The Mad Hatter!

I've flipped my lid...for hats! I've always been a closet hat lover. I've owned and worn a few in my younger days. I think it's a genetic disorder that I inherited from my Grandmother. There are tales of Gram buying hats, hauling them home and promptly ripping them to bits and restyling them to her liking. Go Gram! I saw this lot on Etsy and could not control myself!

In the first row, the red/cream/taupe number (far right) is a maybe.
In the second row, #2 (rust) is a maybe, #3 taupe beret is WHY I had to have the lot!
In the top row, the two straw hats and the little cap that sits atop them are strong contenders and the red cap looks interesting.

The rest? Who knows. I'm definitely open to trying them on and maybe attempting to fix a few up (replace veils, etc). The turbans...uh, I don't think they are my style but they'd look cool displayed. ;)

PS Do you know where the expression Mad Hatter comes from? I heard that beaver fur hats had to be treated with some powder stuff that turned out to be quite toxic, causing the wearer to go bonkers as he was slowly poisoned. Ah, the price of fashion!

PSS I heard from the seller. Turns out she struggled with the decision to destash these hats because they had been inherited from her Mom who had collected them in the 1980's. She finally decided they deserved a home where somebody would appreciate them. The strange thing is that I was prompted to purchase them because of my Grandmother and the sentiment I feel for things she might have owned. Isn't it funny how an encounter as chance as an Etsy transaction can connect us?