Old Style Hat

OK, we are wrapping up the Hat series today with this one. I am not sure what this style hat was called, but they were very popular. You see a lot of pictures from the 1910's where there are crowds of people, and every person in the crowd is wearing one of these hats.

I find this picture a little awkward. It looks like he is seated on the armrest of the bench. But looking at the leg of the bench, and where the armrest would be, it looks like he would be falling or tipping over.

Old Hat

This picture is from the early 1900's and shows a man in a suit and tie, with a nice hat. I notice he is wearing a necktie not unlike ties of today. I wonder when this type of necktie became popular. Also, I notice his eyeglasses do not have the little arms that go back over the ears.

Older Gentleman

This is another fine example of a man in a hat. I like the hat and the tie, and the Jacket appears to be a more casual fit for both comfort and style. I also like the accessories of the cane and cigar in right hand. Overall, I think this guy has pulled together a pretty good look. If it were not for the hat though, he would be just another old coot.

The one thing I don't like about this particular style is that it looks like he is wearing his pants up under his rib cage. Back then, for some reason, some of these guys wore their belt line way up around the ribs. That would drive me crazy.

Postman

This picture was taken in about 1905, and shows a postman preparing to deliver the mail. I am not sure what this type of hat is called, but back at this time it was very popular. The crown has no crease in it . . . just sort of like a dome sitting up there. Anyway, he is very well dressed compared to postmen today.

Western Hat

The OPOD campaign to bring back men's hats continues today with this fine picture from about 1905. The man is wearing a nice western style straw hat. I think it looks good.

Nate made the point yesterday that hats aside, men needed to dress better overall, and perhaps go back to the daily suit. Two jobs ago, I had to wear a suit every day and hated it. Suits today are not comfortable. They restrict your movements, get wrinkled easily, are easily damaged, and the tie is a natural magnet for any type of red sauce. I found it difficult to get normal day-to-day tasks done having to wear a suit. Now this guy's suit looks much more practical. First, look at the collar. There is a nice amount of space between collar and neck, so he is not getting choked by his shirt and tie. The tie is neat, and would stay in place. The jacket looks like it is made of something more like canvas or denim that would probably be easier to wear, and would probably be more rugged than modern fabrics.

Yes, I could really go for a suit and hat like this! What do you think?

Good Ol' Days

Oh, the good ol' days when our politicians wore Stetsons and carried six shooters around their office. Today's picture features Harry S. "The Buck Stops Here" Truman, and John Nance "Cactus Jack" Garner. Truman is wearing a fine looking stetson, and is sporting a couple of Colt Peacemakers. I think the western Stetson was the high point of Men's hat fashion.

I have said on several occasions that I am disappointed that the hat has fallen out of favor in men's fashion. I feel that men stopped being gentlemen about the same time they stopped wearing hats. Today, pretty much the only hat you ever see men wear is a baseball cap. I do not understand this. It has all the disadvantages of a nice hat, in that it messes up the hair, but it has neither functional nor fashion value. The baseball cap shades the face, but does not shade the ears or the back of the neck. Worse yet, is when the cap is worn backwards to be cool, or worn front ways, but cocked over to the side.

So, to try and renew interest in wearing proper hats, this week we will explore men's hat styles.

Fur and Feathers

Today we present the feast de resistance; a lovely feather hat complimented with a fur stole. The picture was taken in 1921.

Sometimes I wonder why you all keep looking at this blog. I think it might be a little bit like a car accident on the highway. You really don't want to look, but just can't quite help yourself.

Vegetarian in Straw Hat

Wow, sometimes I think you all just sit around and whine all day. First, you complain because the hats featured had bird feathers on them. Then I search the world over to find an old picture of a woman with no feathers in her hat, and you complain that their are critter paws in the picture.

Sheesh, sometimes I wonder why I even bother with this blog.

But, bother I do, and today I have the picture that will offend no one. The lovely lady pictured above is a Vegetarian and she is wearing a straw hat. I have every reason to believe she is wearing canvas shoes, made by people earning a living wage. The canvas was made from organic cotton, grown by free people. Deer danced unmolested through the cotton field, eating only the weeds and never the cotton. The straw hat was woven by union labor with full health benefits.

So, I hope everyone is happy today.

Hat with no Bird

As I have been going through all these early 1900's photographs of Women's hats, I have been surprised how many are richly ordained with bird feathers. So, I am happy to report that I found this example, which has no stuffed bird, or bird feathers on it. I was getting the impression that viewers were growing uncomfortable with all the birds sacrificed in the name of fashion. So, this picture should put everyone at ease.

Woman's Hat circa 1920's

Today we feature what I consider to be the low point in Women's Hat Fashion. I am not sure what these hats were called, but they were popular back in the 20's, and look something like a skull cap. Luckily, we don't see much of this type of thing anymore.

Bird Hat

Today is Sunday, and we start a new week here at OPOD. This week we will be looking at Women's Hats. We kick things off with this fine example. It looks like the hat has incorporated into the design an actual bird prepared by a taxidermist. The picture was taken in the early 1900's.

Well we had a little fun yesterday with the mystery person. I was surprised that it took you all so long to get it. Firestone was one of the big names in the early 1900's, right up there with Ford and Edison. Anyway, I had thought it would be an easy one, and we would get it done, since I needed to get my taxes done. Well, the contest went on for most of the day, and I got nothing done on my taxes. So, it is off to get those done.

Bunnies and Carrots Hat

Here is the Bunnies and Carrots Hat by Barbara Telford (link to pattern in my previous post) in Cascade 220. I didn't make as many carrots as are called for in the pattern and I did the rabbits in duplicate stitch and elongated the ears. I don't know if can go ahead and make more of these as I get bored making the same pattern over and over again. I do, however, have one of her other similar patterns that involve blue jays and cherries so I am going to see if I have any blue yarns that will work.

Through the end of July 2009 100% of the money I receive from the sale of my knitting booklets and individual patterns sold on Lulu, Ravelry, and Amazon will go to the New Mexico House Rabbit Society. The number of pet rabbits taken from one person's backyard is now over 230 and most are baby bunnies so they can definitely use all of the money I can donate. Thank goodness for all the other shelters across the country willing to help and to the Bunderground Railroad which was set up for just such an occasion. The NM HRS web site has info on how to donate and a list of all the wonderful organizations that have already helped out in this crisis.

The situation has been tough so what do I do when things get tough? I revert back to my beloved bright colors. I can tell a lot of knitters choose colors by the season but I wonder if many other knitters choose colors to actually affect their mood?




I'm making some Bunnies and Carrots Hats (a great pattern by Barbara Telford of Woodsmoke Woolworks) in Cascade 220 for a few of the rescuers to show my gratitude for their exhausting work transporting rabbits to the vet and to other states, caring for newborn litters, and scrounging up cages and food . I think they'll like the hats.

Speaking of bright colors - look at what color DH painted this bench this weekend. I call it sunshine yellow. I absolutely love it.

Checkerboard Mesa Hat

Here is the child's version of the Checkerboard Mesa Hat. The pattern includes a checkerboard ribbing and uses 8 colors of worsted weight yarn.




The pattern is available at the Lulu store .

I'm currently working on a version of the Caledonia socks using Halloween colors and need to get to work to have them finished in time.