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They recently made a short video to promote a subscription offer for HATalk, and I was thrilled to see Catherine in it wearing a Drake fedora! Over the years, Catherine and Owen have purchased several hats from me for themselves, which I take as a huge compliment considering how many hats they must see everyday. Here's the video.
Showing posts with label hat blocks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hat blocks. Show all posts
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Drake in Video
I've written several posts on the subject of hat blocks and the total brilliance of my block maker, Guy Morse Brown Hat Blocks. Not only do they offer the best quality hat blocks around, but the owners Owen and Catherine Morse Brown also super nice people, and supportive of hobby hat makers and professional milliners by offering information and instruction through their newsletter, HATalk, and their series of educational ebooks and DVDs.
They recently made a short video to promote a subscription offer for HATalk, and I was thrilled to see Catherine in it wearing a Drake fedora! Over the years, Catherine and Owen have purchased several hats from me for themselves, which I take as a huge compliment considering how many hats they must see everyday. Here's the video.
They recently made a short video to promote a subscription offer for HATalk, and I was thrilled to see Catherine in it wearing a Drake fedora! Over the years, Catherine and Owen have purchased several hats from me for themselves, which I take as a huge compliment considering how many hats they must see everyday. Here's the video.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Customer Question: A Bit About Blocks
I was recently asked about my hat shapes by a customer, who noticed that my mine are different from other hats they've seen on the market. There's a good reason for that: mine are different, and here's why.
Except for a few hand-draped pieces, all of my hats are made using hat blocks. A hat block is a mold made of wood that you stretch felt over to create the shape of the hat. If you'd like a better idea of how this works, see this great video made at the Stephen Jones Millinery workshop. They are using two layers of fabric material instead of felt, but otherwise it's a very similar process to how I use my blocks.
I like this video because, although the process has been edited down from many hours to just a few minutes for illustration, in watching it you can get an idea of all the laborious hand work that goes into making a single hat.
As you can see in the video, the resulting hat is the exact size and shape of the blocks. So, except in the case of draped hats (in which the felt is sculpted by hand like clay, instead of stretched over a block for shaping), a separate block is required for each shape and size to be made. For example, in order to offer a full range of adult sizes for sized hats, as many as eight (or more) blocks are needed in different sizes but an identical shape, and that only creates that one style. More styles require further sets of blocks. In practice, most hats require two blocks for each size, one for the crown (the top of the hat), and another for the brim. As you can imagine, this adds up, and if you're inclined to collect them, blocks can easily take up a lot of storage space and tools budget. But because I want to offer my customers unique styles that cannot be purchased from other hat makers, I've made collecting carefully designed, skillfully made unique blocks a priority for my business.
Over the past few years I've amassed an extensive collection of blocks. Although most of the blocks available on the market are standard, rather generic shapes available to any hat maker, with very few exceptions, all of the block shapes I use are one-of-a-kind and not to be found elsewhere. A few of my blocks are unusual, hand-carved antiques that I've found here and there, and therefore unique because of their scarcity, but most were custom made exclusively for me by Guy Morse Brown Hat Blocks in the UK. Their ever-expanding catalog of standard styles has many interesting shapes, and their quality and craftsmanship is top-notch. Over the past few years, I've commissioned many original block designs from GMB, they do an incredible job of bringing my ideas to life, I can't recommend them highly enough to anyone interested in buying blocks from their catalog or as custom pieces.
Except for a few hand-draped pieces, all of my hats are made using hat blocks. A hat block is a mold made of wood that you stretch felt over to create the shape of the hat. If you'd like a better idea of how this works, see this great video made at the Stephen Jones Millinery workshop. They are using two layers of fabric material instead of felt, but otherwise it's a very similar process to how I use my blocks.
I like this video because, although the process has been edited down from many hours to just a few minutes for illustration, in watching it you can get an idea of all the laborious hand work that goes into making a single hat.
As you can see in the video, the resulting hat is the exact size and shape of the blocks. So, except in the case of draped hats (in which the felt is sculpted by hand like clay, instead of stretched over a block for shaping), a separate block is required for each shape and size to be made. For example, in order to offer a full range of adult sizes for sized hats, as many as eight (or more) blocks are needed in different sizes but an identical shape, and that only creates that one style. More styles require further sets of blocks. In practice, most hats require two blocks for each size, one for the crown (the top of the hat), and another for the brim. As you can imagine, this adds up, and if you're inclined to collect them, blocks can easily take up a lot of storage space and tools budget. But because I want to offer my customers unique styles that cannot be purchased from other hat makers, I've made collecting carefully designed, skillfully made unique blocks a priority for my business.
