Closely fitting skull cap of feathers with two hat pins, made by Paulette, Paris, 1950s

Closely fitting skull cap of yellow and black game feathers, probably chicken, and two hat pins. With 2 'horns'.

Given by Mrs D.M. Haynes and Mrs M. Clark

Opal Holt was born in Canada in 1887 but lived in the US until the end of the Second World War. She travelled extensively between the wars and was in the first plane to land in Bali. She married Herbert Holt, a Canadian who lived a large part of his life in England, as her third husband in 1946. They came to England and Europe every summer and Opal Holt began buying clothes in Paris for her life in England, and for the Bahamas in Winter, over a period of about thirty years. She died in 1980.

Given by Mrs D.M Haynes and Mrs. Clark (nee Holt; Opal Holt's step-daughters).

Milliner 'Paulette' (Paulette Marchand, 1900-84) established her eponymous millinery shop in 1939, first on the Avenue Victor-Emmanuel and later the Avenue Franklin D. Roosevelt.
She worked throughout the war, designing for Robert Piguet. She went on to create hats for Schiaparelli, Chanel, Cardin, Ungaro, Mugler, and Laroche. She designed hats for Greta Garbo and Edith Piaf, and designed the Duchess of Windsor's hat for the Duke's funeral. She received the Legion of Honour in 1974, and continued working up until her death.

Hats were considered an essential accessory in the 1950s. The two main styles during this time were small skull-caps, or wide ‘saucer’ hats. A hat such as this one would be suitable for a cocktail party or dinner.

This hat was designed by milliner ‘Paulette’ (Paulette Marchand, 1900-84), who designed and made hats for many of the top Parisian couturiers such as Robert Piguet and Elsa Schiaparelli. Her hats were also favoured by celebrities such as Edith Piaf and Greta Garbo.

T.151 to B-1982