The Fabulous Fascinator

Decades ago, on a trip to Paris, I ventured into the upscale fashion department store, Galeries Lafayette Paris Haussman. On the first floor, next to the grand perfume section, an array of stands stood with beautiful, whimsical creations made with lace, feathers, velvet, and other sparkling shiny objects. The decorative pieces of art were fanciful, attachable hair decorations called fascinators. I fell in love with them.

Worn slanted on the head, not the crown, defiantly female, simultaneously fancy. According to VIS for Vintage.net, since the fifteenth century, these attractive pieces styled the hair of royal women. Marie Antoinette, the last queen of France and Duchess Georgianna Spencer of Devonshire were popular wearers of the fascinator. After wars and revolutions, it gained popularity among the general woman population. During Bel Époque (early twentieth century), hair embellishments were fashionable. After WWII, the fanciful hair adornment started losing appeal. Jacqueline Kennedy brought attention back to the millinery art form, but the informal sixties fashion shunned it.

So, thank the British royal family for returning attention to the decorative, fanciful creations with feathers, veils, crystals, and other eye-catching attachments. What a treat! The incomparable Princess Diana dominated hat wearing during her fashion icon era, and her daughter-in-law, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge rules with admirable fascinator selections. The Princesses of York, the Countess of Wessex and her daughter, Lady Louise, flaunt them, too. The California-born Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, has embraced the fashionable topper and has become aesthetically astute in her choices.

In the United States, we are catching up. Women, at formal events like the Kentucky Derby and weddings, showcase them. Ladies having tea with friends might like to embrace this whimsical treasure. I am still in love with them.