Sahar Freemantle Upcycled Floral Crown Metallic Hatband Tutorial Hattember Winners - Issue 178 January 2021
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Issue 178
January 2021
Sahar Freemantle
Upcycled Floral Crown
Metallic Hatband Tutorial
Hattember Winners
Issue 178
January 2021
Contents:
2 An Interview with Sahar Freemantle
We talk with the new QEST Scholar about her millinery work.
10 Hat of the Month
An upcycled Nespresso coffee capsule creation from Heads of State Millinery.
16 How to Make a Metallic Hatband
Use Bondaweb and metallic foil to create a unique hatband with Elena Shvab.
28 Hattember 2020
The winners of the annual Australian hat making competition.
33 Letter to the Editor
Advice on cutting veiling.
34 The Back Page
Book Review - Hat Couture by Marianne Jongkind.
Cover/Back Page Credits:
Sahar Freemantle in UglyLovely headpieces
Cover photo by Sean Afnan
Back Page photo by Gary Hill
1 www.hatalk.com
An Interview with
Sahar Freemantle
Image by Gary Hill
2 www.hatalk.com
Sahar Freemantle is a skilled hat to have found her own niche in the Mali, Berlin and France, and has also
designer with plenty of creative market. Her hats have been worn by been featured in The Guardian, The
flare and a penchant for exposing numerous celebrities and she has Independent, The Evening Standard
beauty in places where most made commissions for high profile and other respected publications.
struggle to find it. television and film productions.
Sahar's studio, a Dickensian treasure
Creating under her main label Her work has been exhibited at trove of millinery, trimmings and
Sahar Millinery and her sub-brand London's V&A Museum, as well as unexpected objects, is in the heart
UglyLovely, Sahar (below) seems internationally in Japan, Portugal, of London, near Piccadilly Circus.
She meets her clients there by
appointment, offering personalised
fittings and consultations, and also
holds pop-up hat shops in other
parts of London.
The outstanding quality of Sahar's
work was formally recognised by the
Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust,
a charity dedicated to supporting
excellence in British craftsmanship,
when they offered her a QEST
Scholarship in November. She was
one of only a handful of applicants
to receive this prestigious award
in 2020, which incudes earmarked
funds for training and education.
We spoke with Sahar to learn more
about what this opportunity means
to her. We also asked her to tell us
about her millinery labels and her
other creative endeavours, which
include teaching workshops and
organising a highly stylised, hat-
focused, life drawing event called
Image by Sina Bahrami the Milliners Drawing Room.
Image by Angelo Cricchi
3 www.hatalk.com
How does it feel to be a QEST Scholar
and how do you plan to use the financial
portion of the award to further your
millinery work?
Eek, I feel great about it!! It was the fourth
time I'd applied and it's really come at the
best time. With the current lack of business,
there is more time to learn. I will be doing
mostly private tuition with Ian Bennet,
plus a couple of days with Thomas von
Nordheim and Svetlana Faulkner at Present
Perfect Creations. With Ian I'll be filling
in the gaps in my knowledge, and pretty
much going back to square one, unlearning
a lot of the bad methods I've taught myself
and focusing on the traditional ones. With
Thomas I'm focusing on how to make hats
for film and with Svetlana, flowers.
Was there a specific moment when you
knew that millinery was the path for you?
I did my degree in Costume Design and
Making at Edinburgh College of Art, and got
the basics in millinery there. A friend recently
recounted a college trip to a milliner's studio
and apparently I said, 'This is it, this is what
I'm going to do.' .... I can't remember that at
all! But I do remember, immediately after
graduating in 2005, meeting some milliners
with a bunch of hats in the boot of their
car and I utterly fell in love and knew deep
down I'd met 'the one.' Millinery, that is.
It took me a while to settle on specialising,
though. For a few years I worked in the
costume department of films and also made
Image by Nick Alexander wedding dresses. Then I came to London
4 www.hatalk.com
and had to get a part-time office job
to support myself whilst I found my
feet.