Over the past few years I've amassed an extensive collection of blocks. Although most of the blocks available on the market are standard, rather generic shapes available to any hat maker, with very few exceptions, all of the block shapes I use are one-of-a-kind and not to be found elsewhere. A few of my blocks are unusual, hand-carved antiques that I've found here and there, and therefore unique because of their scarcity, but most were custom made exclusively for me by Guy Morse Brown Hat Blocks in the UK. Their ever-expanding catalog of standard styles has many interesting shapes, and their quality and craftsmanship is top-notch. Over the past few years, I've commissioned many original block designs from GMB, they do an incredible job of bringing my ideas to life, I can't recommend them highly enough to anyone interested in buying blocks from their catalog or as custom pieces.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
New Hat Style: Yvette
Inspired by the quirky, asymmetrical 'doll' hats popular just before and during World War II, this slightly mini top hat shape is shorter on one side and taller on the other, with the brim canted at the opposite angle, and the crown tilts forward like a little Alice in Wonderland teacake about to topple over.
I made this sample in a gorgeous charcoal gray fur felt with black and gray ribbon trim.
Dressed up with peacock sword feathers, dyed to match the felt and curled into spirals.
I've been collecting vintage hats for almost 25 years and my all-time favorite was made by a Parisian Milliner named Yvette Delort: a little late-1930s 'doll' top hat that is asymmetrical, has a ruched silk lining and a silk plush exterior (rare for the period), and is entirely hand-sewn. This hat has seen better days, is a bit squashed and rubbed around the edges, but it's my Velveteen Rabbit of hats: a little pal, my millinery mascot, bursting with personality. If my house was burning down, it's one of maybe 10 things I would try to grab on my way out the door. The more I learn about hat making and the more I look at this hat, the details and fine workmanship that went into it, the more I'm convinced that the person who designed it was a genius.
Here's a photo of the lovely young Mlle. Delort looking gorgeous wearing one of her own creations, circa 1931.
Yvette Delort opened her shop in Paris in 1930, and there are a handful of references to her in the fashion magazine L'officiel de le Mode from the 1930s. I suspect that she probably was working in someone else's millinery shop before that, given the Victorian or Edwardian characteristics of the hat (the way the lining is sewn together, the materials chosen, etc.), she obviously learned the trade and traditional techniques from other milliners of long standing. She was clearly still working through the 1930s-- my hat's shape is spot-on for the particular style of 'doll hats' that were popular right before the war-- but as yet, I have found no trace of Yvette Delort after the late 1930s. Perhaps she was one of the many French fashion workers who closed up shop at the start of the German occupation in 1940, and like a large number of them, wasn't able to recover enough financially to resume her business after the war was over.
So, I wanted to create a hat inspired by my little vintage favorite and the lady who made it, and turned to my custom hat block maker, Owen Morse Brown at Guy Morse Brown Hat Blocks, to design a set of blocks in the same vein. As usual, GMB came through for me with a fantastic work of art. Owen is as talented as all get-out. The 'Yvette' is not an exact copy of the vintage Delort hat, but an homage to it. I'm looking forward to experimenting with the 'Yvette' blocks to make hats in lots of colors and different types of felt (I'm planning one for myself in pea-green for daywear). While it is still a mini hat, it's a bit larger (in terms of head size) that the 'Belle Epoch' mini top hat that's been my best seller, and only half as tall. It should work better as a cross-over day-to-night hat than some of my other, more costume-y styles.
More photos coming soon, it looks even more striking in shiny long-napped 'beaver' felt!
ADS Hats has the charcoal gray one pictured in stock, and Dark Garden has one in black long-napped fur felt with black trim for sale right now.
I made this sample in a gorgeous charcoal gray fur felt with black and gray ribbon trim.
Dressed up with peacock sword feathers, dyed to match the felt and curled into spirals.
I've been collecting vintage hats for almost 25 years and my all-time favorite was made by a Parisian Milliner named Yvette Delort: a little late-1930s 'doll' top hat that is asymmetrical, has a ruched silk lining and a silk plush exterior (rare for the period), and is entirely hand-sewn. This hat has seen better days, is a bit squashed and rubbed around the edges, but it's my Velveteen Rabbit of hats: a little pal, my millinery mascot, bursting with personality. If my house was burning down, it's one of maybe 10 things I would try to grab on my way out the door. The more I learn about hat making and the more I look at this hat, the details and fine workmanship that went into it, the more I'm convinced that the person who designed it was a genius.
Here's a photo of the lovely young Mlle. Delort looking gorgeous wearing one of her own creations, circa 1931.
