THE NOT-SO-MAD HATTER

MILLINERY

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I quite adored how a lion’s share of the designers used a specific hat to pull together their Collections. For Fall 2008, Tracy Reese made the beret her signature look, while James Coviello went with feathery fanfare, channeling a 40’s vibe. Tuleh favored bright fedoras. Carolina Herrera went hunting chic, capping her looks with Robin Hood-esque creations. Catherine Malandrino preferred the skullcap in rich shades of mauve and chocolate.

The Resort 2008 Collections evinced a trend toward “cap as constant.” That is, despite the variety of looks within a given collection, most designers opted for just one particular piece of headgear to accessorize. Luca Luca, for example, sent the girls down the runway in khaki newsboy caps [see photo courtesy nymag.com]. Nicole Miller went Casablanca Chic with black banded straw fedoras. And Christian Dior showed yacht-fabulous, sun-shunning wide-brimmed hats in pastel colors, some wrapped with fabulous swaths of sheer floral fabric. Whether this tendency toward the Constant Cap was simply a thematic conceit or a bit of runway genius is not certain, but it worked either way.

Photo courtesy NY Magazine, coverage of Miss Sixty Fall 2008 RTW.