To start this new era of my blog, I thought we would take it back to the 1920s. In the ‘20s, one of the most popular accessories was the cloche hat. 

The name originates from the shape of the hat. In French, “cloche” means “bell.” The hats are classified by their bell shape and flat crowns. The hats were first made in France in 1908 by Caroline Reboux, however they became popular in the 1920s with the rise of flappers. Due to the credit flappers have with the hats’ rise to fame, they are sometimes referred to as “flapper hats.” 

Part of the reason they became popular in the 1920s was also because of one of the most iconic hairstyles, the “Eton Crop.” This hairstyle is a slick, cropped side part hairstyle that looks perfectly chic with a cloche hat on top. Because of the duo of this quintessential hairstyle and the cloche hats the saying “bobbed hats for women with bobbed hair” arose to describe cloche hats.

Films and “talkies” in the ‘20s also contributed to the rise of this style hat. Now, it is thanks to tv shows like Downton Abbey that these hats have stuck around. It is also due to the timeless, chic, elegant look that these hats express that have helped them stay relevant for so long.

In the ‘20s these hats were worn from working class women to the highest, most glamorous fashion icons. Sometimes fun lace, ribbons, feathers, or brooches would be added to the hats as a personal touch. While these additions were playful, some of them held a deeper meaning. For example, a knot on a woman’s hat may symbolize she is married, whereas a bow would show a woman is currently single.

Originally, the hats were made from felt, however they began to be made of other materials such as cotton knits, straw, and wool. 

Like I mentioned earlier, these hats are timelessly elegant, not to mention they look fabulous on an array of different people. 

I hope you enjoyed this week’s snippet of fashion history.

Till next Sunday,

Daisy