Indiana Jones and Millinery?

It happens quite frequently. I am contacted by someone who wants me to make a hat 'exactly' like one in a movie. Could be My Fair Lady, Gone With the Wind, Gigi, or...Indiana Jones?? No, not Indiana Jones himself. In this case it was to create a hat worn by the character Dr. Elsa Schneider, in a particular scene of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.





After a lengthy look for the right color and weave of straw, finding a suitable navy fabric for the under brim, making the crown block, and creating a 'toile', I was able to re-create it pretty darn close. See what you think.





Here is my client as Elsa. Scroll down to see what Elsa looked like in the movie. But if you are an Indy fan you will certainly recognize her character from my client's picture above.

Here's a full shot of her in front of a vintage train, complete with hat, bag, shoes, gloves and that smashing suit. My gosh, she does look the part! Very impressive!!

My client was wearing this outfit to a convention of Indiana Jones fans. This particular group is very interested in vintage clothes as well, so they tend to wear authentic looks from the Indiana Jones movies. The group met on an Indiana Jones fan forum and now meet in person couple of times a year. Love to run into this group in full costume in a restaurant! What fun!

Wish I had a better still from the movie, but this is about as good as I could get of the hat in the movie.

What a fun project this was! Mostly because it turned out beautifully. Whew! But I must say I get very nervous when someone wants something 'exactly' like it is in a movie, or a magazine fashion editorial. 'Exactly' is a scary word!

I always explain to clients that I'll get as close as I can without ripping someone else's work off, but it can be a problem trying to re-create something 'exactly' for several reasons other than copyright. a) We can't see the entire work at hand. Most of the time we are only seeing one side of the hat or headpiece. What does it look like in back? b) We can't be assured that the materials will be available to us. This is especially true if we are working in vintage materials. A particular straw may not even be produced any longer. c) We don't have the equipment needed. In this case I had to create the hatblock in order to get the shape of the crown that was needed for Elsa's hat.

What are your experiences?

Hat Girl Names and a Millinery Clarification

Several weeks ago I posted a blog entry about the new mannequins I acquired recently. I asked you guys to help name them and I'm pleased to announce their names today.

"(She) looks like a gal with a past. She strikes me as a former Vegas showgirl, so you better keep an eye on her and keep her in very stylish hats! She looks like a Deloris." Atlanta milliner Diane Shagott

"I think a good name for the wonderful silver head would be Luna (moon in Spanish), because it reminds me of the moon light." Spanish milliner Cristina De Prada

Thanks, ladies! They will forever be known as Deloris and Luna.

OK, now for the clarification:

In the last entry I mentioned that milliners don't use GLUE--ever. Well, I'd like to amend that. Duh. Sometimes we DO use glue. But we do NOT use glue to adhere our flowers, feathers, ribbon, labels, etc., to the hats. That would have the vast potential to ruin the embellishments as well as the hat if things don't get placed correctly the first time, something that is very easy to do. You can easily ruin the embellishments or the hat by trying to pull them apart. That is why we sew the embellishments to the hat. It allows us to get the elements (flowers, feathers, etc.) exactly where we want them without globs of glue everywhere. And we can re-use the embellishments as well as the hat if we decide to re-use them later. The very worst glue (if there is a scale) would be hot glue--yuk, strings of glue everywhere except where it might be needed!

I do use glue to make the French flowers, as you saw on a recent blog entry. And I do use glue in bridal millinery quite often. That would be most often on bridal tulle. If you are adding rhinestones or pearls to the tulle you are better off glueing them rather than trying to sew them on. Sewing makes ugly puckers in the tulle where glueing doesn't. I also use glue to secure knots in thread that doesn't hold a knot very well.

Story: Many years ago I was teaching a straw and felt blocking class and everyone was embellishing their hats at the end of the day. I had given the glue lecture earlier in the day. As everyone was busy putting flowers, feathers, ribbon and such on their hats I left the classroom for a few minutes. Upon my return I was smacked by the unmistakeable smell of hot glue. Someone had the audacity to pull out a hot glue gun in the classroom and proceed to string glue all over the place!! My reaction--I didn't say a word. The class all gave me the 'what are you going to do about it' look, but I figured this--if she was brazen enough to do just the opposite of what I had just discussed at length, then a public reprisal wasn't going to do any good whatsoever. I said not a word. Why waste my breath?

Millinery tip: Sew your embellishments and labels onto your hats. You will be able to remove them easily if needed.

Labels, Weavers and Milliners

This blog entry is actually an answer to Cristina De Prada's blog where she asked how others sew in their labels. (If you haven't checked out her blog, wait no longer! You'll be glad you clicked over.) Since I was just getting ready to put in a few, I decided to make my own blog entry about labels.



