In August, while finishing off my first Bridal headpiece, Dee Woods of Nova Radio fame (aka my sisters friend!) contacted me about making a hat for her mother. Dee was getting married in October and her mum was having ‘a mare’ trying to find the perfect headpiece for her outfit so they wanted my help! Initially the terms ‘fascinator’ and ‘something small’ were bandied about, but I had a strong feeling that that just wasn’t going to cut it. Some say the mother of the bride is the second most important person at a wedding. What she wears therefore is the second most scrutinised outfit! So, if ever there’s a time to wear something extravagant, something to make a statement, the day of your daughters wedding is the day. It took a lot of convincing but I managed bring Sheelagh, the brides mother,  around to my way of thinking.

This design was my most ambitious project to date. The shape I was trying to replicate was one that’s usually mass produced by large, steam presses in factories so figuring out how to do this by hand was my first challenge. I ended up carving my own hat block to make the form and then layering the material to achieve the desired curved effect. I finished the hat with my very first handmade satin flowers and a long mauve quill which completed the hat. The result was a purple and cream hat that perches on the side of the head with satin flowers on the underside with the quill above, creating a sweeping curve that gives the hat a feeling of movement and life.

Considering her initial reservations about wearing anything bigger than your standard fascinator, I was chuffed that I’d managed to convince her to wear something considerably bigger and braver. Most importantly I think I managed to create something that she was both comfortable wearing but that also ensured she looked the part as mother of the bride. Let me know what you think!

Joe, a friend of mine, who has shown interest in my new hat-making venture from day one, e-mailed me one day out of the blue and asked if I’d make a hat for his fiance… as a surprise! They were going to a wedding at the end of September and he wanted to surprise her with a beautiful hat! No pressure so! It was hard to know how to go about it. I’d only met her once briefly and didn’t have a clue what her style was or what she’d like. At the very least Joe had sent me on photos of the dress she was planning to wear and some pictures of her in hats she’d previously worn. The dress (or so I could tell from the photo) was a baby pink, crepe, chiffon dress with a black sash around the waist. I decided to make a petit, black sinamay hat with a baby pink, chiffon underlay. I feel black at times can be quite harsh, so the touch of pink intended to soften it and bring out the colours in the dress. I thought it should be classic and restrained, but also elegant and, as always, feminine. I kept it simple, making a series of overlapping curves, suspended over the pink base and finished with a large, black satin rose and two baby pink reeds looped around the outside. I was really happy with the end result, but would she like it? Thankfully, I was able to present it to her, so I could see for myself. I watched her face as she opened the box, and then the tissue paper. What would she say? How would she react? When she was finally able to see it, her eyes lit up and I could tell she was really pleased with it! There were ooohs and ahhs and compliments were flying. She was delighted and I was relieved! A few days after the wedding I got a text message from her just to tell me how much she loved it, and that her mum did too! So much so, that come their own wedding in the new year, I may be called upon again! So, watch this space!

In August I began work on my first bridal headpiece. Anna, my friends sister heard that I was making hats and commissioned me to make her headpiece for her wedding in September. I was thrilled and excited to be asked and so we set to work. When we met, I realised that she was a very organised bride! She had a mood board of all the hats and hairpieces she’d been looking at and had her shoes and jewellery already picked out which made my job a whole lot easier.

She wanted something a little bit different. Something colourful, possibly floral but definitely soft. We picked a fabric and with an idea in mind of what she liked I started experimenting with the floaty, satin fabric. It was a challenge at first as the fabric was so light, but I found a way to work it and it began to take shape. She had also given me a sample of the material being used in her dress and she was delighted that I was able to incorporate  it into the piece.

The result was a coral and ivory, floral piece that sat in the side of her hairstyle. I also made two smaller, miniature versions and embellished a set of hair grips with pearls. When all the little, separate pieces were placed in her hair it looked like her hair had been sprinkled with pearls and soft, satin flowers. The idea was that it would all look organic and natural and earthy, but still feminine and colourful. I think we achieved our objective… Let me know what you think!

