Oktoberfest in Munich officially starts Sept 19th (yes it’s NOT in October!) and one of the main accessories you will see on many of the revelers heads is the ‘Tyrolean Hat/Alpine Hat’ (seen below) with an assortment of distinguishing hat pins (these can be of anything).
These pins I love and have been collecting various ones from German functions I have been to for a few years. Below is one of my vintage favorites from Kitchener. Ontario Oktoberfest (biggest Oktoberfest outside of Munich). Now I don’t wear mine on a hat but I display them on my Dirndl (I have to rotate them out as I have a good selection).
For today’s post I wanted to share some lovely vintage kitschy and fantastic hat pins that are available for purchase (at time of this post. Visit ETSY for more options). Enjoy!
Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy , eBay, are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.
Note: If you click on an item and it is no longer available, don’t fret! The websites I have provided are updated daily with 1000’s of new & vintage items. Just do a quick search and see what you find.
Vintage German Hat Pins
1950s Hat Pins: The pin from Hohenstaufen has an alpine hunter with his dog. The pin from Rune Rechberg has a girl in tradional dress holding flowers with her dog nearby.
Source: Etsy
1960s Hat pin featuring the well known Black Forest Home.
Source: Etsy
I LOVE Cuckoo Clocks!! I currently own my grandmothers and I’m trying to find a space for it in my house but I own one! Now you can too in a mini version with this vintage Cuckoo Clock Brooch/ hat pin.
Source: Etsy
Bad Harzburg Bergbahn Cable Car Pin. Many pins you will see on hats are “souvenir pins” of different towns/cities in Germany.
Edelweiss is big on these pins (for obvious reasons) and you will see them all the time in various forms.
There is a great vendor on Etsy called “My Beautiful Bavaria” that has a stunning collection of pins (and other German items), like this vintage 1950s Celluloid Doll Baby German Pin.
Info on the pin:
The hatpin is from a wine region near the Rhine River; Altenahr is situated between Bonn and Koblenz. The little girl doll is standing against a background of grapes, and a yellow wine glass and orange wine bottle dangle beneath the main portion of the pin. This was likely a souvenir from a 1950s era European vacation.
Do you love owls? Here is another vintage darling from the same shop.
A large windmill (the Alt Weibermühle) and a Donkey make this Hat Pin very unique.
Doggie Paddle! Vintage 1940s/1950s Hat Pin from Steinhuder Meer, Germany.
Vintage 1950s Bavarian dancers. CUTE!
Who can say no to a parrot for your hat (or maybe to wear as a brooch for Novelty Brooch Friday)?
Wine, grapes and a wine glass makes for the perfect hat pin for me (I adore wine as much as I adore beer).
Lastly I will end this post with this Alpine Hat with its own wonderful collection of pins, going as far back as 1968.
I don’t have a hat (yet) so I wear mine on my dirndl as you can see below in this 2024 photo. I have MANY pins and I change them out all the time. You can do the same! Have fun with them.
Hope you enjoyed browsing the world of German Hat Pins and maybe found 1 or 2 you would like for yourself to start your own collection or maybe you have a collection started already. If you do please share in the comment section below or email me at ‘thevintageinnblog@gmail.com’.
FURTHER READING:
- It’s Vintage Oktoberfest Poster Time!
- Vintage Inn goes to Oktoberfest –Vintage Photos & Vintage Dirndls
- Vintage Dirndl Fashion Illustrations
September 2024 Update: I have created a fun Oktoberfest playlist on Spotify that is perfect for your next fest party. Enjoy!
Happy Oktoberfest season!
Liz
Awesome pins and post! You come up with such seriously cool, original ideas, my dear. It’s always inspiring to read your writing. I have a small number of Austrian/German souvenir pins in my brooch collection. They’re a fun way to connect with my German ancestry.
♥ Jessica
Thanks so very much Jessica. I do try to once in awhile bring new ideas to the vintage world (and as you know sometimes that can be hard) and this was a fun one to write 🙂
The hat pins are just so fantastic as brooches..who needs a hat?! 🙂
These are such fun, I really like the owl. Do we get to see your collection?
Ohhh I will instagram them this weekend. Never thought of that lol!
These are very cool! I’d enjoy seeing your collection too! I hope you do share it 🙂
yes yes I will take pics and try to do it this week before I forget (making note…)
Liz 🙂