I started trading under the name
UglyLovely - a kind of beauty in the
unconventional; using found objects,
seeing the beauty in rust, insects,
moss, etc. Sahar Millinery was created
later, as my umbrella label. Initially, it
was to satisfy bridal customers who
didn't want to buy from a brand with
'Ugly' in the title! Now I have quite a
large range, although still focused on
mostly womenswear.
Tell us more about UglyLovely -
the unconventional side of your
business.
UglyLovely summed up the style
I'd developed during my degree.
It is about really looking - getting
beyond our initial reaction and
digging deeper. Materials span
from rusted keys, to real insects,
branches, birdwings and antique
cutlery (all animals and butterflies
died naturally). UglyLovely pieces Image by Angelo Cricchi
are more showpieces, often a nod to
the macabre. The goal is to see the The rest of the Sahar Millinery range for films, TV and performance. My
spectator’s reaction go from ‘eww’ to focuses on beauty and fun, with hints hats have been featured in Downton
‘wow’ in a matter of seconds. of deliberate imperfections such as Abbey and worn by celebrities
distressed gold leaf or asymmetry. like Ellie Goulding, Paloma Faith,
And what about Sahar Millinery? I make for occasions and I have a Katy Perry, Celeste, Charli Howard,
What kind of pieces do you create range of trilbies and headbands, too. Georgina Campbell, Victoria Baker-
under this label? I also work with costume designers Harber and Immodesty Blaize.
5 www.hatalk.com
Image by Sina Bahrami Image by Alessandro Cecchini
Image by Sina Bahrami Image by London Professional Headshots
6 www.hatalk.com
Where do you teach workshops?
I do workshops in my studio as and when
I have enough interest to fill a class. My
most popular workshops are the sinamay
fascinator class and the felt hat class, both
for beginners. I'm also the millinery tutor at
WM College in Camden.
What is the Milliners Drawing Room?
The Milliners Drawing Room brings the
most incredible group of artists together
for life drawing with a hat focus. I dress the
model (and model myself ) according to
the theme of the month. Past themes have
included 'Clown Chic,' 'Vivienne Westwood,'
'Black and White,' 'Exotics from the Tropics'
and 'Sparkle and Gold.' It's so much fun - I
end up planning the outfits all month and
it's amazing to see all the artists interpret
the looks according to their style. It's also
amazing to model - it's both very vulnerable
and very powerful at the same time. The
Milliners Drawing Room has led to some
exciting collaborations - I’ve done pop up
shops with some of the artists and will be
exhibiting in Tokyo next year with Sue Dray.
How do you view your role as a creator?
Whether through the Milliners Drawing
Room, or workshops, or bespoke
commissions, I aim to bring out creativity
from participants, so my audience are not
just passive spectators or wearers, but
intrinsically involved in the creation process.
To find out more, visit www.saharmillinery.co.uk
Image by Sean Afnan
and follow @saharmillinery on Instagram.
7 www.hatalk.com
From the @millinersdrawingroom... 8 www.hatalk.com
A history of the
renowned 20th century
Jachimowicz
Elizabeth
Elizabeth Jachimowicz
millinery shop, with over
Chicago’s Mad Hatter 500 illustrations. This
publication showcases
the career of Chicago
milliner Benjamin
B. Green-Field, who
Chicago’s Mad Hatter
viewed fashion with
a sense of humor,
creating extraordinary
confections designed to
amuse the viewer and
express an aspect of the
wearer’s personality.
To see more about the book and to order go to
www.besbenmadhatter.com.
first class
hats and
materials
We have it all, ready made hats or an extensive range of milinery supplies of first class
materials, it’s all there! We provide tailor-made solutions for our clients. Our passion for hats
provides you with the possibility to create the hats you have always dreamed about.
