Textures

My west coast trip turned out to be quite educational, adventurous and fruitful. I have an arsenal of photographs of different textures and I will post most of them.  These two photos are of the beautiful flora found in the parks of San Francisco. The pink flower is just like a pom-pom... giant bubble gum pom-poms on winter hats?

Textures

Stark white hallway with a bit of green. 

A pic for some wintery inspiration.

Trapper Head Case

The Eastern Block has appeared on my trend radar in the form of the super warm Trapper Hat. Years ago, I designed a few variations for, er, someone and were a success.  I love these hats because they are super warm and practical... and now better looking than ever. Go ahead... indulge:

This Jean Paul Gaultier number will have heads turning, the color is so rich; the the whole hat is just irresistible and looks like it would be fun to wear.

Striped Out of Control!

Black and white stripes, undeniably amazing! And this month they are an obsession of mine, I have bought several different versions of fabric and have about 12782468713 ideas on what to do with it all... getting to work, NOW! Here's a peek at my mood board...

Cotton Daisy

Make this: visit my page on Burda and check out the step by step instructions. Have fun and show me what you did!!!

That 70's Show of Class

When we think of the 1970's, Joan Collins usually is not the first person that pops into our minds; she is the one we regard as the epitome of 80's glamour and opulence.  The hats she wore as Alexis in Dynasty still invoke envy for many, but I digress... sort of. Only Joan Collins could take an applejack hat; the signature head-wear of impoverished newspaper boys, and turn it into fashion perfection of the 1970's. 

Haute Couture

Using the word couture loosely really pisses me off.  It really does.  There seems to be a disregard for the meaning of Haute Couture in modern fashion. 

Literal translation from french is "high dress making", so anything made in China and sold on the mass market is or should be, obviously, not labeled as couture. 

A little history:
Originally the term described the work of an Englishman, Charles Frederick Worth, who created and produced in Paris mid-nineteenth century.  Today, one has to be a member of Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture in order to apply the term to ones garments.  There are incredibly well defined rules of what it means to create a couture piece and only a few fashion houses in the world can do so.

Gowns by Charles Frederick Worth:

  To learn more about Charles Frederick Worth and see more photos of his beautiful couture dresses visit The Met Museum Website.

Lord of the Butterflies

Remember this Alexander McQueen hat? Of course you do. I can't get it out of my head, honestly! So much so that I have been searching for the perfect butterflies to call my own. I have a grand plan for the little beauties...

To Quote An Icon...

"i love the accessory for its sadomasochistic effect" -alexander mcqueen

California Coast Bound

In a few short days I will escape the concrete heat of the NYC jungle and immerse myself in the Napa Valley beauty.  So what hat does one wear to the vineyard?  Not surprisingly, there is no rule about that, and when doing a quick bit of research, there is actually no trend either. Whatever works... so again, what hat does one bring to Napa?

The sunny, warm, Meditereanean like climate calls for a classic-shape, straw sun hat of good quality. I dug into my collection of hats and found the perfect one!  A dark brown, short brimmed sun hat.

One down, will keep looking for more...

The Cloche

Part Deux

This is a hat made from my own pattern.  Stupidly however I decided to sew it in an orange cotton sateen fabric, making the hat look like a children's rain hat. It's still ok, but the production version will be made from other fabrics, which are much more appropriate to the design.