Wool Felt Bonnet

[Anna G.]

So, after seeing the gorgeous wool felt bonnets at the Fort, I was inspired to get my own, especially since I need something other than a straw hat to cover my hair (Yes, Nona, I will make that quilted bonnet, eventually ) Anyway, since my sewing skills aren't that great (partially non-existent) it would be better for me to buy one than attempt to make my own. Here are a few links I found:

http://top-hats.com/1192.htm

Straw bonnet:
http://top-hats.com/1192s.htm

http://www.riverjunction.com/catalog/lhats/praire.html

http://www.tstitches.com/store/bonnetpg2.htm

And, here are my questions:

1. Are wool felt bonnets like this a good investment and easy to trim for different occasions?
2. Are the bonnets on these sites also historically accurate?

Thanks in advance for any help you guys can give me!
-Anna

[Anna Worden Bauersmith]

My advice is to skip the felt and work on the quilted one hood/bonnet if you are looking for something warm for winter. Then spend some time looking at bonnet shapes. I wouldn't suggest either of the straw bonnets you listed. They are just not right. Take a look at originals at a place like www.mfa.org and good reproductions like the ones at Timely Tresses http://www.timelytresses.com/. See how the cheek tabs curve down and are fairly well defined? The ones you linked are just rounded off with no real cheektabs. Also see how the brim curves and shapes the face in different styles? The linked ones are rather genericaly shaped not really reflecting any specific style.

I don't yet have a firm grasp on the impressions you do at the fort, so I don't have any actual suggestions.

Anna

[Veronica Carey]

Anna, what is your time period at the fort?  I am definitely not an expert, but I have been researching bonnets quite a bit lately for my 1850s and 1860 impressions I do at 2 museums, and all the wool felt bonnets you linked to look like much earlier 19th century than that.  I am planning a quilted bonnet myself from one of the Millers Millinery patterns--do you have a sewing friend who can help you?  They don't look too hard.
I'm sure Elizabeth or Pam Robles can give you advice on whether the wool bonnets you were looking at are appropriate.
Veronica

[Elizabeth]

Pam will likely be able to give far more information on the specifics than I, as this is one of her areas of expertise.

Fort Nisqually focuses about early-mid 50s (not past 55), and the unique mix of settlement in that area of the Pacific Northwest, which has rather a larger ethnic mix than many other areas of settlement, with French, German, English, Native, Asian, "American", and others living cheek by jowl.

May I, too, encourage you to work on either a winter hood, or a covered buckram winter bonnet in an early 50s fashionable shape?  None of the bonnets linked bear enough resemblance to period styles or materials to make them worth bothering with.  While felt headwear is a feature of mid-century fashion, it's FUR felt, not pressed wool with sythetic binders.

[Pam Robles]

Doggone it. I typed a lengthy and eriudite reply and then closed the window without posting it. 

I shall try to reconstruct it.

Pressed felt bonnets aren't period-appropriate for any part of the 19th C, as far as my research indicates.  Felt isn't mentioned in the ladies mags for ladies bonnets until the 70's and those were just tiny little bits of frippery with chin ties.  Felt is mentioned for children's hats and bonnets and ladies' hats in the 60's.

The best suggestion is to make a winter hood.  That will keep you warm and give you time to do a bit more research on shapes and material for your warm weather bonnet.  You really do need the cheek tabs to be authentic.  The exception being cottage bonnets and a style in the 40's that had cheek tabs that look more like Snoopy dogs ears.  The fashion plate from Godey's March 1844 shows all 3 styles, dog ears, pointed tabs and cottage. These 3 styles still appear in fashion plates as late as '51.  I have a gap from 51 to 54.  I'll have to do a bit more digging.

I have one original from the '50's.  It's drawn silk built over what is most likely "stiffened muslin."  It's unlike modern buckram but the modern stuff will do.  It's more shallow brim/crown than the bonnets of the 40's that hid most of the face from the side. They were still deep in '51 but by '54, bonnets had become shallow.

If you'd like to see the original, I'll be happy to take some pictures.  Recreating it for my site is my next project.

[Anna G.]

The time period at the Fort is 1855, although we do do 1857 and 1859 for Candlelight (but that's on a 3 year cycle, and a completely different story). I was planning on making a quilted bonnet (I got the pattern from Nona), but that is on my endless list of things to do. I've never heard about the cheek tabs, but I will look more into those authentic bonnet pics (our computer is really slow and takes forever to lead, which is such a pain). Would it be a better idea to just buy a buckram frame and then craft my own bonnet?