THE NETHERLANDS / + 31 (0) 577 400 730 / PLOOIJHATS.COM
9 www.hatalk.comHat of the Month
by Sau Fen Chee
10 www.hatalk.comSau Fen Chee is a self-taught millinery designer with a background in the visual arts, exhibition and event industries. She began her own hat label, Heads of State Millinery, in 2011. From her studio in Singapore, Sau Fen focuses on creating custom orders and special commissions for clients around the world. In 2018, Sau Fen was invited to collaborate on a sustainability project with Nespresso. As part of the international coffee giant's global commitment to making every cup of Nespresso coffee carbon neutral by 2022, the Singapore division was planning an exhibition of everyday objects created from recycled aluminium coffee capsule casings. They asked her to make two headpieces for this 'One Pod At A Time Sustainability Showcase.' The upcycled coffee capsule headpiece that Sau Fen created was so well received that she was invited to participate in the Showcase again in 2020. Her latest Nespresso creation, Crowning Glory (left) is a beautiful fusion of natural inspiration and man-made materials. 11 www.hatalk.com
"Crowning Glory is inspired by how all around the world, all through time, crowning ourselves with flowers is a bold invitation to celebrate life and love," explains Sau Fen, who is pictured here working on the headpiece. "More precious than jewels, these delicate 'gems' of nature are valued for their fragility as much as their beauty." 12 www.hatalk.com
"Orchids are featured in the crown as Nespresso
Singapore asked if I could recreate the 'Vanda
Miss Joaquim,' Singapore's national flower,
as one of the featured flowers of the design. I
immediately made a trip to the Cloud Forest
conservatory in Singapore's renowned Gardens
by the Bay to study thousands of orchids in
close proximity, sketch and plan the floral crown
design."
Sau Fen used a pair of sharp scissors and two
awls to create the recycled blooms. With the
help of these tools, she hand-formed the
aluminium coffee capsules into a number of
different varieties of orchids and then arranged
them onto a floristry wire crown. She wrapped
the wire with coffee capsules cut into narrow
ribbons to keep with the upcycling theme.
"The distinctive curvature of the new Nespresso
Vertuo capsules is highlighted by remaking
them into graceful petals and foliage by hand
using techniques adapted from traditional
couture fabric flower-making. The quiet nobility
of humble blooms is shown through clean lines
and graceful forms. Luminous, rich and glorious
colours from nature represent a world fertile
with abundant life and new hope," says Sau Fen.
"'Nature Nurtured' is a running theme in my
work. A well-tended garden brings forth a
harmonious profusion of plants that otherwise
would not have existed side by side in the wild.
Similarly, our commitment to finding a new life
for our recyclables can bring forth more beauty
and balance in the world."
13 www.hatalk.comIn October 2020, Crowning Glory (above) was exhibited
at the Nespresso One Pod At A Time Sustainability
Showcase at Raffles City Shopping Centre in Singapore,
along with Sau Fen's 2018 coffee capsule creations (left).
To see the latest designs from Heads of State Millinery,
follow Sau Fen on Instagram and Facebook and visit
www.headsofstatemillinery.com.
14 www.hatalk.com15 www.hatalk.com
How to make a
Metallic Hatband
Elena Shvab is known for her specialist metallic a side bow or some veiling, without damaging the hat.
millinery techniques. In this tutorial, the London Plus, changing one hatband for another of a different
milliner explains how to use Bondaweb, decorative foil colour or texture is a quick and easy way to give an old
and woven fabric to create your own custom metallic hat a brand new look.
hatband.
For this project, Elena used rough textured linen as her
While a simple Petersham hatband will never go out of base material but any thick, plain woven fabric should
style, it's always fun to experiment with new materials. work well. You will also need Bondaweb (an iron-on
As well as being stylish, a hatband is a practical way to adhesive) and some decorative metallic foil sheets.
cover the join between a brim and a crown that have Both of these materials can be purchased online, from
been blocked separately. A ribbon or fabric hatband will suppliers on eBay and Amazon, and from most craft and
also provide a surface to sew other trimmings onto, like fabric stores.
