Hat of silk, designed by Cristóbal Balenciaga, Paris, ca. 1960

Green turban hat of green silk draped over a nylon net foundation. It has a black grosgrain hat band.

Bequeathed by Mrs Fern Bedaux

This object is part of the collection of Mrs Fern Bedaux, given to the museum by Miss E Hanley, the heiress and niece of Mrs Bedaux. Mrs Bedaux purchased her whole wardrobe regularly from Balenciaga and the collection was very large; some was kept by Miss Hanley, some send to the Costume Museum in Bath; and some was received by the V&A.

Mrs Bedaux was the very wealthy widow of American millionaire office systems pioneer Charles Bedaux. Mr and Mrs Bedaux lived in the sixteenth century Chateau de Cand in France. The Duke of Windsor was married there after his abdication as King Edward VIII in 1936.

‘Balenciaga’s hats are an integral part of his fashion,’ reported the French fashion review Jardin des modes in 1961. They ensure ‘that volumes are balanced and the silhouette is perfectly finished off.’ Fairly conventional ensembles were often paired with a striking hat which lifted the whole look and made it appear more avant-garde. The client could buy the whole ensemble or leave the hat if it was too daring. The designs for hats were as fiercely protected as those for dresses. The police commissioner stamped the official sketches of the hats to protect them from being copied.

T.757-1972