First of all, the above beret has somewhat of a story. Back in October of 2008 I had someone contact me about making a headcovering for a religious habit, of sorts. However, she needed a weaver to weave a length of fabric for not only a headcovering but a matching shawl. I contacted a group of weavers here in North Carolina (members of the Surface Design Association) to see if anyone was interested in the job. Long story short, we found someone to dye yarn then weave the fabric in the colors and weave my client needed.



I had some input as the the tightness of the weave I'd need, and the amount I'd need to make this modified beret, based on the initial picture sent by the client. Due to the fact that this handwoven fabric was particularly frayable I used a woven fusible interfacing to cut down on loose threads. It helped immensely in putting the pattern pieces together without losing shape and integrity of the fabric.




OK, so that's the story of the beret. Here is a picture of my preparations for sewing in the label. My labels are fairly simple. I have two, actually. One is white with silver metallic lettering and the other is black with gold metallic lettering. As they are long and skinny they fit nicely on the petersham ribbon inside my hats. In this case the label is sewn on the headband since there is no petersham. Both of my labels read aMuse: artisanal finery, the name of the shop.



Can you see the silver metallic thread? I've found spools of thread that are exactly the same as the lettering on the labels--gold and silver. I attach the labels with stab stitches on the ends. Well, actually the stab stitches are hidden in the scroll work that surrounds the lettering. So really you see no stitches at all!

Voila! The finished product!

And a wider shot showing the inside of the beret with its lining.

I usually don't made fabric hats. For some reason they just don't appeal to my millinery senses. Maybe it is because I was never very good at matching up notches, and seams, and getting things to look professional. But something told me to take on the project. It has been an interesting job because of the coordination between the client, the weaver, and myself. I hope she will wear it in good Faith.

Millinery Tip: Labels can be sewn in in any number of fashions. Do NOT glue in your labels!
In fact, milliners don't GLUE anything. GLUE is a four letter word in the millinery world.

WAWAS, Artists' Studios, and a New Venture for aMuse

I just recently joined a group of artists working in the same area of the city were aMuse is. The group is called the Wrightsville Avenue Working Artist Studios, WAWAS for short. Each first Friday night of the month we open our studios to the general public, have some refreshments, and allow visitors to see us in action--a studio crawl. There are a couple of fine art painters (including Deborah Cavenaugh, a nationally reknowned artist), a stained glass artist, a couple of jewelers and me...a milliner. We are a growing group since so many artists are moving into our area of Wilmington. You never know who might be joining next. This past Friday night, July 3rd, was my first Studio Crawl with the WAWAS.

I used some eye-catching blue and white balloons to draw attention to the shop. Since it was the night before the 4th of July (America's Independence Day for those of you reading internationally) I wasn't sure what kind of turnout we'd get. We did OK and I appreciate everyone who came, but I'm hoping for better turnout when we have these NOT on a holiday weekend when everyone already has plans. But a first Friday is a first Friday...can't control the calendar.

Here I am standing in the doorway to my atelier. I worked on a custom order for a client. A butterscotch colored panama that will have the crown cut away with a new celery green sewn braid crown attached.

That's my friend and one of my best customers--Carroll. Carroll has what I call 'hat sense'. She knows what to ask for in designing a new hat, is great with colors/textures/embellishments, and best of all, is not afraid to go out on a limb with her styles. We've done many hats over the years. I appreciate her patronage immensely.

One of the other WAWAS has recently moved across the street from me! How exciting!! She is a metalsmith, a jeweler. Her name is Mitzy Jonkheer and she does some great work. You can see her WAWAS' sign in front of her studio.

I'm looking forward to the next First Friday and to the many folks who will learn a little more about what goes into making a hand-made hat.

Ziabird Grand Opening/Artist's Reception--Jewelry and Hats

Last Friday night I attended the Grand Opening of a new boutique in Wilmington--Ziabird. Owner Lynn Mannock, wearing one of my free-form sinamay headpieces, not only is a jewelry maker herself, but has accumulated a wealth of local, regional, and national artists who create one-of-a-kind wearable art, most of it jewelry...amazing jewelry!



Lynn is multi-talented. She also is a film/theatrical costumer, a personal stylist, lampwork bead maker, and so on!



She also carries some of my hats, which I'm very pleased about. Normally I don't sell my hats and headpieces outside aMuse, but I was impressed by Lynn and her vision for having a venue for handcrafted pieces here in Wilmington, North Carolina.

Here I am with my friend Debra Pyeatt, a beading artist, who is represented by Ziabird and aMuse. She does very intricate work and many times incorporates some of our local seashells.
You can see some of Debra's work by clicking here.

I was asked by Lumina Station, the shopping center, to give a short interview about my work and how it is fits into Ziabird's collection. This is a shot of me yammering on--champagne glass in hand, of course. You can see one of my flat packing hats in the background.

