French Flowermaking and Wire Frames--Chicago

I recently taught two one-day classes at TLD Design Center in Westmont, IL (Chicago), a venue I've taught at many times. The classes were French Flowermaking and Wire: Fascinators and Bridal.

Below you see the class collection of finished flowers. Most were made from silk fabrics but I know of at least one cotton flower in the mix. Nice, huh?

I'll be teaching a flowermaking class in Berkeley, California, at the end of July. Be sure to check out my 'classes' page on my website for dates and other information.

Pretty petals all cut out according to the supplied patterns. Some ladies chose to create flowers with multi-colored, multi-textured petals. Some of these fabrics are hand-dyed. Beautiful!

Here's an example of a silk chiffon that has been hand-dyed. Lovely color combination. She created this dyed piece in an earlier class at TLD. TLD teaches many, many different fiber-related classes. Check them out!

Laura and Mary Alta begin the shaping process. Each petal is shaped with heated flower tools. Different flower tools create different shapes.

Kathleen and Peggy hard at work!

Mary Alta's completed flower. You will note that each and every one of these flowers is different, even though everyone started with the same pattern. This is the beauty of flowermaking! Variables include: different amounts of sizing on the fabrics, amount of heat and pressure on the petal pieces, the kind of fabric being used, the way the petals are assembled...all contribute to the uniqueness of each flower.

This particular flower is composed of embroidered cotton. Embroidered fabrics can sometimes be difficult to shape since the embroidery threads 'hold' the fabric in place and don't allow it to be shaped as easily, but this is so pretty!

Lovely and suitable for so many uses on hats, gowns, home decorations and more.

The second class I taught was meant to teach some very basic skills in working with millinery wire. Because of the Royal Wedding event and the attention it brought to both bridal and fascinator type headpieces, the class used the wire skills to create their own headpieces.

Peggy's completed form, wrapped in black eyelash yarn to cover the wire. I don't have a picture of her completed piece but I love the form just like it is!

Laura created a very nice form then wrapped it in hand-dyed silk.

Michele used a multi-toned yarn to cover her frame. Here you see her adding beauty-marked veiling to a certain 'space' in the form. Nice use of veiling! You'll see the completed piece further down the page.

Mother/daughter team of Dwana and Donna showing off their big-looped wire pieces. While these are not finished products, they do show great promise! Wish I could see their final embellishments!

Jennifer created a wonderful mass of wires, each wrapped in brightly colored Indian sari fabrics. What more do you need?

Pretty Edwardian-inspired wire frame, covered in lace, veiling, trims and a fabulous applique piece. Looks oh-so-vintage with a modern twist. Love it, Kathleen!

Michele's finished piece with some great 'bobbing' crystals. See the way she's added the veiling to just a small portion of 'space' on the frame? Very nice!

So that was Chicago! Next teaching gig is Washington, DC, where we'll be making Big Beautiful Brims--covering buckram frames and creating large fabric covered brims. Class is already full!

Be sure to check out the other classes I'll be teaching the rest of the year--www.hatshatshats.com/classes.htm.

2011 Millinery Classes/Workshops/Instruction

For those who have been asking....here is the millinery class schedule for 2011. If you are looking for millinery instruction on any number of skills, please consider these. Click here, http://www.hatshatshats.com/classes.htm , for the schedule. (We have a new website, so if you do not see the new webpages, please 'refresh' your browser.)
Skills being taught this year are: French Flowermaking (Chicago, IL)--May; Wire: Bridal and Fascinators (Chicago, IL)--May; Big Brimmed Buckram Hats (Washington, DC)--June; Dyeing To Make Hats (Atlanta, GA)--July French Flowermaking: Roses & Orchids (Berkeley, CA)--July; Three Straw Hats and a Feather in Your Hat--John C. Campbell Folk School (Brasstown, NC)--August; Blockmaking and the Felt Hat--John C. Campbell Folk School (Brasstown, NC)--August; Fabric Frolic On a Buckram Base...and Feathers! (St. Quentin La Poterie, France)--October; Retro Hats From Flat Felt Skirting (St. Quentin LaPoterie, France)--October.

Will we see YOU in class? Already scheduling 2012 millinery instruction. Will we be teaching hatmaking near you? Time will tell.... Happy hatmaking!

Millinery Classes 2011

WISHING EVERYONE A HAPPY AND PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR!

I'll be posting more about the upcoming millinery courses schedule later, but wanted to let you know right away where I'll be teaching courses next year. Again, more information later but here are the cities/schools where you can register for millinery instruction.

Washington, DC (Alexandria, Virginia)
Chicago, IL (Westmont, Illinois)
Atlanta, Georgia
Berkeley, California
John C. Campbell Folk School (Brasstown, North Carolina)
St. Quentin La Poterie, France

I also teach private lessons at my atelier in Wilmington, North Carolina. You choose the amount of time and the class curriculum when studying with me in the atelier. All skill levels welcomed in ALL my classes--private or public.

