Small Hats Big Look

A lovely letter from the Stockport Hat Works Museum arrived today…

‘We’ve been looking at the hats whilst we have been packing them up and thought that your hat would be a great addition to our collection. Hat Works Museum would like to accession a small selection of the entries into the museum collection to represent the talent and imagination that is evident in the design of modern hats today.’

Awer.

I entered gallus gallus in the Decade Parade competition last March as somewhat of a litmus test promising myself if it got anywhere I would keep at millinery. So, it did not win but was selected to show in the 6-month exhibition and that was good enough for me!

Maybe one day my great, great, great grandchildren will make the pilgrimage to see the first hat great, great, great nana ever made...

Trippin’ the Bird

Understatement: I am excited.

Collaborating with awesome printmaker & designer Suzie Brown of Urban Bird on a 12 piece collection of handmade print fabric hats for a pop-up shop at Winchester Fashion Week.

Suzie & I met through the Craft Central network and lucky me, I had the opportunity to show her some of my work. Suzie took one hat (the feather mowhawk) away on the spot and commissioned an additional two theatrical hats for her catwalk collection as well.

Think Cirque du Soleil with less acrobatics and more appliqué

"Winchester Fashion Week from 25th - 31st July 2011 will be a celebration of the creativity of fashion in context with design, art, media and culture. With six catwalk shows, a pop up design shop and gallery, an exhibition of fashion film, illustration and photography, a programme of talks and workshops, a 'Frock Swop' and Vintage Dance Night. It's a packed programme not to be missed!

Open from 18th - 31st July at the Brooks Shopping Centre in Winchester City Centre, the pop up design shop and gallery will be a showcase of handpicked designer's work, millinery, jewellery, interiors products and art, not available on the high street. A source of inspiration to pep up your wardrobe and home, it promises to be a memorable highlight of the festival.'

Here are some images from Suzie’s prints that I am going to work into hats for our collection. You may recognize a few faces…

organised chaos - studio daze

Chaos with a capital KC!

Half of the clean up the I should be doing and not blogging about....and a sneaky peak of sorcière blanche one of the catwalk hats for the Urban Bird collection showing at Winchester Fashion Week in July (more to follow).

sorcière blanche definitely chose her own path to 'life'; made from straw that has been completely woven and free-formed by hand, featuring a vintage Finnish pendant, bone and a spray of pheasant feather.

She has her fringe in pins, not looking her finest - yet.