Red Hat Society Callanan Red Wool Hat Purple Feather Wide 。Red Hat Society Red Hat with Red and Purple Feathers flowing down the back. Why do Red hatters wear red and purple clothes? The distinctive colours that the red hatters wear are an important part of their identity. It comes from the poem “Warning” by Jenny Joseph. It begins with the words “When I am an old woman, I shall wear purple, with a red hat which doesn’t go and doesn’t suit me”, which has become the motto of the Red Hat Ladies. It is to remind members to not be invisible, to have fun and to not “act your age”.