16 www.hatalk.comWhat You Will Need:
• Any thick, plain woven
fabric
• Decorative foil sheets
• Bondaweb
• Scissors
• Pencil
• Ruler/measuring tape
• Iron
• Ironing board or ironing
cloth
• Small, soft paint brush
• Baking paper
• Wet wipes (baby wipes)
• Glue (I recommend UHU
because it's strong, dries
quickly and is clear)
• Needle 1) Before you begin making your hatband, you need to figure out the right
• Matching thread dimensions.
• Invisible thread (fishing
wire) LENGTH: To determine the length, measure the circumference (around the
• Small binder clips base of the crown) of the hat that you are making the hatband for. Take that
measurement and add 12cm (43/4"). This will allow enough excess for a 2cm (3/4")
overlap and a 10cm (4") piece to cover the join.
WIDTH: The width of the hatband is completely up to you and will depend on
the look that you want to create. Add 3cm (1") to your preferred width to allow
enough material to fold the edges over. I wanted my finished hatband to be
5cm (2") wide so I started with a piece of fabric with a width of about 8cm (3").
With a ruler and a pencil, draw a rectangle onto the woven fabric using your
chosen measurements.
*Subscribers can also access these instructions online, along with over 75 other millinery tutorials, in our Project Library.
17 www.hatalk.com2) Carefully cut out the fabric rectangle that you drew. 3) Put the Bondaweb rectangle on top of the woven Next, cut a rectangle of Bondaweb. For best results, this fabric. As you can see, the Bondaweb should be a little should be the same length as the fabric one but a few bigger than the fabric along the long edges. millimetres wider. 4) Carefully place metallic foil sheets on top of the 5) Make sure the foil completely covers the fabric and Bondaweb in a single layer. Before you begin, close any the Bondaweb. Instead of touching the sheets with your open windows and doors. Metallic foil is very fine and fingers, you may find it easier to use a small, soft paint lightweight and even the slightest draft can disturb it. brush to move and position them. 18 www.hatalk.com
6) Slowly and carefully, avoiding any sudden movements, place a sheet of baking paper on top of the layered materials. Preheat your iron to a medium heat, without steam, and start ironing. The baking paper will protect the surface of the iron and the metallic foil from damage. Iron the whole piece, moving the baking paper as needed. The Bondaweb should melt as you iron it, fusing the metallic foil and fabric together. 19 www.hatalk.com
7) Wait for your ironed piece to cool down and then 8) Add another layer of Bondaweb followed by another check to see if the Bondaweb has fully melted. Don't layer of metallic foil. Carefully cover with baking paper worry if there are some missed or damaged spots - this and iron the piece again. Repeat this process as many is normal. times as needed, until you are happy with the result. 9) When you are finished and the material is completely 10) Clean the surface of your fused metallic fabric with cool, use scissors to trim off any excess foil along the soft wet wipes. Wet wipes will remove any flyaway edges. scraps of foil without leaving scratches. 20 www.hatalk.com
11) Turn the hatband over so that the plain fabric 12) Squeeze tiny drops of glue along one of the long
underside is showing. Draw lines 1.5cm (½" inch) from edges and then fold it over on itself. Use small binder
each of the long edges. clips to apply pressure and hold the fold in place while
the glue dries.
13) Fold the other long edge over in the exact same way. 14) Once the glue is completely dry, the hatband is
ready to be attached to your chosen hat.
21 www.hatalk.com15) Place the hatband around the crown of the hat, with an overlap of 2cm (1"), and pin in place. 22 www.hatalk.com
16) Use scissors to cut the hatband to size (leaving the 17) For a hatband to fit perfectly around a rounded
2cm overlap). The leftover metallic material is going to crown, it needs to be slightly curved. In this photo, you
be used later on, but you can put it aside for now. can see the gaps between the uncurved hatband and
the crown.