Felt Millinery Classes in Chicago--Flat Felt & Hoods

TLD Design Center, in Chicago, has been a long-time venue for my teaching. In fact, it was the very first place outside of Wilmington I taught classes. Because of the expanding interests of Chicago students (and those who flew and drove in from great distances) way back then (1999?) I continued to expand the list of skills I taught to these prospective milliners. I'm now up to about 13 different classes. Check out the list at www.hatshatshats.com/classes.htm. Be sure to scroll to the very bottom to see the list.

BTW, the complete 2011 class schedule will be up before the end of the year. Maybe I'll be in a venue near you! And be sure to check out the classes I'll be teaching next October in FRANCE!







One of my favorite classes to teach is Retro Hats From Flat Felt Skirting. You may have seen pictures on this blog from other classes in flat felt. It is an old medium, one which isn't used much anymore, but I love the styles you can create from flat felt--no hoods, no capelines, just felt yardage. Here you see the class as they begin the process of discovering just what flat felt will do, how it will perform.

Mary and Mimi are well into the creation of their retro-inspired hats. Mary used a 100% winter white wool to create a draped style, plus her brown fur felt to make a patterned shape. Mimi used a burgandy fur felt to create her crescent patterned topper.

Close-up of Mary's two flat felt hats, still on the blocks of course. The brown one was created by making four crescent pieces then overlapping them to create the hat. A little steam rounded out the pieces so they'd lay flat against the block.

Monique chose to create her very dramatic style on the block by hand shaping. So very RETRO!

Another view of Monique's hat with just a few feathers added for interest. No need for much embellishment on these hats as the shape speaks for itself.

In the second class, blocking a felt hood, students spent a considerable amount of time just playing with the felts as they steamed them. I think it is important to find out exactly what the damp, pliable felt will do with steam and free-form styling with the hands. Limitless styles!

Here Sonja is working on a beautiful gold felt. Don't you love all the lines? I affectionately referred to her hat as an 'interstate stack' because it looks like layers and layers of loops on an interstate highway.

Mimi created the quintessential retro style when she pleated the front edge of the hood. Beautiful! And very becoming on her as well.

Final pictures of Mimi and Monique. So happy they loved their hats and new skills!

Sonja and Mary Kate show off their new free-form shaped hoods. Well done, ladies! You'll be stylish and warm all Winter.

So that is the last class of 2010! Looking forward to a little time to enjoy the holidays and then begin preparing for all that is to come in 2011. Stay tuned! And thanks for reading!!

Autumn/Winter Hats 2010--Felt

Here in the Northern Hemisphere we are settling in for Winter. I'm not a cold weather girl, but I do love the seasonal changes like a crisp morning, changing of the leaves, comfy sweaters (jumpers), fires burning bright, and a beautiful, stylish, warm hat.

Below you will see three that I've recently created to send to TLD Design Center's annual hat show in Chicagoland. I've shown several angles on each so that you can see all the elements of the hats.

This one is probably my favorite of the three. Made from 100% wool felt, I've covered the crown in a mesh ultrasuede that changes tone and color balance as it expands and contracts over the hat. I love it!

I've free-form blocked the hood into a sort of abstract cloche. This is one of my favorite styles of hats and it is quite easy to fashion over the steamer.

Here you can see another angle showing the mesh. Note also that I've made 3 leather leaves as embellishment. The leather has a slightly metallic finish with swirls of subdued color in it. I used an awl to make a hole in the bottom of the leaves and secured them to the hat by sewing up through the hole, adding a bead, then back down to the underside of the hat.

Another cloche-styled hat of 100% wool, this time in chocolate brown. See how I've nipped into the edge to create a saw-toothed look, just for added interest.

Embellishment for this hat is a handmade felt button by my friend and fellow fiber-artist Louise Giordano at Scarf It Up. Be sure to check out her website if you are into knitting, crocheting, and felting.

Can you guess what the hatband is made from? Fish leather! Yes, fish leather. I believe this one is carp. I bought this piece several years ago while teaching at the International Millinery Forum in Australia. Fish leather is very strong and has a beautiful 'nap' to it, created by the scales.

Hot pink seems to be a habit with me...and I'm not really into pink that much. But when I look around the shop I see lots of hot pink things everywhere! Love pink and black together.

This one was blocked on a very old hatblock that a friend found for me in a second-hand shop.

I added black velvet tubing and a few black beads. This is an example of me letting the shape of the hat be the most important part. Minimalist embellishment.

Stay warm!

Millinery Classes Just Added--Chicago, Washington DC and France

Start saving your pennies! I've just announced a couple of classes--one very soon, one in the mid-term, and another over a year away. A year away? Yes, check it out below. Start saving your pennies! Further information, including class descriptions, can be found at my Classes webpage, www.hatshatshats.com/classes.htm .

November 13, 2010: Retro Hats From Flat Felt Skirting; Chicago, Illinois
November 14, 2010: Blocking a Wool Hood; Chicago, Illinois
Both classes being held at TLD Design Center in Westmont.

