1930s Haute Couture Velvet Beret by Rose Valois

Stunning copper silk velvet design by Rose Valois. High dramatic peak. Origami folds of lusciousnesss held on with two matching hat pins. Rose Valois was a design house founded by three women, Madame Fernand Cleuet, Vera Leigh and another. Vera Leigh, a Brit, left the firm to join the French resistance and was captured, tortured and executed by the Nazis. She is considered a heroine of the effort. A member of the SOE. This prewar chapeau comes from the estate of a French and Serbian aristocrat who became the Duchess of Leeds in the early 30s. A friend of Chanel and frequent customer of Schiaparelli, Edward Molyneaux, Jacques Griffe, Maggy Rouff and others. Excellent condition.