18) Preheat the iron to a medium heat with no steam. 19) Place the hatband around the crown and pin in
Turn the hatband over (plain side up) and cover it place. If you are not happy with how it looks, continue
with baking paper for protection. Iron with circular to press it with the iron until you have achieved a good
movements with one hand while gently pulling the curve.
hatband into a slight curve with another hand.
23 www.hatalk.com20) A well-curved hat band will look like this. 24 www.hatalk.com
21) Use a dab of glue to join the ends of the hatband. 22) Secure the join with pins and leave to dry. 23) Once the glue is completely dry, remove the hatband 24) Place the leftover piece of fused metallic fabric over from the hat and fortify the join by making a few neat the join of the hatband. stitches with a needle and matching thread. 25 www.hatalk.com
25) Fold both edges of the leftover piece around to the 26) Use clips to apply pressure while glue is drying.
inside of the hatband, hiding the join on the metallic
side. If the leftover piece is too long, trim it to size with
scissors. Use glue to attach the folded edges to the
hatband.
27) Once dry, use invisible thread to make a couple of 28) The hatband is now ready to be put on the hat. To
small stitches at each of the four corners of the covering secure it, add a few discreet stitches with invisible thread
piece. in key places. As you can see, the metallic hatband looks
great on its own but you can also accessorise it with
other trimmings like veiling, bows and feathers.
26 www.hatalk.comCome back for another inspirational project from Elena Shvab next month. And to learn even
more,
27
book one of her live and online metallic millinery workshops at www.elenashvab.com.
www.hatalk.com2020 Winners
Catherine Kelly is a very busy lady. to create leadership opportunities of the maker's own choosing.
As well as running two prominent for disadvantaged youth. Catherine
businesses, Embellish Atelier and (pictured) is also passionate about The material pack for the Millinery
Hatters Millinery Supplies, she is promoting the millinery industry as Category included a natural parasisal
also the creator of Hattember, a hat a whole and encouraging people capeline, a length of pedaline
making competition which takes everywhere to wear more hats. and raffia, Tressa straw braid and
place every September. matching Petersham. Novices were
There were three categories in given sinamay, spotted veiling and
The Australian milliner created the the 2020 Hattember competition Petersham and those entering the
international competition to raise - Millinery, Novice Millinery and Wearable Art Category were sent
money for the John Skipper Kelly Wearable Art. The Novice Category, a black furfelt hood, fancy racello,
(JSK) Fund, a charitable organisation aimed at students and beginners, Tressa braid and black Petersham.
set up in honour of her late husband was a brand new addition.
Rebecca Read from Opera Australia,
"We were so thrilled with the diversity Margaret Gill, Neil Grigg, Patty Carter
and array of submissions for each and Christine Waring made up the
category but this was a very exciting judging panel. They were asked
section," Catherine told us. "Lots of to choose three winners for each
innovation and creative use of the category. A People's Choice Award
supplied materials." and two Hatelier Awards, selected
by the staff at Hatters Millinery
Each Hattember entrant was sent Supplies and Embellish Atelier, were
a curated bag of category-specific also given.
materials. The rules stated that all of
the items in the bag had to be used in The twelve winners of the 2020
some way. In addition, designs could Hattember are featured on the
include up to three other elements following pages...
