© Victorian Tea Hats and my tea party. Oh my...it's nearly four o'clock and my guests are arriving for afternoon tea; the ladies are lovely wearing their Victorian Tea Hats! The rustle of skirts mixed with the sounds of their happy voices as they enter my parlour gives me a rush of contentment. I scan the room to make sure that everything is in it's place for my Victorian Tea party. The cucumber finger sandwiches have been carefully arranged on the platter and the darling chintz China teapot and matching cups grace my linen covered table. The ladies remove their wraps and deposit their reticules, but of course their Victorian Tea Hats remain upon their ever-so-perfect hair styles. The ladies seat themselves and I pour the tea; adding sugar and milk according to their wishes. I note that Mrs. Phipps is wearing a Victorian Tea Hat adorned with an owl stretched precariously accross the brim; I smile at her as I pour her tea, trying not to stare at the huge bird that's staring at me! My best friend, Isabelle, is wearing a lovely straw Victorian Tea Hat and the heady fragrance of fresh cut roses fill the air...it's just like Isabelle to take the time to add roses from her own garden to her hat. My neice, Louisa, is visiting and I took her shopping for a special tea hat; a dainty small brimmed straw adorned with ribbons and petite millinery daisies. Louisa is proudly carrying the platter and offering the little sandwiches to my guests; her cheeks show a tinge of pink as everyone is complimenting her on her new Victorian Tea Hat. The conversation is guarded as we discuss the weather, flower gardens and other subjects of light importance. Mrs. Nelson wearing the same black Victorian Tea Hat that she'd been wearing since the death of her husband nearly ten years ago, is a idle gossiper...so when she comes to tea, we all do our best to avoid any subjects which will fuel her gossip. (to be cont...) Darna's East Angel Harbor Hat Shoppe is dedicated to designing Victorian and Edwardian hats and accessories that have both an element of realism combined with imagination; my hat designs transcends time and I truly want to enchant you and assist you on your journey to somewhere in time! My designs are exquisite reproductions of the Victorian and Edwardian Eras; as a designer, I take artistic license when adding flowers, feathers and whimsy’s to my re-creations. This is a nice quote that I like to share with you: In HAT FASHION design, we must remember there's nothing NEW, only what's been FORGOTTEN and now re-created! (author unknown) I offer gorgeous tea hats perfect for any occasion including church and weddings! When you're wearing one of my Victorian or Edwardian hat designs you'll look and feel so elegant that you will in effect be transported to another time and place. When you're getting dolled up for that special tea party, perhaps promenading down a lovely lane on the arm of your beau or becoming animated with pleasure as you dash off to the horse races. You'll transcend into another era; to an era of elegance, grandeur and total femininity. Just placing the magnificent feather and flower adorned hat on your lovely new hairdo, slipping on the delicate lace gloves and reaching for your fashionable parasol and you'll feel a rush of delight as you become a stunning picture of a lady from days gone by. Re-enactment is the rekindling of the past: cotillions, tea parties, and civil war battles. The feature that all of these events have in common is attention to detail; to re-enact it is vital to be in full-dress for the event; hats are the finishing touch. Knowing what style of hat was popular during a specific period of time is important if your dress attire is to be historically accurate, and when I design my hats, I keep the lady who re-enacts in mind; there are 1860’s bonnets and hats for the Civil War ladies and 1880’s style for the ladies of SASS. I also design hats for the ladies who just love to wear red hats and pink hats for the fun of it. A lot of my hats are appropriate for functions such as church, cruises and any particular event where you really want to feel like a lady. The Victorian era began in 1837 when Victoria (born 1819, reigned 1837-1901) became Queen of England…she ruled until she died in 1901. Hers was the longest reign in United Kingdom's history. The Victorian era encompasses an extremely large array of hat styles from tiny little hats that perched on your head to large and elegant feather and flower laden hats. The utilization of flowers and feathers and even using whole birds became a near obsession with the hat designers and hat wearer of this era. The following will give you an idea of what style of hat was worn during the Victorian Era: The Victorian Era (1837-1901) began when Queen Victoria took the throne in England. The styles that followed gave birth to a fantastic hodgepodge of women's bonnets and hats. The bonnet was the fashion statement of the 1840's; a refined straw base adorned with tulle, ribbons, laces, artificial flowers, grapes, fruits, leaves, small birds, feathers, and ostrich tips; it had a modesty drape to cover the neck. Women who gardened or lived in the countryside wore the wide brimmed Gipsy to protect their face from the sun. The 1850's saw the brim of the bonnet grow smaller allowing the face and