Vintage Hat Pins, The Millinery Competition, Etc.

I was out all day yesterday, running various errands.  I finally ended up at my favorite local thrift shop where I found the five vintage hat pins in the images.  I had seen them several times before.  They started out in the boutique, and since they didn't sell they were kicked out of the boutique and landed in with the regular stuff.  Lucky me because I purchased the five pins for $12, the longest pin being 10 1/2 inches long.


The little vintage child singer sewing machine (ca. 1951) is something that I always wanted.  I picked it up in an antique store a few years back. It was perfect when I purchased it; it came in its original box with a book and everything.  So I put it up in a closet hidden away, but I would always hear my grandmother's voice, "If you don't use it, some other woman will."  So, when my granddaughter became old enough to lift the machine, I gave it to her.  In my grandmother's house there were no special dishes or silverware, etc., that was reserved for special occasions or special people.  She believed that things should be used by those she loved and not saved for others, or the next wife if there should ever be a next wife.  My grandfather had his thing also.  He vowed that his  grandchildren would always sit at the table and eat when everyone else ate.  In other words we would not eat after the preacher (or any adult) ate, if the preacher was a guest.  Apparently, my grandfather had bad memories of preachers eating up all of the little food his family had and the children going hungry.  Apparently preachers did a lot of traveling and eating back in those days.

I'm Resuming My Rigorous Routine!

After a serious car accident, I'm finally ready to resume life as usual, although I don't think my body or mind will ever be the same.  Not having a car for months limited my ventures, and long walks bothered my back.  Well I'm ready to resume some serious hooping, regardless of the pain, and to travel further away from home to find more goodies like those above, although I'm still suffering from shell shock.  So, watch out world!

The Millinery Competition

Th final day for getting your millinery entries in are near, August 15, 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time.  So, please make sure that you have followed all of the guidelines for the competition--you must be a follower of this site, etc.  I don't want to disqualify anyone after they have put in all of their hard work.  Also, and very important, if your screen name is different from your given name, you must let me know; otherwise I will not be able to identify you.  For rules and guidelines, please visit the posts below.

Thanks and Good Luck!

Oh No! Not Another Post on Millinery Buckram Foundation Material!

 

Hi all!  Rather than trying to figure out what to post next, I've decided to take advantage of some of the images I've taken over the past weeks and months.  So, I'll share with you the last buckram frame I made and once again give some of the reasons I think buckram is a great foundation material.  After all, it hasn't last a couple of hundred years because of its looks.  Lastly, I'll share a image of some of the last hat blocks I acquired.

Depending on when we entered into the millinery scene will determine our affection for and choice of millinery materials.  For me, it's buckram and finely woven parasisal (replaced with inferior grades).  For my millinery instructors it was willow, also referred to as espartre in some portions of the world. They spoke of willow as if they they were speaking of fine wine or exquisite diamonds.

When it comes to millinery foundation materials, my knowledge is limited to my exposure to it, including the successes I've had with it.  So here are a few reasons I prefer buckram over most other foundation materials:

It is a natural fiber:  So what's so good about buckram being made from natural fibers?  Well with the number of ladies I see fanning themselves these days, I think some of you know one reason.  Light natural materials breath and they allow you to breath.  Enough said.

It is light in weight:  One of my millinery teachers, Mrs. Eloise King, would always say that, "A hat should be as light as a feather."  Well buckram with its mesh construction delivers this lightness.

It is easy to sew through:  Although buckram frame edges are covered with crinoline (the fabric) or another thin bias cut material for the purpose of attaching fabrics to the frame, sewing through any portion of the frame proves to be an easy task.

It sticks to itself:  Now this is a big one!  Some don't realize this, or they do realize it but they don't take advantage of this property.  The reason I know it is because when it comes to those deep brims and concave crowns, some reach for the spray adhesive or some other type of adhesive.  Although this adhesive property does not work on all materials or for all situations, it works on the majority.  Further, you would only use this property depending on the fabric and the finished effect you would like to achieve.  I can't tell you the hell I would go through before I finally figured out how to take advantage of the buckram-sticky-thing when working with really deep cuff brims.  I'll also say that I absolutely hate when I see the underside of a hat brim falling and not hugging its underside (top or bottom), as if it was the lining falling from the top of an old 1954 Chevy.  I just want to shout, "WILL YOU FIX THAT THING!"  None of the hats here have any type of adhesive on them thanks to the flexibility of good old buckram.  I'm not against adhesives; they've always been used in millinery--yes even couture millinery.  I'm just not too fun of glue guns, but that's my issue..  