Yvette Delort opened her shop in Paris in 1930, and there are a handful of references to her in the fashion magazine L'officiel de le Mode from the 1930s. I suspect that she probably was working in someone else's millinery shop before that, given the Victorian or Edwardian characteristics of the hat (the way the lining is sewn together, the materials chosen, etc.), she obviously learned the trade and traditional techniques from other milliners of long standing. She was clearly still working through the 1930s-- my hat's shape is spot-on for the particular style of 'doll hats' that were popular right before the war-- but as yet, I have found no trace of Yvette Delort after the late 1930s. Perhaps she was one of the many French fashion workers who closed up shop at the start of the German occupation in 1940, and like a large number of them, wasn't able to recover enough financially to resume her business after the war was over.
So, I wanted to create a hat inspired by my little vintage favorite and the lady who made it, and turned to my custom hat block maker, Owen Morse Brown at Guy Morse Brown Hat Blocks, to design a set of blocks in the same vein. As usual, GMB came through for me with a fantastic work of art. Owen is as talented as all get-out. The 'Yvette' is not an exact copy of the vintage Delort hat, but an homage to it. I'm looking forward to experimenting with the 'Yvette' blocks to make hats in lots of colors and different types of felt (I'm planning one for myself in pea-green for daywear). While it is still a mini hat, it's a bit larger (in terms of head size) that the 'Belle Epoch' mini top hat that's been my best seller, and only half as tall. It should work better as a cross-over day-to-night hat than some of my other, more costume-y styles.
More photos coming soon, it looks even more striking in shiny long-napped 'beaver' felt!
ADS Hats has the charcoal gray one pictured in stock, and Dark Garden has one in black long-napped fur felt with black trim for sale right now.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Full Size Top Hats Coming Soon
Working now with my custom hat block maker on a new design for full size top hats, based on the 'D'Orsay' top hat that was popular circa late 1800s-1930. This will be a hat block style exclusive to House of Nines Design. With time for prototyping, I should be ready to roll them out in 4-8 weeks.
Here are some of the images I've been using as inspiration for the D'Orsay.
Vaudeville!
More Vaudeville: San Franciscans Bert Williams and George Walker.
Victorian equestriennes.
The immortal Marlene Dietrich.
The incomparable Josephine Baker.
Fun during the Belle Epoch.
There was so much variety in top hats during the 19th century.
The famous 'Butterfly Dandy", Comte Robert de Montesquiou (by Boldini).
Una, Lady Troubridge (by Romaine Brooks).
Yes, I know there were no actual hats in either of these last two pictures. It's all in the attitude.
Add a little voodoo.
And now, for some vintage hats.
German circa 1920.
This one was listed on ebay a while back as having belonged to a 'Hudson Bay' American Indian chief circa 1890. I don't know about the authenticity of that assertion, but it sure is cool.
Here are some of the images I've been using as inspiration for the D'Orsay.
Vaudeville!
More Vaudeville: San Franciscans Bert Williams and George Walker.
Victorian equestriennes.
The immortal Marlene Dietrich.
The incomparable Josephine Baker.
Fun during the Belle Epoch.
There was so much variety in top hats during the 19th century.
The famous 'Butterfly Dandy", Comte Robert de Montesquiou (by Boldini).
Una, Lady Troubridge (by Romaine Brooks).
Yes, I know there were no actual hats in either of these last two pictures. It's all in the attitude.
Add a little voodoo.
And now, for some vintage hats.
German circa 1920.
This one was listed on ebay a while back as having belonged to a 'Hudson Bay' American Indian chief circa 1890. I don't know about the authenticity of that assertion, but it sure is cool.
Monday, August 30, 2010
More Blocks on the Way
Another shipment of hat blocks is arriving from Guy Morse Brown Hat Blocks today! It contains multiple sizes of my new trilby and bowler blocks. I can't wait till it gets here! After it arrives, I'm just waiting to receive one more set of crowns, and the set for fall hat styles will be complete.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Men's Hats Progress
A few days ago I received the first shipment of custom hat blocks in men's styles that I ordered for my Fall/Winter 2010 collection from Guy Morse Brown Hat Blocks. I can't say enough about GMB, they are fantastic people to work with and the quality of their products is unbeatable. The process of discussing and working out the designs, having them made and shipped has taken a few months, but the results are well worth it.
Over the last few days, I've been trying out all the blocks on so-so felt, just to see test the shapes. Everything is turning out great so far. To get started, I only ordered blocks in my sample size (23"). I finished the first sample made in *good* felt last night, in time for my husband John to wear it out on the town. It's a stingy brim bowler in flecked charcoal gray hairy felt, with charcoal edging and a slate blue band. It's pretty foxy, if I may say so, and John got a lot of compliments from guys asking where they could get one like it. So I must be on the right track! I'll also be making a trilby, a homburg, and possibly a boater and/or a little jazzman hat.
