Let's bring back the lost art of wearing a hat

                                             An over-the-top outfit from the past.
                                            A hat can say, "I'm elegant."

When was the last time you saw a woman wearing a hat, not a baseball cap or hat for the beach, but an elegant, beautiful one that complemented her clothes and her demeanor?  And I don't think I've seen in man in a dress hat since the 1950's.  We can blame President Kennedy for that.  He didn't wear hats and so it became the fashion.  

This weekend, the Kentucky Derby will be run in Louisville, KY.  Every woman there will have on a big hat, some beautiful, some outlandish. They say it's bad luck not to wear one. I've always wanted to go to the Derby just to wear a hat. Without a reason, most women feel self-conscious no matter how it complements them.  Last year, I attended a Kentucky Derby party.  All the women and a few men walked proudly in a hat.  The hats made the party fun.  A Kentucky Derby hat is usually "Old South,"  broad brimmed and flowery.  At the party, we all felt prettier in our hats.

                                        A hat can say, "I'm sassy."

When I was a child, women always wore a hat to church, especially on Easter.  It was a symbol of sophistication and looking your best.  Women also wore them in a big city to go shopping.  To go to downtown Atlanta, my mother and aunts wore little white gloves and a hat with their suits or best dresses.  It was a different time.  Now, some women see hats as non-liberating, restricting and associated with the past.  It does take a certain confidence to wear one, or you need to be Queen Elizabeth.

I say, let's get beyond that narrow thinking.  Wear a hat for fun, for beauty, for rebelliousness.  I have a favorite memory from a New Orleans vacation.  My husband and I had dinner at one of the fine old restaurants.  At a nearby table, a youngish woman was wearing a most elegant hat.  I thought she looked fabulous and sophisticated.  When I got home, I bought a wide-brimmed one, similar to hers, but sadly, never had the nerve to wear it.  I'd love to wear it out to dinner, but in Florida and at the beach where I live, I would get some funky stares.  Maybe I will wear it on my birthday.  Who cares if they think I'm eccentric.  I'm getting old enough to pull it off.

A hat can say "I'm flirty."