, that's why I love my metallic striped number because reminds me of one of his creations. It will do just nicely until I find the perfect Javits topper of my own.

My striped metallic striped wide brimmed hat

Eric Javits Striped Wide Brim Hat

Until then I can continue in my wardrobe envy of Taryn over at Life of a Paper Doll, who of course does actually have one. 

If you scroll through her earlier posts you might now recognize that little Eric Javits number that pops up every so often, creating the perfect finishing touch on her varying ensembles. One thing to notice is that every outfit is completely different; yet, the hat always fits perfectly in place. That is because calling a hat the "finishing touch" to an outfit is a complete understatement, it often completely dictates the direction of the entire look, and the clothes merely play a supporting role.

Now that you are "Well-Versed" on these terrific toppers, I'm sure you're dying to run out and grab one for yourself. (Insert record scratch here). Ok ok, before I convince you to run off to your local milliner I believe I have some more persuading to do. Tune into the Well-Versed Wardrobe on Wednesday when I debunk a few myths on decking out your dome. It may just change your mind on your next accessory purchase.