Archive for May, 2010

I wanted to show how one Hat Shaper can change like a chameleon with little effort. By learning how to design your own frames you can make hats any way you want to. I purchased a Hat Shaper they call a Bell Cloche. First I designed and made a buckram frame exactly like the Shaper. You can learn [...]

This Raspberry Pink Velvet Cloche is my gift to my sister Norma. This week I decided to work on two special hat gifts, one for Dr Siddiqui which is on my last Post and one for my sister Norma. I wanted to share my hat talent with her for two reasons. The first because she [...]

A labor of love and gratitude. At the end of 2009 I researched specialists because I had decided it was time to do something about my situation. I knew there was a problem, but not what it was for sure. The doctor in England had been very helpful when I went to see her in [...]

Time to turn up the brim on one side.  I designed this hat to be worn on the wearers head at an slight turned down angle opposite the turned up brim. This cloche is my forth hat to complete and once again I wanted to change things up. Before I started my brim, I thought about [...]

Change it up again! I manipulated the brim to turn down more on both sides and up at the back. I have been studying Bell Cloche hats in my books of Hat history and notice how many hats have the same basic influence but are changed up by designers. I had been thinking about manipulating [...]

Learn to make this hat stand.  This hat is featured in my blog ‘Embroidered Bell Cloche’ May 18th 2010.  Since I began Millinery, I have studied Hat Stands, both vintage and new. Vintage stands look more like candlesticks except the tops are flat with rounded down edges. The newer stands on the Internet are made [...]

Time to change things up! I decided to change up the brim of the cloche and make it smaller.  By using leopard skin fabric, it moved the hat into the modern era.   The brim in the front is smaller than the embroidered cloche in my last blog.   Now you can see that I left very [...]

My Bell Cloche Hat.  I used four skills making this hat.  First, pattern making.  Second writing.  You can now buy my first millinery book and learn how to design your own hats.  Third millinery and trimming and last Victorian ribbon embroidery.  What is a Bell Cloche Hat you may ask? It is a style of hat that [...]

Announcing my first designing book about hat making. ORDER YOURS NOW! This Bell Cloche buckram hat was made using a Hat Shaper.  Turn this…   ….into this!   …or this! See my blog ‘Lace Hat Experiment’ May 3rd 2010. Attention!  Learn how to make your own hats using any Hat Block or Hat Shaper. I know [...]

Today I decided to finish my second lace hat experiment before going back to the hospital tomorrow. Part of the surgery I went through nine weeks ago, needs a bit of fixing, so hopefully it won’t take a lot of time out from my work and I will at last be back to normal. Thank [...]