Boudoir cap

Mary Pickford wearing a boudoir cap and negligee in 1921

A boudoir cap is a form of lingerie hat that was popularly worn in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In its original form, the boudoir cap was worn over undressed hair, and has been compared to the 18th century mob cap. Particularly towards the end it was designed to be worn in the privacy of the boudoir with negligees or nightwear. It was often made from lightweight lingerie-type fabrics such as muslin or net and trimmed with silk ribbon and lace. During its later revival in the 1910s and 1920s, it was used to protect short hairstyles whilst sleeping, or first thing in the morning as ideal "for the smart bedroom woman." Towards the end of the 1920s and into the 1930s, the boudoir cap evolved into a form of decorative hairnet.