Let These Vintage Hats Inspire Your Easter Bonnet Game
Let These Vintage Hats Inspire Your Easter Bonnet Game
1 minute read
A woman wears a party hat with two flowers decorated in the traditional garden style as part of the Gainsboro fashion collection, 1956.Sharland—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images
For all its religious significance, Easter has also long been associated with springtime and renewal and an opportunity to don some fine new duds. Though the item’s popularity is on the decline, the Easter bonnet was once the staple of the holiday’s festive garb, often embellished with pastel ribbons and symbols of the season. For those inclined to bring a little vintage flair to this year’s Easter fashion, there is much inspiration to be found in the LIFE archives—from eyelet embroidery that casts floral shadows on its wearer’s face to a hat that doubles as a bird’s nest.
And for a song to match these throwback fashions, none fits the bill better than Judy Garland and Fred Astaire’s Irving Berlin-penned duet “Easter Parade,” from the 1948 film of the same name:
Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter @lizabethronk.
Postilion hat made of lizard skin, 1939.Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesKatharine Hepburn wearing a hat on the set of her Broadway play "The Philadelphia Story," 1939.Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA war-inspired hat, 1939.George Karger—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesA hat with eyelet embroidery casts floral shadows on the face, 1940.
Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA woman models a Sally Victor Hat, 1940.George Karger—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesA woman models a new spring hat, 1941.Herbert Gehr—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesA lady wears an extravagant hat with flowers and a veil. 1945.George Karger—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesCheckered fashion at the horse races, 1945.Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA woman adjusts her flowered hat while looking in a trick one-way mirror, 1946.Yale Joel—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesOn model Marjorie Henderson's hat, the early bird catches the worm, 1947.Charles E. Steinmeimer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesTeenagers wear "Penny" hats, 1948.Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA new french hat for spring, 1948.Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesBrightly dressed spectators attend an event in England, 1950.Cornell Capa—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesAn image from a story on college Hats, circa 1950s.Gordon Parks—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesModels on the beach wear different designs of straw hats, 1950.Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMiss Sweden Anita Ekberg sports a severely styled sailor hat during her hat-buying spree while visiting the U.S., 1951.Lisa Larsen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA well-furnished hat is trimmed with table, chairs, rug and kitchen equipment, 1951.Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA hook-fastened John Frederics hat allows space for the model's ponytail. Martha Holmes—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesActress Mamie Van Doren sits in her Jaguar wearing a hat, 1954.Loomis Dean—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA woman wears a party hat with two flowers decorated in the traditional garden style as part of the Gainsboro fashion collection, 1956.Sharland—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesAn image from a series on wives of missile men celebrating their husbands' work on satellites with silly hats, 1958.Hank Walker—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSpring hats in a Japanese department store, 1962.Don Cravens—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesEnglish comedienne Hermione Gingold models a derby-style hat, 1963.Bob Gomel—;The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesA German girl wears a Beatles hat at a resort near the Baltic Sea, 1964.Walter Sanders—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesActress Brigitte Bardot wears a hat during the filming of the movie "Viva Maria," 1965.Ralph Crane—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images