The hat I wore for this event was one I made to wear to the opening cocktail party at the International Millinery Forum this past January, in Australia. It is a buckram piece, covered in ultraseude, with heavily veined veiling (vintage, don't ya know), and a silk, jewel encrusted trumpet flower. All this is perched on my head, and secured with a strip of the ultraseude used as a bandeau. The men loved it!

Flowermaking for Millinery and Hat Girls

Last week I had the good fortune to be offered two lovely vintage hat mannequins for my shop, aMuse: artisanal finery. I have a few vintage mannequins, but none like the ones this woman brought in for me to see. Most of mine don't have features, just the shape of a woman's head is about as defined as they get. I call them my 'hat girls.'

These new (um, vintage) 'hat girls' are just begging for names! And that's where you come in. I'd love to hear what names their unique faces suggest to you. Is it an old-fashion name like Rose, or Pearl, or Clarise? Or a more modern name like Susan, or Jessica, or Stephanie? What about exotic--Lolita?

I'll post their new names here in 30 days, on July 21! You can either leave suggestions for their names in the 'Comments' here on the blog (comments are at the end of each blog entry) or email them to me at jan@hatshatshats.com.

'Hat Girl #1' is above. She is rather alien-looking but with a sweet smile you can't really see in the picture. Her coloring---silver. Yep, silver, with a long swan neck. She'll be wearing some of the more artful hats.

'Hat Girl #2,' as seen above, is from the 1950's. She has beautiful full make-up and 'real' false eyelashes. (Did I just say 'real' false??) She has some 'Hollywood' about her too. She'll be wearing glamorous hats.

WHAT ARE THEIR NAMES??

____________________________________

OK, on to the next bit in this blog entry.

I have a bride I'm working with who wanted a silk flower in multiple shades of silk to go with her taffeta dress from Nicole Miller. A beautiful dress that has a very, very matte metallic thread running through it. Sometimes the thread shows up as silver, sometimes, gold, and sometimes coppery or even platinum. It is amazing fabric to say the least!

The flower will be coupled with a face veil of vintage silk veiling; the very fine spider webby type that is hard to come by.

Below is the flower, and I've shown some pictures of the process to get the stamens that same silver/gold/copper/platinum color.

The flower is a combo of about 5 different colors, textures of silk fabric.

I used glass glitter to change the color of the stamens. These are 'mica,' '24 carat,' and 'sterling.' Glass glitter is very different than kindergarten glitter. It is finer, less shiny, and very dramatic.

Above you will see that I've used a tiny paintbrush to cover the tips of the pearl stamens with a quick drying glue, then rolled the ends of the stamens into the mixture of glass glitter. I mixed all three of the colors to get what I thought would be best with the fabric colors in the flower as well as her dress.

Here's a picture of the stamens drying after they have been covered in glass glitter, and the various flower petals, all before being assembled.

Now scroll back up to see the finished flower again.

Millinery tip: use fast drying glue to keep your flowers from falling apart as you assemble.

Millinery Classes in Your Area?

If you are interested in knowing more about the millinery classes, please send me an email at jan@hatshatshats.com . Let me know what STATE you live in so that I can let you know if and when I'll be teaching close to you.

I look forward to hearing what skills you'd like to study too!

Technorati Profile

Atlanta Millinery Class--Blocking Straw Hoods and Capelines

This past weekend I drove down to Atlanta, Georgia, to teach a millinery class at the Spruill Art Center. I've been teaching there for the past few years and try to switch it up as to what I teach, choosing from the over 12 skill sets I teach. This sessions was entitled Sensational Summer Straws: Blocking Hoods and Capelines. We had a full (make that VERY full) class of 12!

The following pictures should show what can be learned in a short weekend of intense but fun study. All pictures are of the attendees and the hats they made from parisisal hoods and capelines using some basic crown and brim blocks. I believe in teaching almost everything you can possibly do with a capeline and hoods to made a straw hat. That leaves lots of possibility for creativity, and I think you'll agree with me that there was an over abundance of creativity in this class!

Here's half the class out in the parking lot spraying millinery sizing on their blocked (crowns only at this point) capelines. They had a choice of 4 basic crown shapes to choose from.

Meredith blocking her lilac brim. She switched crowns with another attendee for a two-toned hat. Very nice contrast of colors.

Vonda and Patrycja re-stitching their crowns to brims. There are lots of reasons you might want to cut crown away from brim. But at some point you have to re-attach them using a specialty millinery stitch.

The class had finished free-form shaping their parisisal hoods and had taken them outside to dry before heading for lunch. I was on my way to meet them when I turned the corner and saw this fabulous still life of beautifully shaped hats! I rushed back into the classroom to grab my camera because I HAD to document this splash of color. Wow! Wait 'til you see the close-ups below.

