Hats & Feathers

Deadline of 5.00pm for a black straw hat and it feels forever since I actually made a straw hat! I managed to get the right block shape and used straw stiffener as opposed to the usual water based stiffener which did work much better creating a more flexible straw as opposed to a rigid hat which felt more fragile. I needed to extend the crown with buckram as the client wanted a small crown but has short hair so an elastic is of no use, so had to create a 50's look in a different way.

While waiting for the parts to dry I started to create a piece for the City & Guilds dinner, so looked through the feathers from Lotherton and washed them. It was interesting as to how the feathers held more relevance and interest after seeing them on the actual birds, also I could understand the attraction that the Victorians had for having the whole bird on their heads and the many cultures who revere birds and their plumage. Washed and removed dead flamingo from the peach flamingo feathers and left them to dry, now just need to imagine an intriguing way to use them.

One of the other books I bought was on Japanese flowers which `i began experimenting with in and amongst creating the hat so quite a productive day. Whilst keeping an eye on the RYA website for race results..........