It is wonderful to have a day devoted to hats that is about the hats themselves.
The best info I found came from a favorite, and authoritative source, Hat Life. http://www.hatlife.com/newsletters/2011/jan11_1/art2.htm
NATIONAL HAT DAY IS COMING UP
January 15th is National Hat Day. This auspicious occasion has a vague history (Rumor has it that the Headwear Association started National Hat Day back in the 40¡äs or 50¡äs) but has been mentioned in the media (thanks to the Headwear Association marketing efforts).
According to Gary Rosenthal, a third generation hatter, National Hat Day goes back to the 20¡äs or 30¡äs. ¡°It was when men were supposed to transition from Summer to Fall hats ¨C getting rid of the old and putting on the new.
I have heard of cities where they carried a coffin down the street filled with old season¡¯s hats.¡±
To add buzz to this hat occasion, The Headwear Association will be announcing the winner of the Hat Person of the Year on January 15th. This year¡¯s nominees are: Gwen Stefani, Kate Hudson, Nicole Richie, Johnny Depp, Hugh Jackman and Justin Timberlake.
¡°Last year we noticed that we had an unusual amount of traffic on our website on January 15th. Various media outlets were writing stories and attributing The Headwear Association with creating the day, so we decided we would make our Hat Person of the Year coincide with National Hat Day,¡± said a THA spokesperson.
 |
 |
Also, hatters take note ¨C March 17th is the 103rd Annual Headwear Association Dinner in NYC. This year the dinner will take place at the Central Park Boathouse in New York City. The THA dinner was a smash success last year ¨C everyone had a great time with their headwear comrades.
Sign up for the Annual Headwear Association Dinner at www.theheadwearassociation.org
VOTE FOR HAT PERSON OF THE YEAR
 |
| Gwen Stefani |
The public is invited to cast their vote at Theheadwearassociation.org.
The Hat Person of the Year winner will be announced on National Hat Day, January 15.
Want more info on HatLife?
This annual publication is available for purchase and my first copy last year had been a source of information in many ways. A pleasure to look at, and a pleasure learn from. There is a free online newsletter that is a great way to get to know them.
http://www.hatlife.com/newsletter.php
Now how we each celebrate the day may be as different as the hats we will wear. YOU will be wearing a hat, won¡¯t you?
You might want to make it an annual tradition to go out and buy a hat on that day-tho any day can work for that plan. The question is where does one find the best suited hat? Send me you favorites in the comment section and everyone can know your inside secret to hat heaven.
If you are in need of a new NEW hat there are options:
For a milliner in Chicago one could look to:
Members of Chapeau
http://www.chapeau.us/
Laurie Kennard and Jenny Pfanenstiel are delightful and more than talented:
http://www.lakemichiganbeach.com/lauriekennard/
http://www.formeonlineshop.com/
If one were to think of a large marketer one might think of Macy¡¯s, Carson, Pirie Scott, or in the midwest, Von Maur.
If you are in need of a new VINTAGE hat there are options:
One has the best vintage fashion site on etsy, and the hat listings are something to keep an eye on (and purchase):
http://www.etsy.com/shop/BasyaBerkman
But what about a bricks and mortar vintage site? North suburbs of Chicago have many antique places Linda Feigenheimer bought some of her hundreds of hats. My local favs are limited, but several times a year one could check out Heritage Trail Antiques at410 Ridge, 847-256-6208. or Oakton St Antique at2430 Oakton, in Elk Grove Village http://www.oakton-antiques.com/