Types of Headwear for Women

Women’s fashion accessories are so numerous. From shoes to bags, jewelry and hats, everything for women are of different types. Hats for women as well as other headwear have become so commonplace that every day, ladies put these headpieces even when they aren’t having a bad hair day. This is because headwears for women have become major fashion staples that add more details to an outfit. If you want to know more about the types of headwear for women, read this to the end.

Types of Headwear for Women

There are many types of headwear for women but the most common ones are:

1. Hat

A hat is a covering for the head, often in the approximate form of a cone or a cylinder closed at its top end, and sometimes having a brim and other decoration. A hat suits any casual outfit and looks just great with beachwear. Hats for women are of various types. Some of them are:

Boater

A straw hat that is very stiff and has a flat brim and crown.

Sun hats

These are hats for women specifically designed to shade the face and shoulders from the sun.

Bucket

A casual hat with a wide brim often worn at the beach.

Fedora

A felt hat with a fairly low, creased crown with a brim that can be turned up or down.

Panama

This is a type of brimmed hat from South America, originally made with straw.

Fez

A felt hat in the shape of a truncated cone, having a flat top with a tassel attached. Tassels are decorative elements often attached, usually along the bottom hem, to garments, curtains or other hangings.

2. Cap

Caps are close-fitting types of headwear for women either without a brim or with a peak. Caps are of different shapes and sizes. Oftentimes they have a peak or visor that serves to protect the eyes from sunlight. Some types of caps include:

Visor

This cap is crownless. It doesn’t necessarily cover the head but it blocks sunlight from entering the eyes.

Beanie

 This is a cap that fits the head closely, usually knitted from wool.

Beret

A round, brimless cap with a soft top and a headband to secure it to the head.

Baseball cap

A cap with a rounded crown and a curved, stiffened bill at the front.

Baker Boy

Otherwise known as the newsboy cap, baker boy cap is a cap for casual wear. Though it has the same shape and stiff peak as a flat cap, the body of the baker boy cap is fuller, rounder, and paneled with a button on top.

Bonnet

Bonnets are headcovers usually made with satin or Ankara fabric to protect the hair and retain its moisture.

Shower cap

A waterproof headcover designed for use in the shower to avoid wetting the hair.

3. Gele

Gele (pronounced ‘gay-lay’) is the Yoruba term for a woman’s headwear. These types of headwear for women are peculiar to the Yoruba and Igbo women of Nigeria. Initially, gele was mostly worn to complete the Yoruba iro and buba attire and the Igbo George wrapper and blouse. But nowadays, women wear gele with Ankara, lace and other Aso ebi outfits that are not even styled as wrapper and blouse. Gele is worn to traditional occasions and events, churches, birthday and other parties, etc. It is an important item to complement the native wears for Nigerian women. Fashion has evolved to bring about different variations of gele. These days women even accessorise their gele with fancy stones, beads, etc., to give it a dazzling look.

4. Turban

Turbans are types of headwear for women that involve winding a length of cloth around the head. Turban is mostly worn by people of Arabian, Asian and African cultures. Turbans also serve as a religious headwear among Sikhs, Shia Muslims, Sufi scholars, etc. This headwear has become mainstream as many women use the turban in place of a scarf to go to church or simply cover their hair.

5. Fascinator

This is a delicate, decorative headpiece often worn by women to religious gatherings, weddings or formal occasions. It usually has a decorative design attached to a band or clip. The design could be feathers, flowers or any other adornment and it is often worn on a slant. A derivative of the fascinator is hatinator. The hatinator is attached to the head with a clip or a band like a fascinator but it has the appearance of a hat in that it is not as small as the fascinator and goes over the sides of the head.

6. Hijab

This is a veil which covers the head and chest. It is usually worn by Muslim women in the presence of any male outside of their immediate family,

7. Headscarf

A headscarf is a piece of fabric worn over the head for religious reasons, fashion or simply to protect or shield the hair. They can be made with different fabrics such as silk, wool, linen or cotton.

Which of these types of headwear for women would you be adding to your outfit when next you go out? Let us know by dropping a comment below.

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