The Trickiness of Hats...

Qualify...
I like hats. At best they are form and function in one neat little package - parts of a greater whole. Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire, Inez and Vinoodh, Cookies and Milk. I am a major proponent of the humble knit ski cap - preferably picked up at Duane Reade for $3 on a freezing night when the cashmere Marc Jacobs beret thing I'm wearing seems over-affected for the circumstances. Also, the cheapest ones are the most malleable - length and width wise - and always come in my favorite colors - black, gray, charcoal, army-green, bandaid . I don't feel bad if I lose them and they allow me more time between $300 highlights. It's also freezing in NYC in winter.

I don't like hats that are worn without thought or purpose or a sense of wit. (Isabella Blow -how dearly we miss her - wore hats like a pro, with cheek and fuck-all elan.) When I style stuff I use hats to mess with proportion and to offset and draw they eye wherever I want it to go. I often love them on the runway. The tri-corn George Washington, Napoleon Bonaparte numbers in KL's most recent and excellent resort 2010 show in Venice come to mind'. As do the pastel feathers of Marc's aw 2008 subtle tour de force. And of course there's the rich explorer woman in Ralph's retro romances.

So that's what's great?

I hate hats on Sienna Miller and Ashlee Simpson and all other media types of dubious talent. A big black bowler hat in L.A. in July? As yucky as Crocs and Uggs. Disney Hunk A in a ski hat same month. Anyone in a straw cowboy hat thing (as below). What's to say? Why? Those hippie hair things worn by Nicole and her ilk are equally useless. Fuschia Kangols and drape-like extensions. If I sense d they were worn with a bit of irony, I might cut them some slack. But I doubt...

I don't mean to hate on the above people bec. that's paying attention. I just feel bad that my 10 year old nieces have no choice when they turn on the telly but to observe and absorb crap tweeny girl pop-culture. (At least I had Madonna when she was cool and Michael Jackson when he was Off the Wall versus Never Land guy.)

Okay, all this to say that we here at VagaBondNyc are very discerning with our hat edit and when I came across this 70's modified pith helmet I was all over it. It has a chin strap, it's corduroy and it's Lanvin:
70's Modified LANIVIN Pith Helmet-$148

It recalls YSL's safari collection of the same era with a splash of my current sartorial inspiration, Out of Africa. The movie. Sweeping outback, washed out liberty florals, sweeping prairie skirts, Meryl Streep's porcelain skin shaded by wide-brimmed sunnies.

Case in point:

So there you have it, my take on hats. And, I promise, we will NEVER EVER post pictures of Heidi Montag EVER EVER again. Doing so is rough in and of itself.... I feel a bit tainted.