"A hat is a flag, a shield, a bit of armor, and the badge of femininity."
— Florence Kunhardt
What a list. A flag: it signals who you are. A shield: it protects your confidence. A bit of armor: it gives you strength. The badge of femininity: it celebrates womanhood. All of that in one accessory. All of that on your head.
I think about the "armor" part a lot. Women tell me they feel braver in a hat. More protected. More ready. Whether it is walking into a racing carnival, a wedding, or a boardroom, the hat creates a kind of invisible shield that lets you face the world with more certainty.
"When I fit a hat for a client and she looks in the mirror with that expression of quiet power, I know I have made her armor. And it looks magnificent."
— Kathryn Lee
Worth Knowing
Florence Kunhardt was an American writer who captured the emotional and symbolic power of hats with rare eloquence. Her description of a hat as "flag, shield, armor, and badge" has become one of the most widely quoted lines in millinery literature, appearing in books, exhibitions, and atelier walls around the world.
