Tuesday 10 March 2009

A Passion for Beach Hats



India Hicks has stacked a collection of beach hats on a shelf in her house in the Bahamas above.



Another trait my mother has passed onto me is collecting beach hats. She has always had a passion for beautiful straw/raffia beach hats. I remember her often popping on a new hat ready to head to the beach. Over the years she has collected many, many hats...favouring the designs of Helen Kaminski, Annabel Ingall & most recently Axel Mano.

In a similar way to using baskets as decoration, stacks of hats can also be a great look in a beach house. I often stack my hats on old hat blocks on tables and sideboards. I love the way India Hicks has placed her hats on a shelf in her bookcase as pictured above!!


If you look closely at the picture above you can see my small stack of hats on my sideboard at Straddie.


By incorporating usable, everyday things like hats and baskets into the decoration of our homes, whether they are at the beach, in the country or in the city, we are able to achieve a very personal, simple, cost effective yet stylish look.

Image 1 - via Shelter Blog, Image 2 - via Style Court, Image 3 - via Cote de Texas

24 comments:

Fargerike Dagny said...

LOVE the green table/dresser in the first pic! :)

Debra said...

Love your photo of found objects and so many sweet chapeaus. Mine are all hanging in my entry-way. Each one had it's own purpose.

MFAMB said...

so pretty. i saw a recent pic where someone had used hats as a headboard of sorts. love it.
thanks anna!

Unknown said...

My husband has hats...lots of hats, all kinds, many straw beach. I bought a cheap bust of michaelangelos' David and pile the hats on that...it is on a stand in the circle of my spiral stair in the front entry. One has to do what one has to do when there are tooo many hats.

sarah said...

I've always wanted to be the type of person who looked great in straw beach hats. Unfortunately I just look like I'm clueless or trying to hard. I must try again this summer though. And using them to add a bit of personality to a room is genius.

Sarah Bradley said...

I love this idea! Great suggestion!

Yoli said...

Beautiful hats, feels like down here in the keys all of your pics.

Anonymous said...

We do not have beach straw hats, but we do have family heirloom hats. One of them is my grandfather who worked as a milk man in the 30's, 40's, and 50's. The second hat is from my dad's fratertinity in college. He went to school in 1962, and they were still wearing the small pledge caps. Both hats are full of character and they really do catch people's eyes. It forces them to slow down a bit, because they might miss a hidden treasure....

katiedid said...

I love that look....and have quite a few myself. Your table is soooo pretty!

paula said...

I too have the same love for beach hats. It started with my grandmother and noe my daughter (she's only 3).

porter hovey said...

This makes me want summer to come even more . . . to be outside . . . on the beach. It's soo close!

Miss Eefje said...

Great pictures. Specially the mint-green closet! It contrasts with the white envirement.
And i love your blog. It's always filled with great displays. The colors are very well mixed, you don't see such combinations that often.

Anonymous said...

I adore your sideboard!!

NoWay said...

You do beautiful work. Very nice.
Full of warmth.

Sa-Sea said...

I have always dreamed of collecting straw hats! I want them everywhere! This has just made it sooo much easier for me to take my hats out of the closet and put them out and about! love your blog!!!

pve design said...

Beach hats are a must for me, I hate getting burned, so lots of sunscreen, a hat and sunglasses. I would love to see your sunglass collection.
Pretty shell-scape.
pve

Here, There, Elsewhere... and more said...

My namesake (India) not only lives in a "to die for" home/island but also she's a delightful person (an English friend of mine has worked with her) and she has a beautiful family..:)

balsamfir said...

I've been a bit busy and haven't checked in so much this week to my blog reader, but then I was thrilled to realize you decided to keep posting after all. AND you are on a roll with the posts. Really love the hats and baskets.

Sharnel said...

Gorgeous post. Love this one as much as the basket post.
xox

studioJudith said...

Love your sideboard pic, with the little stacks ... .
also a great fan of the India Hicks Hats (what a life that girls has!) . I have personally gone through about 7 Kaminski hats ... . . just never tire of them.
Delightful post .. JJjjj

studioJudith said...

Love your sideboard pic, with the little stacks ... .
also a great fan of the India Hicks Hats (what a life that girls has!) . I have personally gone through about 7 Kaminski hats ... . . just never tire of them.
Delightful post .. JJjjj

Local Girl said...

Just gorgeous! I want it to be summer already :) Thanks for sharing x

ami @ elizabeth anne designs said...

the mint green in that first photo is lovely - i have seen so much mint lately and i love it!

cassandra said...

i've always loved the idea of using hats in decor... my parents had one they hung from the end of the curtain rod in the bedroom and i always thought it was so cool...