Playback time: 8 minutes
Laurence Bossion's diary, chapter 3
The story, secrets and memories of an eternal myth
Here, it's all about Panama, Theodore Roosevelt and the wounds of a hat star, and Laurence Bossion's unfailing aesthetic resilience.
Despite its misleading name, the famous Panama hat has its origins in Ecuador. Hand-woven from the fine fibers of the toquilla palm, it's lightweight, supple and remarkably sun-resistant, but its story begins far from the private beaches of paradise.
As early as the 19th century, these Ecuadorian hats were exported around the world via Panama, a strategic commercial crossroads linking the Americas. During construction of the Panama Canal, workers and engineers adopted this indispensable headgear to cope with the sweltering heat. Its omnipresence on the construction site soon earned it the name "Panama".
History first recognized the hat in 1906, when U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt, wearing one of these models, visited the canal under construction. Photographs of the event caused a sensation, propelling the Panama hat onto the international stage. It was the beginning of a destiny as the absolute star of summer elegance.
Even today, this exceptional hat is woven using ancestral techniques, particularly in Montecristi and Cuenca. The most refined pieces, called "Montecristi finos", require several months' work. In 2012, UNESCO declared this art of braiding part of humanity's intangible cultural heritage.
How to wear a panama or the 10 secret messages of an icon.
Like fans unfurled, waved and folded in a way that divulges coded messages, the way you wear your panama reveals your attitude on vacation or in town. Or when fashion and mood finally rhyme for real.
1. Message 1
I'm irresistible: Panama hat tilted slightly to the side, white linen shirt unbuttoned just right, and a look of casual conquest. It's a perfectly effective feminine dandyism.
2. Message 2
I'm in a chatty mood: With your hat firmly planted on your forehead, a patterned shirt and a glass of cocktail in your hand, you're ready to talk about life under the palm trees, seducing all and sundry with your wit and great sense of conversation.
3. Message 3
I'm brooding over a Goncourt: Panama hat screwed on straight, round sunglasses, notebook in hand. Even if you don't leave the café terrace, and the thermometer explodes, you're preparing for your own back-to-school season: September's back-to-school literary season.
4. Message 4
I've got the smiling million: Panama hat resting nonchalantly on the back of my head, impeccable tan and shirt with rolled-up sleeves. Bonus accessory: a falsely detached air, that of a jet-setter on her way to her eleventh sun destination of the summer.
5. Message 5
I wish I'd lived in the '50s: wide-brimmed Panama hat worn with high-waisted pants and loafers. Elegant option: a thin moustache or a light scarf.
6. Message 6
I have over 200k followers on Instagram:
Panama tight to keep it from flying off, vintage camera around my neck and an interested look on my face in front of each postcard with a team of three people to take the hyper-realistic shot of the fake tourist who travels to destinations with one goal in mind: to make content.
7. Message 7
I'm still waiting for the aperitif:
Panama white immaculate on light suit, glass of spritz in hand and a well-placed compliment for each guest, this is your favorite (time) slot? 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
8. Message 8
I collect heirloom tomatoes: Looked after, but mainly for going to the market, your it bag is a basket with a hole in it, nicely protected by a newspaper you no longer read. Panama hat a little crooked, flowery shirt open over canvas Bermuda shorts and "beautiful heirloom tomatoes" to cook urgently, here's your vacation.
9. Message 9
"I've mastered la dolce vita (or I won't bother until September) ":
Panama hat sitting carelessly on a chair when you come in for lunch, sunglasses on your nose and a ready-made phrase: "What would summer be without a good Panama?",
This chic hat gives you authority and a right: to watch time go by without giving a helping hand from your deckchair.
10. Message 10
Let me pretend I'm nobody:
Panama hat tucked low to the forehead, large dark glasses and not in a hurry. We know who you are, though, because every magazine read by the tourists lounging by your palace pool contains at least one photo of you. The truth is, you're famous. And for life.
Laurence memories
After a few years, the Panama hat becomes damaged or cracked, and is often not abandoned but repaired and restored in the manner of a fine piece of furniture or family jewel. At my home on rue Saint Roch, we collect these out-of-use Panama hats with great interest, giving them a second life without, however, completely erasing the wounds and other cracks that add a rather formidable cachet to hats of this type. This vacation hat par excellence is an all-terrain companion and therefore ideal for itineraries and holidays in the sun and sea, and can therefore get a little damaged. In my opinion, you shouldn't make a crack disappear at any cost by adding an addition, but rather mend it and make an elegant scar in the vein of the Japanese philosophy of Kintsugi. This form of wisdom advocates acceptance of the cracks, wounds and scars that give us depth and forge our character. A panama is a durable hat that grows more beautiful with time, more supple and therefore cooler. In short, it lives with us.
My ultimate tip: when you take off your hat, have the reflex of grabbing it by the edges, on the sides rather than with three fingers by the top of the hat at the hollows on the sides and top. This way, you'll protect the straw from wear and tear, as it's likely to get cut over the years.
The store will be closed for the summer vacations from Saturday August 2 to Tuesday August 26.
Don't forget to come before if you're going to the sun, or are invited to a wedding.