Some of the blocks need minor adjustments, and I've placed an order for additional sizes in everything. I'm guessing I should have the full set in hand and ready for production in about a month or so, GMB willing. Photos and the catalog should probably be ready in September. I'm trying to 'catch up' with a normal designer schedule, and to have each seasonal collection ready to show several months ahead (Spring/Summer in January, Fall/Winter in May), so as soon as I have the Fall/Winter catalog out I'm going to have to immediately turn around and start on Spring/Summer 2011...
Over the last few days, I've been trying out all the blocks on so-so felt, just to see test the shapes. Everything is turning out great so far. To get started, I only ordered blocks in my sample size (23"). I finished the first sample made in *good* felt last night, in time for my husband John to wear it out on the town. It's a stingy brim bowler in flecked charcoal gray hairy felt, with charcoal edging and a slate blue band. It's pretty foxy, if I may say so, and John got a lot of compliments from guys asking where they could get one like it. So I must be on the right track! I'll also be making a trilby, a homburg, and possibly a boater and/or a little jazzman hat.
Some of the blocks need minor adjustments, and I've placed an order for additional sizes in everything. I'm guessing I should have the full set in hand and ready for production in about a month or so, GMB willing. Photos and the catalog should probably be ready in September. I'm trying to 'catch up' with a normal designer schedule, and to have each seasonal collection ready to show several months ahead (Spring/Summer in January, Fall/Winter in May), so as soon as I have the Fall/Winter catalog out I'm going to have to immediately turn around and start on Spring/Summer 2011...
Monday, April 26, 2010
Tons More Hat Block Photos on Flickr
For all you milliners out there, I've just posted another couple of hundred photos of hat blocks on my flickr page.
Here are a few of my favorites.
Robin Hood:
Another Batman:
A balaclava block(!!):
Here are a few of my favorites.
Robin Hood:
Another Batman:
A balaclava block(!!):
Sunday, February 28, 2010
New Hat Blocks Photos
I've just posted another group of photos of hat blocks to flickr. Here are some of my favorites. Follow this link for the full set.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
New Hat Block Photos on Flickr
I recently posted a big batch of photos of hat blocks on flickr. Here are a couple of my favorites. Follow this link to see more.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Wayne Wichern's Hat Block Sale
For anyone interested in buying hat-making equipment, Wayne Wichern is selling a large collection of hat blocks! Check it out on his website.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Wayne Wichern, Milliner
Last weekend I took a 3-day felt and straw blocking workshop with fantastic milliner Wayne Wichern. Wayne is a spectacular teacher- knowledgeable, generous, patient, thorough, plus just a nice person. Here's a photo of Wayne at work.
He has a lovely millinery studio in Redwood City, filled with amazing supplies and equipment- if you're a gear hound like me, it's irresistible. The size of his block collection was astounding- the closet through the doorway to the right is chock full of blocks, also:
I was too busy blocking my heart out to take more photos than these, but here are photos of a couple of the hats I made during the class. I've got several more to put the finishing touches on and will post photos of those as they're ready.
I made this straw hat to wear to the upcoming Gatsby Picnic. The crown is one of many kooky 1930s blocks Wayne has collected. Very Ninotchka. Hopefully I'll finish the matching dress in time to wear to the event(!):
Here's a pirate tricorn in straw. I'll be selling these on Etsy soon. Maybe I'll add some feathers.
This one has been christened "The Lisa" for my friend Lisa Connelly (of the petite fashion blog Serafina), because she has dibs on the next one I make. I own the crown, but need to find a similar brim, then I'll be selling them on Etsy also:
Wayne also teaches courses in sewing and millinery at Cañada College and the Sewing Workshop. I highly recommend him!!
He has a lovely millinery studio in Redwood City, filled with amazing supplies and equipment- if you're a gear hound like me, it's irresistible. The size of his block collection was astounding- the closet through the doorway to the right is chock full of blocks, also:
I was too busy blocking my heart out to take more photos than these, but here are photos of a couple of the hats I made during the class. I've got several more to put the finishing touches on and will post photos of those as they're ready.
I made this straw hat to wear to the upcoming Gatsby Picnic. The crown is one of many kooky 1930s blocks Wayne has collected. Very Ninotchka. Hopefully I'll finish the matching dress in time to wear to the event(!):
Here's a pirate tricorn in straw. I'll be selling these on Etsy soon. Maybe I'll add some feathers.
This one has been christened "The Lisa" for my friend Lisa Connelly (of the petite fashion blog Serafina), because she has dibs on the next one I make. I own the crown, but need to find a similar brim, then I'll be selling them on Etsy also:
Wayne also teaches courses in sewing and millinery at Cañada College and the Sewing Workshop. I highly recommend him!!
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