It can be used to construct flat patterned frames:  Not much explanation needed here, except that the frames can be as simple or as complex as needed to be.

It can be used to capture any hat block or object shape (molded frames):  Yes, any!  I mentioned this above.  The hat form (frame) to your right was molded over a wooden bowl.  It was used to construct the hat in my previous post.  You may also remember the post I made on the Draped Vase Hat.  The hat frame used for that hat was blocked over a ceramic vase, using one piece of buckram.  The frame to your right was constructed using multiple bias strips.  The way you construct your frame depends on your mood, your preference, and/or the type of fabric you use to cover your frame with, and it also depends on the complexity of the object you are constructing your frame on.
No matter what the shape is, you can always get buckram to conform to that shape.  You don't have to stitch it, and you don't even have to tie it down.  The frame above was neither stitched or tied down or pinned down.  However, you can secure the buckram if you feel you should.

It is affordable:  At 60 inches wide and coming in under $10 a yard, you can make many hats from one yard of buckram, depending on their sizes.  Remember the post "How Many Hats and Accessories Can You Make From One Yard of Fabric?"  Well, this also applies to buckram yardage.  The image to your right shows the hats I made for that post, and the video shows the accessories. By the way, all of the hats made in the video were blocked on wooden bowls, the black hat two bowls taped together to form a small crown and a brim.

If you don't live near a millinery store or ordering it over the Internet is not an option, and all you have is a fabric shop, you can you may be able find it in the upholstery section of your fabric shop, unsized; or you may be be able to find it amongst the tailoring fabrics in your fabric store, again unsized.  This means that you can size your own buckram.  If you can't find unsized buckram, one of the cotton upholstery or tailoring fabrics can be sized and used exactly in the same manner as millinery buckram if you don't have access to it.  But I will speak on this in another post.  We don't live in a perfect world so we must make the one we live in work for us.


I can go on about buckram, but I don't want to bore you.  It all depends on how well you master buckranm how much you will grow to like or dislike it.  No, buckram is not the latest kid on the block.  It's not sexy; but it works, and it works well.  If you don't like it, it's probably because you haven't learned to use it to its fullest extent.   Go out there and explore the many other alternatives to buckram if you have a desire to do so and find your best fit for your millinery era.  Just have fun doing it.

Last, I thought I'd share images of a few of my latest acquired hat blocks.  If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know how much I love a bargain.  Well one of my latest bargains was the acquisition of almost a dozen blocks.  Here are six of them.  I also found another mannequin head that matches my other display head, both coming from the Salvation Army.  The blocks came from one of Mrs Essie Edwards' farmer millinery students that was hanging her hat up for good.  No matter how many blocks I pick up, the majority of my blocking occurs on bowls or utility blocks.  So you see, millinery is a very affordable craft, depending on your choice of materials and equipment. 

Tooling (Shaping) Artificial Fabric Flower Petals Without the Use of Traditional Flower Making Tools

I have been promising you a flower making tutorial for some time now.  So, I finally put something together.  This is a tutorial showing how to tool (shape) fabric flower petals without the use of expensive flower making tools.  Even the method I use for stiffening the material is not traditional, being that the petals are stiffened individually.  This is not meant to be a comprehensive tutorial on flower making, but it is, I feel, the most important aspect of it.  The rest can be figured out by observing how vintage artificial flowers or flowers founds in crafts stores are assembled.  There are many wonderful flower making books that can be found on Ebay, and other booksellers' sites.  Also, check out the free out-of-print flower making book links to your right under "Speedy Resource Access: Flower Making" on this site.

Please note that the fabric stiffener I used for this project is not the only stiffener that is used to stiffen flowers.  I used this stiffener because it better suited the fabric I was using.

Following my video is a video showing how to assemble an artificial flower. Note again, this is not the only method of assembling a flower.  Experiment, experiment, research, research, and observe.  Have fun!

P.S., Yes the flower above was made with a spoon and awl.