28 www.hatalk.comMillinery Category
2nd Place: Waves Of Hope
by Cynthia Jones Bryson
1st Place: Topolino; Mouse 3rd Place: A Journey of Growth
by Lisa Watt by Emma Files
Model - Kiersten Duke
Photography - Lily Wood
29 www.hatalk.comNovice Category
2nd Place: Queen of Tulips
by Jocelyn Ryan
1st Place: Blooms 3rd Place: Boater with Silk Abaca Wig
by Desleigh Lobsey by Kate Alway
Model - Kiersten Duke
Photography - Lily Wood
30 www.hatalk.comWearable Art Category
2nd Place: Hope Springs
by Andrea Caneiro
1st Place: Sci-Fi meets Art Deco 3rd Place: Bathing Beauty
by Rachel Cherry by Wendy Scully
Model - Kiersten Duke
Photography - Lily Wood
31 www.hatalk.comHatelier and People's Choice Awards
2nd Place by Mary Cockcroft
(Novice Category)
1st Place by Michelle Robinson People's Choice by David Lloyd
(Millinery Category) (Novice Category)
Follow @hattember on Instagram to see more 2020 entries.
32 www.hatalk.comSend us your questions and comments! Do
Letters to the you have a problem needing a solution? Or
Editor... information that you’d like to share?
Email us! mail@hatalk.com
Question:
I really like the way that netted veiling can add glamour and mystery to a simple cocktail hat but when I tried to
make a birdcage veil the bottom edge turned out messy and uneven. How do I cut veiling more neatly?
Answer:
The answer to this one is pretty straightforward; it's best not to
cut the bottom edge of a netted veil at all.
There are quite a few varieties of modern millinery veiling out
there. Netted Russian veiling is probably the most popular and
easy to find. Sold by the metre or yard, lengths of netted veiling
are usually 25-30cm (10-11") wide and are available from most
millinery suppliers.
When you buy a piece of veiling, you will see that both of the
long edges have been finished with a slightly thicker selvedge
thread to prevent fraying. You should leave that selvedge
untouched and use it for your bottom edge. Cutting into it will
create uneven, open diamonds and make it very difficult to
achieve a professional finish.
Of course, you will need to cut into the netting to create your
veil shape, but the raw, cut edges on the sides and top of the
veil will be sewn and gathered or can be hidden in the hat.
Visit the HATalk Project Library for step-by-step veil tutorials
and other millinery projects that you can make at home.
33 www.hatalk.comThe Back Page
Contact Us! If you have any questions, comments
or anything that you'd like to share, please email
us at mail@hatalk.com. You can also find us on
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Book Review: Hat Couture
Launched during London Hat Week 2020, Marianne
Jongkind's new book, Hat Couture - Handbook for
Hat Making Techniques, covers techniques developed
by the Dutch milliner during her 60-year career.
HATalk contributor Amy Fowler, owner of Humboldt
Haberdashery, shares her take on the new release...
Even with all of the online training available now, there
is still something to be said about having a book in front
of you. Sometimes, modern millinery books all seem to
cover similar material or have a limited scope of subject.
It was exciting to find a book with a completely original The chosen designs provide a wide scope of materials
approach, illustrating how creativity and imagination and techniques to learn from. The typical hat materials
can transform traditional hat making materials. - felt, sinamay, straw and fabric - are all covered with a
technical approach and level of detail which will help
The 208-page paperback is published in English and the reader achieve professional results. Non-traditional
Dutch. It has not left my studio worktable since I materials, such as racello, sparterie and Paris net, are also
received it. The book contains 22 projects, suitable for all an exciting part of this book since it can be hard to find
levels of hat making experience, and each one includes instruction on them.
comprehensive instructions and high quality, detailed
photos that are easy to work through on your own. Hat Couture is a gold mine of inspiration. It is one of
the most in-depth and comprehensive collections of
Marianne's book is special as it provides an opportunity millinery techniques available in a single book. Each
to learn techniques from a master milliner. Her approach project focuses on a different aspect of millinery and
is very insightful and generous. Throughout her career, makes the reader think about new ways to approach
she kept a detailed archive of sketches, photos and design and construction. Besides the vast number of
materials from her non-standard assignments. Selecting technical photos, Marianne also shares runway and
some of her favourite designs, she breaks down each exhibition images. This is a high quality and inspiring
one with step-by-step instructions. book. It is not only informative but is also fun to read.
34 www.hatalk.com35 www.hatalk.com
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