Pam, I would love to see some pictures of the originals!

Thanks!
Anna

[Pam Robles]

My quilted hood only took a day to complete on the machine. You'll probably want to do yours by hand for the mid-50's.   Just jump in.  Winter is upon us.

Rather than purchasing a pressed felt bonnet, it would be much better to buy a buckram frame in the appropriate shape, if you don't want to spend the $$ on a finished bonnet.

I've been working out the pattern for a copy of the 50's bonnet I mentioned. If you can wait a couple of weeks, I can provide you with a wired frame for $35 plus shipping.  If you're in a hurry, Timely Tresses probably has one ready to ship now.

I'll take pics of the original and post them tomorrow.

[Anna G.]

Thanks for the offer, Pam! However, I won't be making a bonnet for quite some time. First, I have to get out from the pile of books that I am buried under . . . (School! Hmmpf!  ) I'm planning on doing A LOT of sewing this summer, so maybe I'll start on a bonnet then  Also, I have never even sewn a dress before (It's very sad to admit) However, Nona and I made a pact that I would have my quilted bonnet done by December 1st.

[Pam Robles]

OK.  I hope you keep your ears warm until next December. 

[Anna G.]

I hope my ears are warm too! Normally, it's just my face and toes that are really cold at Fort events, so that's why I'm even hoping to have the bonnet finished by October, which is Candlelight (which means that I don't want to spend 4+ hours in the dark, being a human coat-rack so I can stay warm)

[Pam Robles]

Gee, Anna.  It sounds like a really fun event.     

[Elizabeth]

Anna, the human coat rack.

[Pam Robles]

As promised, here are photos of the original mid-50's bonnet.  The old bonnets tend to "smush" because they used a sized muslin that is lighter and thinner than modern buckram and, in most cases, the crown/tip join wasn't wired.






This shows detail of the cheek tab/brim point we discussed.



Here's a close up of the lace "cap" often mentioned in fashion mags but little understood by many.  I really should take another pic of this.

[Pam Robles]

Here's a better picture of the "cap".

[Acacia]

Oh Pam!  That's positively lovely!  Thanks so much for sharing your treasures! 

[Nona Nelson]

Anna, the human coat rack.

LOL that is why I keep tellin' Anna that she needs a wool dress (and petticoat and hood and stockings, lol) and is also why  got her long johns for Christmas! lol
You did look nice and cosy under all of that stuffs! lol.
Thats a lovely bonnet Pam! I love the lace on the inside! It reminds me of some I have like it. I am going to go look.....

[Joanna Jones]

I always stress over not letting any stitching show - apparently I don't need to! Thank you so much for posting these - it helps so much to see the insides.  Joanna

[Pam Robles]

I know what you mean, Joanna.  I used to line bonnets as if the the interior would be on display.  Now I concentrate on making the covering and brim lining look well and I don't take as much time with the crown and tip lining.  Having said that, I don't do it quite as slap-dash as they seemed to because my customers would complain, periord-appropriate or no. 

[Carolann Schmitt]

Thanks for pointing that out, Pam. That's one of the biggest issues I have with reproduction bonnets - the inside is too nice. Original bonnets are really very slap-dash on the inside and rarely have a full lining - just the brim lining and perhaps a facing.

Another drawback to reproduction bonnets with full linings - they don't stay on your head. Those pretty linings are slippery. The exposed buckram and wire on an authentic reproduction help keep the bonnet in position.

As a milliner, you do have an uphill battle convincing your clients that less finishing on the inside is better and more accurate.  It can be very hard to replace that believe of "what it should look like" with "what it did look like". Being accurate while satisfying your customers can be a challenge - but you do it very well.

Regards,
Carolann

[Pam Robles]

Thank you, Carolann.  There was a very long learning curve until I began collecting original bonnets for study.  When I happened on the one pictured in this thread, a lot of pieces clicked into place.  It's the first one I've seen with the full cap still intact and it's the first one with a band of netting to help keep it in place.  The other bonnets I've seen or collected didn't have either of these features.  It was a Godsend.

As fortune (or blessings) would have it, I've found a manufacturer with a very similar lace.  I have to fiddle it a bit but it may just work.  It's my current project.

Now to convince the world they need to give my bonnets as Christmas prezzies.