Hat boxes were a staple item of a lady’s luggage. They were used to store and carry hats, delicate and costly items of a lady’s wardrobe. Initially hat boxes were just frames covered with fabric, but such structures were too fragile to ensure protection, leaving the elegant hats within crumpled or totally ruined, so hat box makers turned to sturdier materials such as strong cardboard or wood. In the past, expensive hats were regarded as an exquisite present, so their storage boxes were trimmed like gift packaging, decorated with lace, gold yarn and brocade.

In the beginning of the 20th century, fashion dictated bulky wide-brimmed hats; their function was to guard the face from catching the sun and to preserve the aristocratic paleness of the skin. Hats were trimmed with feathers and veils, strapped with buckles and ribbons and topped with anything from flowers to stuffed birds. Protruding trimmings were fastened with special clasps and long hatpins that could be made of metal, bone or wood and topped with enamel or jewels, real or imitation. Wide-brimmed hats were worn by fine ladies and wealthy townswomen. In the 1910s, fashionable ladies preferred soft broad-brimmed hats or the new cartwheel designs.

Depending on the models of the headgear, hat boxes were made in all shapes: round, elongated, or square, varying in height, width and diameter. There were also special boxes for top hats.

Hat boxes were not only used for travelling. They also served to store any fragile and delicately-trimmed items, taking up a fair share of space in the wardrobes and closets.

Often ladies found it convenient to use hatboxes to put away letters or other small-sized memorabilia.