Of all the glamorous women in recent history, who understood the expressive power of personal adornment better than Josephine Baker?

To her audiences, she represented the exotic, erotic and forbidden.  She was famous both for what she wore and what she didn’t wear.  She continues to fascinate.  Her youthful vitality, the exuberant joy of her smile and her unabashed self-exposure made her one of the most alluring women of her era.

Look at how she accessorizes!  Here she is in a traditional top hat – the formal evening dress of a man of a defined race and social class.   The only time a black person wore a top hat was as a servant or an “entertainer”, stereotypes that verged on the comic during that time.  But here she is, an icon of wild femininity, breaking all the rules of class and gender and making a statement that is sensually and undeniably attractive.

And here she is in an amazing head piece that accentuates her exotic beauty.  The practice of humans decorating themselves in feathers and jewels goes back to the beginning of time. It’s paradoxically the most primitive and the most sophisticated form of self-decoration.  If anyone ever knew how to bend the social structures that divide civilized from primitive, innocent and erotic, male and female, black and white, it was Josephine.

Interestingly enough, this season, veiling, feathers, rhinestones and gorgeous head pieces abound!  Edie Hats has a wonderful Fall collection of dress hats, feathered and bejeweled accessories, and some fantastic men’s formal hats including, of course, the iconic top hat.

Tags: Accessories, Edie Hats, Granville Island, Hair Pieces, Hats, Head Pieces, Josephine Baker, Top Hat