Before setting out for church on Easter Sunday morning, the family would be sure to wear not only their “Sunday best” but new clothes that would be “…modeled at the informal fashion show that followed the services”, according to an interesting writing concerning the very old tradition of the Easter bonnet. It appeared in the 1984 Avon Calendar Of Roses, published by The Ariel Press Ltd., Hong Kong. This writer goes on to say: “In some places in the country the custom of Easter finery lingers but without its old force. Easter parades are out of style and the competition to see who could find the most ravishing hat has languished.”
This writer also tells us that in some places people used to visit stores before Easter in search of the perfect head-wear to complement or accent their new spring outfit. The writer describes a scene that could have taken place in one of these stores, and the effect of finding the perfect bonnet. “…the inimitable effect of a wisp of veiling across a sparkling eye, the crisp roll of a brim that complements an alabaster brow, the insouciant silk rose that echoes the delicate color of a cheek are noted, and then, too delicious not to be shared, taken home to be admired by other loving eyes, before the hat is retired to an honored place in the top of the closet, there to await the coming of the day when the Easter Parade returns.” Again, an excerpt from the 1984 Avon Calendar Of Roses.
My wife and I visited New Orleans late in the summer of 1999. We stayed in a condo/hotel in the old French Quarter. It was a short walk up the cobble-stoned street to a milliner. On one of our afternoon walks together, we dropped in and admired the assortment of finely made, imported head-wear. The shop was filled with fashionable attire for every occasion. I had always wanted to buy my wife a beautiful yet functional garden hat for the long hours she spends in our gardens under the intense summer sun. The proprietor of the shop told us that the term “milliner” originated in the 16th century. My further research found that it was created to refer to “The importation of women’s finery from Italy.” The beautifully soft, Italian straw hat, that caught our attention that day, was elegantly designed to provide shade from the harmful effects of the sun. It has a wonderfully wide, curving brim, and a linen and lace band. The photo above is that hat. You would have to see it worn by my wife or daughter to fully appreciate the effect.
My daughter is one of those people who suits hats. No matter what hat she wears, it seems as if it was designed just for her. I’ve promised to take her to New Orleans one day to meet the milliner my wife and I visited. I’ve also promised her one special hat that I hope she will always treasure.
Easter, of course, is not about hats or bonnets. It’s not about chocolate, either.
This is an excerpt from a very old reference book. It was a teacher’s study and teaching guide for students published by The Holst Publishing Company in 1924.
“The night when Jesus was crucified, a rich man, Joseph of Arimathea, and another, named Nicodemus, took Christ’s body down from the cross, and buried it in a cave in a beautiful garden.
“And to make sure that the disciples should not remove their Master during the night, and pretend that He had risen from the dead, Caiaphas sent soldiers to see that none came near the tomb.
“So all night long the soldiers paced up and down that quiet garden, thinking, perhaps, what a foolish thing Caiaphas had sent them to do. But suddenly, at daybreak, the earth shook, and the stone before the tomb was rolled away.
“‘Look! Look! cried one in amazement. ‘Is not that an angel seated upon the stone?’
“‘Yes! It is a spirit–an angel!’ said another. And they were all so frightened that they ran back to Jerusalem to tell Caiaphas what they had seen.”
Tomorrow night on my radio program, an hour devoted to the dogwood.
Happy Easter!!
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Don Jackson
