Fascinator Hats

Since the Royal Wedding earlier this year, fascinator hats have fast become one of the world’s most sought-after hair accessories. With their many varieties and styles, they are popular on both sides of the Atlantic. But while they are popular, they are still new in the fashionista realms: Most American women can hardly find an occasion to wear them to, unless it is the Kentucky Derby. Nevertheless, their growing popularity will soon make them an acceptable statement to many social functions.

A fascinator hat is, well, simply fascinating. They are nothing more than a beautiful arrangement of flowers, feathers, jewels, lace and other whatnots that are for the strict purpose of adorning the hair. They are generally striking, colorful, and exotic. A perusal of photos taken during the Royal Wedding will provide a simple insight into the variety and styles of fascinator hats available today. And since then, the sales for these fascinating bits of finery have soared on both sides of the pond.

A Striking Look: The History Behind Fascinator Hats

Fascinator hats have been around in their crudest forms since the days of the Greeks and Romans, when feathers decorated the helmets of warriors. It was even considered men’s fashion in England and France during the Elizabethan Age, England’s golden years. Fascinator hats took a resemblance to today’s configurations with the arrival of Marie Antoinette in the 17th century. She would wear wigs that were elaborately decorated with tiny ships, birds, jewels, feathers, and much more. Because the public was so in tune to the French queen’s fashion, they quickly followed suit and began wearing these adornments in their own hair. During the days of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, hair fashions became much more subdued–curly, shorter crops that still retained their feather fashions. In America, hair designs were abandoned for the more utilitarian bonnets and mobcaps. Feathers were smaller but they still made a statement. The Victorian Era saw a huge resurgence of these small hats, and frankly the wearers became frenzied to wear the biggest and best feathered hats, even going so far as to demand the whole bird mounted and stuffed on a hat! As the amazing ideas faded, fascinator hats became adornments that were worn only to special social occasions, all the way through the 1960s when they again surfaced in the fashion statements of British Royalty. Of course, the Duchess of Cambridge has brought these little hats even more popularity than ever before, and we may expect the trend to continue for years to come.

Most hair fascinators are known under several names. Besides your typical fascinator, there are also flower hair clips, stunning designs with faux flowers that are just as beautiful but perhaps not quite as bold. Feather hair clips are also a type of fascinator hats; they tend to be more outspoken and dramatic in their designs. Other fascinator hats may also be known as cocktail hats; all are small (but sometimes tall!) hair decorations designed to wear to parties, social events, and more. At all events, every kind of fascinator hat will surely draw attention and make a statement wherever it is worn.