the hair to show. This particular style of hat began its insurgence into society by being worn by young women of the day, older women considered it to be unladylike and rather fast. By the late 1850's the riding hat was introduced and it was fabulously adorned with exotic plumes and ribbons. The 1860's also saw a change in the style of the bonnet; from the round shape to the oval spoon bonnet and with the new hairstyles, came the dainty bonnet that sat atop the bun. The younger set craved even more daring styles: forward tilting pillboxes and porkpies. On the seashore and in the countryside the gipsy and the straw skimmer which was a wide brimmed flat hat held in place by hatpins. These remained the popular choice to keep the complexion peaches and cream. The 1870's began with the smaller hats of the 60's, but by the end of the decade as hair styles changed so did the hat; a scaled down version of the wide brimmed Gainsborough from the 18th century reappeared. The most common material used in hat making had been straw, but now hats began being formed over wire frames and covered with velvets, silks, and lace. The 1880's saw the hat get bigger with higher crowns and a small version of the top hat adorned with tulle became the popular riding hat. By the 1890's hats were more popular than bonnets and the trim was wired to incredible heights, the more elaborate the better. As women became more active, straw boaters and fedoras were being worn for hiking, bicycling and tennis. The Edwardian period began when Queen Victoria’s eldest son, Edward VII born November 9, 1841, became King of England; his reign ended in May 6, 1910. This period saw the first phases of the larger wide brimmed hat; although there were very many hat styles that were popular during this era, we remember it mostly for the wide brimmed Edwardian hat style. This era also spawned the Gibson Girl hairstyle which also generated very wide brimmed hats that required hat pins to keep them perched upon the head. The movie Somewhere in Time is set in the Edwardian Era and the costuming gives you an honest portrayal of the hats worn. The Edwardian period hat styles actually encompassed the Titanic Era as well as WW I. The hats virtually remained very wide brimmed although the hems were rising and ankles were showing. Although this era is known for wide brim hats, Toque hats (a turbin style) were also very popular, Great Britain was having a love affair with the cultures of the rest of the world, especially India and Asia and the styles reflect this. France was undergoing a period in style changes known as La Belle Époque (1895 - 1914) translates to "beautiful era". This was a period of very opulent living with beautiful clothing and very excessive spending by the rich and priviledged, however, this period saw an abrupt end with the beginning of WWI. Below is a French postcard made during this period; it punctuates the extravagance of the styles. The Titanic Era was followed by WW I and the world was not focusing on style as it had been before...however styles for women were at the beginning of a major change. By the time the Flapper Era emerged in and around 1926, the hemline rose on shift-like shapeless dresses and corsets became a thing of the past. The stockings were rolled down below the knees and the knees were rouged. The hair style became a close cut bob and although wider brimmed hats were still in style, the cloche hat which fit very tightly to the head became all the rage with these "modern" women. I love delving into the designs of the more exotic French bonnets as well as the more elaborate and lavish styles worn by actresses, such as Lillie (Lily) Langtry (1853-1929) and Lillian Russell (1861-1922). These more elaborate styles worn by the actresses of the nineteenth century were brought to life by actress Mae West (1893-1980) in her movies...such as Belle of the Nineties, Klondike Annie and Every Day’s a Holiday. Lovely illustrations of the more lavish styled hat can also be seen in early twentieth century European postcards. Lillian Russell (1861-1922). Lillie Langtry's autobiography The Days I Knew was published in 1925. My favorite movies starring Mae West(1893-1980) Belle of the Nineties Klondike Annie Every Day's a Holiday My Little Chickadee She Done Him Wrong

TM Designer and Shoppe Owner: Darna Michie Darna's East Angel Harbor Hat Shoppe has been Established on line since July 2002 I'm a cottage industry. It's just ME designing and creating hats, accessories and jewelry; I strive to make each hat or item as unique as possible! To find a style of hat that you're searching for, you can click on a category in the search box above or click on a photo below. God Bless America! To find a hat for your event Click on the photos below: Victorian Tea Hat Edwardian Tea Hat Red Tea Hat Purple Tea Hat Pink Tea Hat Titanic Tea Hat Victorian Sass Hat Southern Belle Tea Hat Flapper Hat Kentucky Derby Hat Victorian & Edwardian Cape or Shawl Church Hat Victorian Parasol Somewhere in Time Hat Victorian Riding Hat Top Hats & Derby Hats Darna I accept Visa, AMEX, MC & Discover cards Just CALL: 509-233-8007 Shop Hours: 9-5 pm Pacific Time Click here for TERMS of SALE TESTIMONIALS HAT BOXES FANS, GLOVES & BOAS GIFT CERTIFICATES Copyright 2006 Darna Michie WEBPAGE updated November 17, 2008