Did you know that in the summer months, Victorian ladies wore hats, frocks, and party costumes made out of paper?
When all hats were lovely and large, paper hats made their debut in polite society, being worn traditionally, at evening parties, costume parties, church, school, and society entertainments. They were not only stylish, and wearable, but practical at a fraction of the price. Paper hats were also said to be "remarkably" durable, light and comfortable, easy to make and unlimited in variety.
An illustration from a Dennison catalogue, a major crepe and tissue paper manufacturer, shows hats whose crepe paper was so beautifully layered that it could have been mistaken for fabric or straw. The hats ranged from flowery mob caps to tassel-trimmed caps to
wide- brimmed picture hats. The cost of the hats ranged from $1.03 to $1.07 for the materials which included the wire, mercerized thread, paste, etc.
Hats and dresses were not the only clothing items concocted from paper - a magazine advertisement of the era also mentions parasols and fans.
The making of paper hats was still popular as late as 1920. By the early 1930's fancy paper hats were formed on skull cap foundations made of crepe paper 10" wide and long enough to fit around the head. The ends were pasted together, and while on the head, the top edge was gathered together and tied with a wire. Among the crepe paper fantasies which grew out of these skull caps were bouquets, summer moths, pinwheels and irises, all for party wear.
Today the French are among the only adults who still wear fancy paper hats - and then, only at parties.
You may enjoy playing with paper as much as the Victorians did.
As a young girl, in the late 50's, I remember making a flared skirt for Halloween with crepe paper. I can still remember buying the crepe paper sheets at Woolworth store downtown Winnipeg, for a very reasonable price, (which it had to be as I was paying for it out of my piggy bank). I would lay out the sheet , measure the width cut, and begin scalloping the edges of each length. Believe me this took forever! After all the lengths were done I pasted the strips of scalloped crepe paper together in rows to form a skirt. It was truly lovely. (in my eyes anyway). I was always creating in my younger years, I can still remember putting my moms clothes pins in a row at the hem of my dresses. It felt sooo neat! As you walked you could hear the clothes pins clicking together. When it was canning time at our house, I also use to take moms jar rings and utilize them as costume jewelery. I believe I was about 6 or 7 at the time. I wonder if mom knew we were helping ourselves to her household items?
When all hats were lovely and large, paper hats made their debut in polite society, being worn traditionally, at evening parties, costume parties, church, school, and society entertainments. They were not only stylish, and wearable, but practical at a fraction of the price. Paper hats were also said to be "remarkably" durable, light and comfortable, easy to make and unlimited in variety.
An illustration from a Dennison catalogue, a major crepe and tissue paper manufacturer, shows hats whose crepe paper was so beautifully layered that it could have been mistaken for fabric or straw. The hats ranged from flowery mob caps to tassel-trimmed caps to
wide- brimmed picture hats. The cost of the hats ranged from $1.03 to $1.07 for the materials which included the wire, mercerized thread, paste, etc.
Hats and dresses were not the only clothing items concocted from paper - a magazine advertisement of the era also mentions parasols and fans.
The making of paper hats was still popular as late as 1920. By the early 1930's fancy paper hats were formed on skull cap foundations made of crepe paper 10" wide and long enough to fit around the head. The ends were pasted together, and while on the head, the top edge was gathered together and tied with a wire. Among the crepe paper fantasies which grew out of these skull caps were bouquets, summer moths, pinwheels and irises, all for party wear.
Today the French are among the only adults who still wear fancy paper hats - and then, only at parties.
You may enjoy playing with paper as much as the Victorians did.
As a young girl, in the late 50's, I remember making a flared skirt for Halloween with crepe paper. I can still remember buying the crepe paper sheets at Woolworth store downtown Winnipeg, for a very reasonable price, (which it had to be as I was paying for it out of my piggy bank). I would lay out the sheet , measure the width cut, and begin scalloping the edges of each length. Believe me this took forever! After all the lengths were done I pasted the strips of scalloped crepe paper together in rows to form a skirt. It was truly lovely. (in my eyes anyway). I was always creating in my younger years, I can still remember putting my moms clothes pins in a row at the hem of my dresses. It felt sooo neat! As you walked you could hear the clothes pins clicking together. When it was canning time at our house, I also use to take moms jar rings and utilize them as costume jewelery. I believe I was about 6 or 7 at the time. I wonder if mom knew we were helping ourselves to her household items?
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