May 11, 20012: Last Day to Vote for Hatstruck Couture Millinery Diamond Jubilee Hat Submission

If you haven't voted for my diamond jubilee hat submission, please follow this Talenthouse link or click on the red hat in the right-hand column.  Today, May 11, is the last day to vote.  So, send me a little love by voting for my hat, "Elegant in Red."

Thanks a million,

Lee

Hatstruck Couture Millinery Diamond Jubilee Hat Submission

It is almost 5:00 a.m. and I'm exhausted.  I'm babysitting Ms. E'.  She's a one-year-old teenager, stays up all night and sleeps until midday.  I've danced to  the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song for maybe six times or more, and I've gone  through the basic colors, numbers, and shapes with her.  No she can't talk (except for momma, daddy, no, and a few other words), but she can point.  Anyway, I started this post earlier yesterday, but lost it somehow, and I dreaded doing it over again.  So here I go.

Below are a few details concerning an international millinery contest I entered.  So, if you would please, vote for me by following this Talenthouse link or by clicking on the red hat in the right-hand column.  Your vote will be greatly appreciated.  

The Details

I entered into the the international Dillon Wallwork and HATalk e-magazine millinery competition in celebration of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee--her 60 years on the throne.  The contest directive was to create a hat inspired by this wondrous event.  After a few weeks of daydreaming and purchasing materials I would never use for this contest, I finally created "Elegant in Red."

While in London in 1999 I remembered seeing Windsor Castle guards from a distance.  One of the most noticeable things, not including the enormity of the castle, was their red coats and straight backs.  From television and books I saw beautiful jewels, opulence, and elegance, all bundled up into what seemed a fairytale.  So, the hat I wanted to create had to be elegant, rich, and for me, something outside of myself--a fairytale.  I also had to represent 60 years of the Queen's reign on the throne.  I had purchased some rather nice red and blue velvet for this project, but I did not use it because I had thrown out  my original design(s).  I sketched another design and insisted to myself that this final design had to go forward because NOW!

The Final Design

As I mentioned earlier, I wanted to represent 60 years of the Queen's reign.  I didn't want to put a big 60 atop my hat because I wanted it to be a bit refined (not that she would even be caught in a dark room with it on).  I remembered from numerology that six and 60 still equaled 6.  So I sketched a stylized six and attached it to my display head.  Yes, yes that's it!  I thought.  From this point I carved a Styrofoam hat block to block my materials on.  The velvet I had purchased would not work for this project, at least not with the ease I would want it to for this shape.  With this design I needed something that was also malleable to accommodate my design.  Well, in walked Ms. Suede.  Actually she had been living with me for months and years.

I collect suede and leather scraps that are large enough to make hats.  Suede and leather are two of my  favorite materials to work with.  They can be easily shaped and manipulated, something that is not easy to do with almost non-stretch velvet.  Just a little note, I learned that leather and suede actually have a grain.  Yes, it stretches in one direction more than the another; try it.  I learned this while researching and making gloves.

I also purchased glass pearls.  Well, in one of my previous designs (I will not say how many I had) my plan was to construct an elaborate crown.  O.K., given the time I had left to make the contest entry deadline, this was just not going to happen.  Given the results of my final project, I'm  happy I didn't have the time.  So I decided to create a wire frame in the form of something.  The reason I say something is because I didn't know what I was going to construct.  All I know is that when my fingers stopped moving, I had an appropriate crown for what was to become a side-mounted cocktail hat, and atop that crown was a big diamond crystal.  Yes, I also purchased a diamond shaped crystal, but it was to be placed in that crevice you see in the bottom center of my Styrofoam block.  In that position the crystal looked horrible, but it looked fantastic atop my wire frame crown.

The Trim and Wire Fram

Although I purchased two strands of pearls in different sizes, if you will notice, I only used one pearl.  With me, less is more; less turns my head.  Actually, I've been known to put one crystal on a hat at a strategic location.  With the richness of the red suede, I had to use Swarovski crystals, but not so many as to overpower the red suede.  I wanted them to stand together equally.  I really need to take a photography class to better capture the details in my images.

