seeking a hat

[swan_tower]

Some of you may recall that for my book tour last year, I had a Victorian dress made (in dark red, black, and grey). Well, I need a hat to go with it — and while I could have one made custom, it seems a bit silly to drop that much money on a piece of headgear I will almost never wear.

So: please recommend to me your favorite Victorian-style milliners! My requirements are:

• late Victorian in style
• designed to perch atop my head, rather than settling down over it (I will have a rather large bun getting in the way of the latter style)
• not too expensive — less than $100 would be ideal
• either black or grey (I doubt I can match the red without a lot of hassle)

Any suggestions?

Originally published at Swan Tower. You can comment here or there.

Comments

[ombriel.livejournal.com]

I don't have any suggestions, but that dress sounds gorgeous! Are there pictures anywhere?

[difrancis.livejournal.com]

Maybe this place? http://recollections.biz/clothing/VictorianHats.html

Or this one: http://www.ladiesemporium.com/store/ladies_hats.php

[kendokamel.livejournal.com]

Another option could be to check to see if you have any formalwear/vintage resale shops in your area. They sometimes get in either Fancy Wedding/Derby Hats, or vintage/antique Big Hats.

I got an actual Victorian mourning hat for less than $10, once. And, since it was actually from the Victorian era, it fit over the top of my Victorian hairdo. :D

[akirlu.livejournal.com]

"Victorian" covers rather a lot of ground. Do you have a decade for the silhouette of the dress?