Time for hats!

Summer has finely arrived in London and that means one thing: hats! Sun damage has already done its job on my face, but a hat will help limit the number of further sun spots! Street markets have stalls full of them and my local Portobello market sells them to throngs of tourists who don't seem bothered by the fact that their "souvenir of London" will have been made in China or Turkey. When I asked the stall holder for British made hats, he struggled and admitted that there was none available on his stall.

Bought for a fiver, they will be made in paper for a large part, but also straw or string. The stall holder refused that my middle daughter who was acting as photographer, take more than 2 pictures, and demanded payment for more. So here are the 2 pictures!

At the other end of the spectrum, there is a multitude of beautiful hats which bring a glamorous finishing touch to a summer outfit for a few hundred pounds/dollars or euros. But there is always a middle ground -  a real Panama hat, such as the roll-up Montechristi from web company The Panama Hat Company, hand woven in Ecuador and blocked in England will set you back £139.

The Panama Hat Company also carry other styles such as the bi-colour Ladies Tasky at £55. It comes in one size only which is a bit of a risk.

The Ladies cloth and panama hat (£19.50) is a clever conconction that allows easy transport as the cloth top can easily be squashed into a suitcase. it also comes in one size only.

So, whatever your budget and taste, there should be a hat for you on a market stall  or on line, but I have to say nothing beat the fun of trying on hats in front of a mirror with a friend which whom to share horrified laughs or admiring glances.