Freshman Congressman Frederica Wilson likes her hats

How did I miss this? Washington Post's Robin Givan (or more accurately, Newsweek's new hire) profiled freshman congresswoman Frederica Wilson (D-FL) in early December. The representative-elect is known in her home state for wearing embellished and decorative hats and often wore them on the Florida Senate floor. However, when she come to Washington next month she will learn that things are a little different since the House floor bans hats.

From the article,

Wilson's fashion dilemma became real during orientation for House freshmen. She had to remove her hat for her official portrait. But she told her hometown media that she planned to appeal the rule.Hat-wearing, Wilson says, is a family tradition, one connected to her Bahamian roots and to her grandmother.  

"You know how some ladies buy shoes no matter how many pairs they have?" Wilson says, by way of explaining her 30-year fascination with pillboxes, cloches and such. Well, that's how she buys hats, and she has somewhere in the ballpark of 300, although she's never counted. 

"I like to dress up. I dress up every day, and I feel dressed from head to toe." As a Florida state senator, Wilson "wore hats every day on the floor without incident or attention," she says. "Just like if someone was wearing a headband or a pair of eyeglasses, I wore hats."

Here a couple of pictures of her wearing her infamous hats.