I Stole Gandalfs Hat

This is felt wizards hat, grey in colour similar to Gandalf's from the Lord of Rings/The Hobbit films and images.

Apparently, the name Gandalf comes via Tolkien from a Norse mythology name meaning staff man or wand elf.

Gandalf wore the grey hat before he became head of the Middle Earth wizards, while he was the Grey Wanderer, the Grey Pilgrim, Greyhame, Gandalf the Grey, among many other names which don't contain the word grey.

The hat will soon be adopted by a character I play in lrp.

The hat was purchased from Leonardo Carbone.

Cossack Hat

This is a Russian army cossack hat

Made from sheepskin, this tall cylinder of fur is joined at the top with a fabric circle emblem.

This hat is also known as a Papakha in Russia however there are two different styles of Papakha, this one is the Papaha, the other is the Kubanka which is a shorter version, but basically the same.

The Cossacks were an independent nation which got integrated into the Russian nation, not in a good way, so the Cossack army fought against Russia, for Russia, played both sides, helped and hindered the Germans WWII, helped and hindered the Americans in WWII, helped the British fight communism and much more.

The Cossack Army ceased to exist after World war II, however, a law was passed just before the end of 20th Century as the Soviet Union ended allowing Cossack to exist again and they now deal with local Administration. 

They still wear this style of hat 

Christmas Tree Hat

This cheap festive hat is a perfect replacement for the typical Santa hat 

It has one downside, it malts tinsel everywhere, I've tried giving it a big shake even a vacuum, but still does not stop random bits of tinsel falling off everywhere 

On the upside, you can take the hat off, leave it on a shelf, desk, dashboard and you also have great static Christmas decoration.

Just noticed the star on top of the tree is twisted, so can't be seen in any of these photos.

Bad Scholars Hat

Dunce's hat

The dunce's hat was given to children in Victorian schools as a punishment to pupils who were disruptive, clowned around and did not want to learn.

The hat was traditionally a tall white cardboard cone and painted with a big D or the word dunce.

As well as wearing the hat the children were made to stand in a corner and left to be mocked by their fellow pupils.

I'm not sure this tactic or punishment actually worked as I suspect the children made to wear the cap did not care, were made class heroes, but even more likely they probably had some actual real learning difficulty which the Victorian teachers had no way of understanding or were trained to deal with.

Outrageous Hat

I had to crouch down to get all of this hat in the photograph

This outrageous hat is possibly from an opera, purchased at a second-hand stall at a lrp fair by a friend and then donated.

This hat is an example of how a bunch of feathers can give your headwear volume and height and get you noticed.

This hat looks no other, is not from a historical period, not got any practical use other than to say look at me.

Sultans Hat

This hat takes on a look of Ottoman sultans headdress

I would like to be more precise with its origin but I failed to find a contemporary image that matches, in the long run, it's a theatrical hat so could be pure fantasy.

Most images of Ottoman headwear are of oversized turbans, but particular later 16th/17th C period headwear starts to include headgear that looks similar to this.

Anyway, this hat is all about the accessories, the tall forward leaning feathers which ultimately make this hat stand out.

Railway Conductors Hat

The is railway conductors hat.

What makes this a conductor hat rather than just a military peaked cap is the combination extra height of the crown combined with the peak pointed downwards.

The hat probably would have a had badge on the front with the name of the railway the owner or network it belonged to. 

The pointing down peak perhaps was designed to intimidate or avoid eye contact while checking tickets, pure guesses on my part, similarly pointed down peaked are typical to military drill sergeants.

Czapka

This helmet called a Czapka is in style used typically by 19th C Royal Russian, German and the Polish Uhlan Cavalry Regiments.

Made of pressed leather.

The Czapka origins lie in the very late 18th Century when a square-topped (4 pointed) Shako was used by Austrians infantry. 

Czapka is Belorussian words translate to English simply as a cap.

The helmet in the shape shown here was adapted by various cavalry regiments after the Napoleonic wars, mainly those of Poland, Russian, Prussia, Germany and Austria. Although the British and French did have a version for some of their cavalry regiments without the square top.

The helmet continued to be used by Cavalry regiments right up to first few weeks of world war one, before becoming a helm just used for parade grounds only.

This is a theatrical quality copy, not reenactment copy.

Shako

This leather shako is part of our crew kit

I have no idea if its a reproduction of genuine helmet or just something made for the theatre.

It's solidly made with a steel badge so could be a re-enactment helm, but the elastic headband and overall finish make me believe it is from a theatre production, where close up inspection does not occur.

2 years ago above

below is today after losing 5 stone

General Plumage

This Shako hat is another theatrical hat

A Shako is a tall cylindrical military hat with a visor, the cylinder can be parallel or tapered in or out at the top.  

They are usually decorated with plumes and a plate or badge on the front of the cylinder.

The Shako was popular in the 19th Century, initially, it was a practical improvement on the military hats of the time offering a little bit of protection, but by the end of the Napoleonic wars, it became a showy parade ground hat.

In the UK a stovepipe version of the hat was first worn by military units from around 1799 but by the mid 1820's it's importance to show off the unit took over from its practicality, attempts were made in the mid-century to return it to practical use, but by 1870 it was no longer considered for actual battlefield use at all and in the UK by 1905 it was no longer worn by units for any use.

Some countries continue to use Shako for their showy military parades even today.

This hat comes from a theatrical production and is not a reproduction of an actual Shako worn by soldiers.

Carrot Top

This carrot topped headwear was picked up from Chows Emporium around 8 years ago

It was from an opera called "Sir John in Love" labelled actor final scene and now used for tribal shaman in LRP

The wicker frame is tied together with sackcloth/hessian, fitted over a padded skull cap and then topped with an artificial carrot.

Watch for low branches and don't even attempt doorways wearing this hat

Seen above with a carrot-nosed facemask and below with an onion covered shawl also from Chows