For the underside of my hat I used black suede and trimmed it with crystal yardage, the same yardage I used to trim my large diamond crystal.  The crystal was supported by the wire frame crown I created, as mentioned above.  The frame was then wrapped in vintage chenille.  The wide horsehair braid complements the underside view and the outside view of the hat, yielding two themes, sort of like darkness to light.  As a child I feasted on King Arthur and Sir Lancelot novels--medieval times; that was a long time ago.  Thanks to my grandparents and aunt for letting me daydream all day, etc.  I really enjoyed this journey!

 Below is a video I've prepared showing multiple views of my hat. 





Good luck to all contest participants!

Vintage Film--Three-Way Hat, Diamond Jubilee Millinery Contest, My TUMBLR Site, Etc.

My New Blog on TUMBLR
I came across this film some time ago and thought I would share it with you. I posted the video on http://hatstruck.tumblr.com/, an interesting Web site I recently discovered. Please follow me there, as well as on my main site here.  TUMBLR is a place where I can post things fast without spending hours processing images, etc.  The content will consists of a little of my stuff and a lot of  others' creative stuff.

Millinery Contest
Wednesday/Thursday (usually if I give a day it's always the next day, since I'm a night person) I started working on a hat for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Celebration Millinery Contest (visit Talenthouse for more details). The submission day is May 3, I believe.  OK, OK, I work better under pressure.  There is a chance I may not make the deadline, but in case I do I'm asking for your support.  I think how it works is that supporters on my Talenthouse site are notified when it's time to vote, etc.  If it does not work this way, then I'll remind you to vote for me, pleaseeee.  If you are not a Talenthouse subscriber, you can subscribe to the site or you can use your Facebook account to log into the site.  To  support me in advance, visit me at http://www.talenthouse.com/hatstruck and push the support button, or something.  As you can see, I'm not a Talenthouse expert.  If I don't meet the deadline, then you will be my supporter the next time something comes around--no need to sign up again.  Thanks a million!

I'm So Sorry :(
Something else; I've promised to show you how I made the flower petals seen in my One-Yard-of-Fabric project.  I'm not stringing you along.  I've made a crude video, and director I am not.  Anyway, it's still in the can awaiting editing.  I'm still learning with this blog thing.  I thought that if I would state what post content was coming up next, I would create faster and post more often.  Well, there are 24 hours in the day, and ...well I will not continue this short-lived advance notice.  Ms. E', my granddaughter, demands her time..

Millinery Tutorial Poll Results

HATS:  HEADS AND TAILS (click on image to start video)

I asked you what types of tutorials you would like to see here, and I really appreciate those of you that took the time to participate.  I've been brainstorming ways that I could reward those of you that follow me, email me, and leave comments; so, there is a surprise coming to you very soon for your extra efforts.  Your support is greatly appreciated.  Additionally, I'm extremely passionate about couture millinery and the continued growth of this beautiful art form.

There is nothing new under the sun.  Enjoy these two vintage videos (one below also)  from the past addressing millinery trim (poll winner).  Here are the poll results:

• Buckram Frames--Flat Pattern:      7
• Buckram Frames--Blocked               6
• Straw Blocking:                                    10
• Felt Blocking:                                          8
• Millinery Trim (flowers, etc.):        13
• Other (no comments left):                  3

I estimate that 33% of my learning came from the classes I've taken over the years, and I never get tired of taking classes, if I can find them; 33% percent from books, other media, and observation; and 33% from experimentation.   In other words, I Never Stop Learning, Experimenting, and Taking Classes!  I've noticed something that's very interesting to me.  When a milliner is given lots of praise for their work and that work is in great need of improvement, in some cases that milliner ceases to grow because they grow to believe that they are as good as the hype.  So to those milliners just starting out, if your headsize ribbon is falling out of your hat; your headband does not hug the side of your hat; if your fabric (on covered hats) does not hug your hat frame like a fine glove, and it looks like you're gathering the waistband of a skirt; if you think blocking is only for felt and straws; if you spend more on glue than thread in your "couture workroom," etc, etc., please research why these things are happening.  

A second observation::  milliners with poor skills pass on their bad skills on.  Learn to tell the difference between a good and a bad milliner.  Ladies and gentlemen, there are too many fantastic milliners out their to study, past and present.  If you have learned to tell the difference between a well made dress and a poorly made dress or purse or shoes, you can learn to tell the difference between a well made hat and a poorly made one.  My work still needs plenty of improvement, and I'm not even a perfectionist!