A massive congratulations to Anna and Steve! You make a beautiful couple!  I wish you a lifetime of happiness together!

x

O

The Galway Races. What can I say? An experience. I was totally unprepared for the madness. From extreme class and style to extreme… well, lack of class and style. It’s a strange thing to see in the early afternoon, young girls, caked in fake tan, drunk beyond belief, 5 inch platform heels in hand stumbling around on broken plastic cups next to extremely wealthy, ladies decked out in the finest designer labels, sipping glasses of champagne at 50euro a pop. I have to say I was a little overwhelmed… Not only was the place thronging with people, but each person there was making a massive effort to stand out from the crowd. It was hard to step back and see who actually looked good. It was all a blur of colours, facinators, feathers  and high heels! Nonetheless, I made my contribution to the style parade. I wore a demure, red and black number (courtesy of my sister, Maria) and put my latest creation to the test; a hat I like to describe as an ‘homage’ to Minnie Mouse.

I was accompanied by another lovely Duggan girl, this time Monica, who looked amazing in her black and white check, vintage dress with matching vintage hat. While all the ‘best dressed’ ladies hovered around the judges, waiting to be spotted, we decided to make the most of the (wet, wild, windy and predictably, unpredictable Irish) day and actually place a few bets and watch the real beauties make their way around the course.

Even though I went unnoticed by the style brigade, didn’t win a single bet or meet a handsome, rich horse breeder, I thoroughly enjoyed the day. To get the opportunity to wear my most statement piece to date was a thrill and something I will definitely be doing again.

During the summer, I took a trip down to Killarney to visit my friend Helena and go to the races. We tested out a few of my hats and soaked up the glorious scenery of Killarney. Wearing a hot-pink and black, disc-shaped hat, Helena turned a few heads…

Some images of things I’ve been working at recently. Would love to get feedback!

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On Sunday 1st July I made my way to The Dubai Duty Free Derby Festival at the Curragh with my mum, sister and brother in law. I hadn’t been to the races since I was a child so didn’t know what to expect but I was bowled over by the extravagance and style! The Ladies had gone all out! I had decided to wear what I thought was one of my ‘bolder’ headpieces, but I quickly realised that ‘bold’ in racing terms is something quite different…

Anyway, the reason I went was to participate in The Who Wants To Be A Milliner competition run by Brendan Courtney (see previous post). After seeing the standard of hats around I was pretty sure that I didn’t stand a chance but I’d come all that way, so I decided to throw my name into the hat (no pun intended).

We spent the next hour or so in The Style Tent with the finalists for The Ultimate Ladies Day competition. All previous winners of other ladies days were in attendance to try become Queen of all ladies days! There were some amazing outfits, and a number of Philip Treacy hats in the mix too.

Around 3 o’clock I noticed a surge of hats enter the room – my competition had entered. It was time. Standing to one side, toward the back, I surveyed the room wondering who’d get called out as winners of The Curragh heat… There were a lot of beautiful hats, and a lot of hopeful faces. Needless to say I was stunned and thrilled when they called my name! Okay so I didn’t win, but I came third!

The ladies that followed looked fabulous and were wearing stunning hats, so I was delighted to be up on the stage along side them! Brendan Courtney came on then, who’s lovely by the way, and we were snapped.

It was such an incredible boost! The other two finalists are professional milliners and I since discovered that the milliner who won is a bit of a regular feature at race meets, she’s always winning Best Dressed and Best Hat so I was in good company.

So what next?… Well, I guess I have to keep going! If that wasn’t a vote of confidence, I don’t know what is! I’m going to try make it to some more racing festivals over the summer, get some exposure and make as many hats as I can.

I’ve attached some pictures of the day. Also check out The Who Wants To Be A Milliner Facebook page. I’m on it!

Well, I do!

Planning to enter this competition on the Sunday… Wish me luck!

Who Wants To Be A Milliner

Here’s a sample of some of my pieces. More to come soon…

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