Meredith and Carole working on their hoods.

Vonda models Vicki's slate grey, tailored and beautifully simple shape.

LaJudith shows off her swirling pink creation. Very, very nice.

Andre with his smartly embellished free-form hat. A trio of multi-colored roses and a curled peacock sward made for a nice combination.

Vonda was everyone's model of choice. She's one of those ladies who looks good in every style hat she puts on. And she made some great hats of her own too.

Diane and her raspberry free-formed hat, topped with a fabulous loosely formed rose of a variety of plum colors. Diane makes smashing hats and has been a student for several years. She's been selling her hats and has done quite well for herself. Good for you, Diane!

A close-up of LaJudith's pink free-form hat. I just love the soft sweep of this hat. So simple and so stylish.

Patrycja is a Kentucky Derby attendee and wanted to make hats that will be different from the traditional ones we mostly see. I don't know if this hat will make it to next year's Run for the Roses, but I think it would be a stand-out!

Here's another view of her hat. Don't you just love it? She's added a couple of large pearls into the crevices. Only a couple of hats were actually complete enough to be embellished, but as I told the class, the embellishment can take quite a long time to do in terms of deciding what you will embellish with, how much or little, where will it be placed, etc.

Meredith wearing her sister Carole's hat that is styled like a wide-open flower. Would love to see this one once these artistic sisters get done with it!

Carole and another of her hats. Nice twists!

Rose said she was skeptical of the free-form part of the class as she identifies more with traditional big brimmed straws. But she was pleasantly surprised by what she created and was very happy with the outcome. I agree!

Take a natural colored hood, shape it by hand, add some hot pink veiling and some bleached and dyed peacock feathers, and look what you get! Love the shape of this hat, Candice.

Carole and Diane with their blocked capelines. Carole's hasn't been embellished in the picture; Diane choose a braided chain hatband and a smart polka dot bias brim edge. Love 'em, ladies!

I have to say this was one of those magical classes where everyone melded as one big happy family for the weekend. Folks were helping each other with ideas, trading materials, and having a great time. I left Atlanta inspired, exhausted, and ready to do it again soon! Happy hatmaking, Atlanta class!

Millinery classes for the remainder of 2009 can be found on my webpage www.hatshatshats.com/classes.htm .

Charleston Style Swap--Full of Fashion Folks

Last Thursday I drove down to Charleston, SC, for one of the Style Swaps aMuse: artisanal finery helps sponsor with Jess James. Luckily, I had fashion designer Amanda de Leon riding with me, and we had 3+ hours to talk fashion, fashion, fashion. Charleston has become a hotbed of fashion and style in the last few years, and it is one of my favorite cities for great shopping, history, and food besides. Always thrilled to spend some time there and this was an even more exciting trip due to the anticipation of the first Style Swap there. We weren't disappointed!

Above is a wide view of the fashionistas 'tagging' the items they want to win. There is a frantic rustling of hangers to find the most coveted items of the evening. Of course, one can always tag the designer items that are donated too. More about that later.

Above are Rachel McPherson (Style Swap Develpment), Ayoka Lucas (Style Editor with Charleston Magazine and Creative Director of Charleston Fashion Week), and Jess James (Founder of Style Swap).

On the left is Archie Burkel, Founder and President of The Hat Ladies of Charleston. If you are unfamiliar with the organization, please check them out. They believe in two tenents: you must want to give back to your community, and you must do it in a fashionable hat! Can't beat that, can you? Archie is a lovely lady and I was so pleased she came to the first Charleston Style Swap. We met several years ago and it was so good to see her again. You can't miss her...she ALWAYS wears a hat.

For the most sought after items, those tagged many, many times, the most fair and fun way to choose a winner is through a round of musical chairs. As the music comes up there's a dance line 'round the chairs, everyone having a blast and as the music ends, yes, there's a dash for the winning seat! A hoot to watch...and participate in. The designer items are always hot items!

At right is fashion designer Mary Porter of Mary Porter House of Couture on King Street. She specializes in creating special occasion, bridal, suits, and dresses. She donated a fabulous black dress to the event. One that many wanted...and one took home.

Above is Amanda de Leon, wearing one of her designs, made of screen! It was to die for! On her head is a 1920's inspired metallic lace headband, one of mine.

Ahhh, and here is Amanda's donation for the evening. A slick (literally and figuratively) black swimsuit. Very high-waisted boy pants and a one-shouldered top. Stunning without being too revealing. Loved it! So did the winner!!!

Here's the lovely lady who won the item I donated, a natural sinamay free-form styled headband with yellow, green, orange, and purple coquilles, plus some matching beading.

I very much hope that we will be able to go back to Charleston soon! Besides, they are truly a hat-wearing town. After my heart!