January 8-9, 2011: Sensational Sinamay (Straw)-- Two Techniques; Alexandria, Virginia (Washington, DC)
Class held at The Torpedo Factory, The Art League School.

October 1-8, 2011: Fabric Frolic on a Buckram Base...and Feathers!; St. Quentin La Poterie, near Uzes, in the South of France
October 14-16, 2011: Retro Hats From Flat Felt Skirting; St. Quentin La Poterie, France
Classes held at Lucy Till Hats.

Please contact the venues for information on Registration, as they will handle that.

I'll be adding more classes to the 2011 roster as they are finalized, but wanted these to go up now!

Hoping to see you in class!!!!

Chicago Millinery Classes--Block Making and Fascinators

Last week I was fortunate enough to teach in Chicago, at TLD Design Center. I've been teaching there for probably 9 years and it is always a pleasure to go back. Great students come from all over the mid-West to take not only hatmaking classes but a wide range of textile classes from the owner, Tammy Deck and other instructors. This year we had students from New York, Florida, and Kentucky, as well as Chicago.

I taught two one-day classes this year. The first was Block Making. Everyone made a least one hat block and then blocked a parisisal hood over their new block. Above, Ann and Rebecca are hard at work on their projects.

Clair and Abby begin the blocking process. Abby attended the Kentucky Derby for the first time this year and came away wanting to know more about hatmaking. Here she begins free-forming on a hatblock.

And here is her hat just as it was coming off the block. She was thrilled with the result! A few embellishments and she'll be ready for the Derby next year!

Lyn made a very simple but elegant block. Here she is blocking her black parisisal hood over it.

The next day I taught Fascinating Fascinators. One of the first things I asked the group was, "What IS a fascinator?" Of course, there is no definitive answer to that as they can take many forms. And that was my point. They can pretty much be anything you want them to be. They take no specific form! Go for it!

I demonstrated numerous skills that could be used in making fascinators: feather-work, sewn braid, free-form sinamay, fabric covered buckram, along with how to attach elements to combs, hairbands, hat elastics, clips, etc.

This photo, and the one above it, are of feather mounts created by Betty. She will probably use these on her fabulous felt hats since that is really her forte. Love the color combination!

Close-up of the fascinator base Betty created with a very dark navy braid. Nice!

Rebecca starts the final process of curling feathers on her silk covered buckram base. She created the feather mount from coq and biot feathers using the technique she learned in class.

The final product! She used an orphaned rhinestone earring as the focal point and a base for the feather mount.

Betty models Rebecca's hat.

Rebecca does the HAPPY DANCE she is so thrilled with her hat! And I agree!

Great job, Chicago class!!

Millinery Classes/Courses/Instruction

The Hat Magazine just listed me as a millinery instructor in their most recent edition. Thanks, Nigel and Carol! Good folks there. I wish there was more info published about millinery in the United States. Granted we are not the hat-wearing nations that England or Australia or Nigeria are, but we do have our moments.

Thought this would be a good time to post the millinery courses offered for the remainder of 2009. Each venue I teach in is offering different classes so check them out. Click the links for more information from the vendors or to register. You can always go to my webpage for classes, as well-- www.hatshatshats.com/classes.htm .

Sept. 19-20: Mendocino Art Center (Mendocino, CA)--Crowns and Brims: Hatmaking Survey
Oct. 9-11: TLD Designs (Chicago, IL)--Blockmaking; Blocking Felt: Capelines and Hoods
Oct. 26-28: Arrowmont School of Art and Craft (Gatlinburg, TN)--Hats That Felt Good: Retro Hats From Flat Felt

Please check with the venues for registration information. You can contact me at jan@hatshatshats.com or leave a 'comment' here on the blog about class content. I'll get back to you ASAP.

The 2010 schedule is being put together now. However, a few are already listed. Those of you in the Washington, DC, area--I'll be at The Torpedo Factory (Art League School) in very early January. Howz about asking for a millinery Christmas present??

More 2010 millinery classes to be posted as they are confirmed. May be a few surprises in the mix!!

Happy hat making!

Hat Show in Chicago--Millinery Education Week

Calling all milliners! You are hereby invited to participate in an annual Hat Show at TLD Designs in Chicago. Put on your Thinking Caps (um, Hats) and create some beauties to exhibit. The show always takes place in October, as an introduction to TLD's Millinery Education Week...actually two weeks if you are counting. Here's the entry information www.tlddesigns.com/entry.htm .



There are entries from those just getting started and some from callused millinery fingers, but it is a great way to have a wide demographic in the Chicago area see your work. So don't be shy about entering. You might just win 'Best in Show'!



The list of classes to be taught at Millinery Education Week hasn't been posted yet, but you'll want to keep a watch at TLD's website www.tlddesigns.com/ or on my website www.hatshatshats.com/classes.htm for updates.