Millinery Design or How to Choose the Correct Mix of
Feathers, Ribbons, Net, and Flowers to Decorate a Period Hat
Have you ever been totally
overwhelmed when you walk into a large Craft or Fabric store to purchase the
things you need to decorate that fantastic hat you are constructing? Here is
how I go about making the process a lot easier. All the steps below can go
for any period but the suggestions are tailored to late 19th Century
hats.
Before you shop the most
important thing is to figure out the aesthetic of the time period. Was simple
and elegant in vogue or where overly decorated hats and dresses what everyone
wanted?
What is the best way to
figure out the aesthetic of the period?
Getting your hands on a
period hat can be a big bonus and can tell you a lot not only about design but
also construction. However, one hat canŐt tell the whole story I check many
sources from fashion plates to period portraits to photos of extant examples
that can be found online. When I find these examples I note a few important
things.
1)
How many elements where usually used?
2)
What was the size of the elements used relative to the
size of the hats?
3)
What part of the hat was covered by decoration and how
much was not covered?
4)
Most fashion plates are in black and white, I pay
special attention to the color ones and note the colors used.
5)
Also extant hats are sometimes faded if I can glean
the original colors I take note of that.
6)
Another important thing to note is the range. Most
hats from the late 19th C are highly decorated but there are always
a few that are simpler. Some fashion plates and photographs put the hats in
context; you might take note when you see simpler hats. Do you think it is in
relation to an individuals taste or because a certain event or social status might
have dictated the style; say work vs. a social event, suffragette vs. socialite
or suburban everyday vs. widow? This range can give you some wiggle room to
design a hat that might fit your own personal style and your characterŐs
station.
Another thing to think about,
is the hat you are designing going to match an existing garment or be the start
of a costume or not match and be a complimentary element to the garment?
1) If matching an existing
garment then, I round up all the leftovers and decide what is usable for a hat.
Can I cover the hat with some of the garment fabric or make bows out of the
fabric or is there ribbon or trim I want to use? You need not use everything or
even stick 100% to the color scheme of the garment. I usually use one or two
things from the garment and make them the focal point for the hat. It could be
the largest element or perhaps the only most brightly colored element of the
hat. All the other elements that you pick for the hat should harmonize with the
major element.
2) If it is the beginnings of
a costume then I work backwards. I choose things for the hat and figure just
what will also work on the garment. If I need more elements for the garment
then I make sure whatever I choose harmonizes with the elements of the hat.
This might indeed be the way things where done in the day, a milliner is not
just a hatter for women a milliner also sold trims, dresses and other
accessories. You could go to a milliner and have them design your entire
outfit.
3) If no elements from the
hat will match or even be the same color as your garment then just make sure
that the colors do not clash. It might be a good thing to use the same type of
trim or ribbon but in the different color. If you use a gimp braid in your
costume use some of the same gimp but in the different color on your hat. The
same goes for jacquard ribbons they often come different colors and it would be
a nice touch, to have the same thing on both the garment and hat, it will tie
things together even without them being the same color.
If the hat is to be the
beginnings of an outfit or a compliment to one then you need to decide on a
color plan. What season is it planned for? Usually darker colors for winter and
lighter for summer. It is a help to choose one of the six below before you
begin.
1)
Is the hat going to be basically one color? If this is
your choice it is still important to have variation in the sheens and textures
of the elements in the hat and maybe some slight differences in the shades of
that color.
2)
Is the hat going to be limited to two very distinct
colors like black and white?
3)
Is the hat going to be limited to two graphic colors
with a third that would be limited to one accent piece?
4)
Is the hat going to be many vibrant colors?
5)
Is the hat going to be many earthy colors such as fall
colors?
6)
Is the hat going to be pastels?
Sticking to one of these plans really helps me focus on
choosing elements.
If I really canŐt come up
with a color scheme, here is what I do, I grab or go shopping for something
that has a mix of colors I really like. It can be anything; a piece of fabric,
a set of color swatches from the paint store, a photo of a period hat or maybe
a precious piece of ribbon or trim you got a few years back, any of these can
make a great starting place. Just keep it with you thru the process of picking
your elements. This Victorian Tall Hat is a great example I would never have
picked these colors to go together unless I had not been given the gorgeous
piece of vintage trim. Working off the trim I was able to pick fabrics, ribbon
and a faux wing all of which really pulled the design together.
If you are making the hat for yourself then stick to colors
that look good on you with your coloring, a hat can look period and still be
your colors. You do not need to be limited to those colors but make sure that
if you are adding decorative elements close to you face you use colors that
look good on you. Those can be flowers, net or lining that will be on the under
brim of the hat.
There is a wealth of
information on color design on the web. It could be worth a look if you have
forgotten everything you ever knew about the color wheel, primary, secondary,
tertiary, and things like complementary colors. But our real goal is to design
something that looks like it came from the late 19th century not fit
the ideal of a good modern color design.
Once I have Ňthe lookÓ and my
color plan in my mind I Ňshop my stashÓ. ItŐs a good idea to have either the
hat or a piece of paper about the size of the hat with you when you are
choosing your elements. This will make it more difficult to pick too many or
too few elements. If you are making a late 19th C hat then a file
folder is a good choice not many hats where larger than that and file folders
are good to contain drawings or prints of the hat you want to make.
Once you have picked out all
the things in your stash that you really think you are going to use staple
small swatches of the elements inside the folder this will help when and if you
need to go shopping for more. If something you plan to use is vintage and you
donŐt want to cut even an inch off then staple a zip lock bag to the folder and
stow it in the bag. This is good for snippets of feathers as well. I have found
over the years that besides the things I know I want to use I always seem to
pick one or two extra things that are just possibilities and in the end I
discard one or more of them but, itŐs good to have options.
Links to eye candy, real examples of period hats from different categories.
Straw, dark gray
velvet ribbon, silk and wire flower trim, and silk lining
Silk faille,
plush trim, ostrich feathers, velvet ribbon, and silk lining
Small woman's hat
intended to be worn on back of head. Henna colored ribbed silk with front edge
trimmed with gathered henna plush, bows and ties of mahogany colored velvet
ribbon, henna ostrich feathers on left side, tulle ruffle at back of neck,
white silk half lining. Label: "Mdlle Costello Paris Millinery 48 Winter
St. Boston". Worn by Mrs. Frank B Everett Peabody.
American
1870Ős Pastel colors
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Journal des Dames et des
Demoiselles 1873 Dress of the first Bustle period.
This hat is almost
monochromatic except for one focal element. When looking at the gown the first
choice that would come to mind would be to choose to make the hat with both the
colors in the gown. There would be nothing wrong with that choice but there is
something more sophisticated with the hat as it is.
Edouard Manet, Boating, 1874
This is a very simply
decorated hat with flowers almost the color of the straw, ribbon ties in a dark
brown color and veiling that makes a bow in back.
Edouard Manet, Sur la Plage
1873 I think this might be the same hat as in the 1874 boating painting. It
caused me notice that there is an edging around the brim of the dark color that
matches the ribbon and the ribbon tie seems to go under the flowers on the top
of the hat, which is more easily done, and I think more likely.
Edouard Manet, Im Caf:
Cabaret von Reichshoffen 1878
This is a very simple
everyday hat.
Hand
colored engraved image from Demorest Monthly Magazine, 1876
The hat
on the right is a great example of a hat that does not match but coordinates
with the outfit and has one element that is the focal point. That element
reflected in the pattern of the dress a rose print. The rose is a focal point
because it is so much lighter in color than the rest of the hat. Another thing
to note is that the major detail element of the gown is in the back and the
same with the hat.
A good illustration of a millinerŐs
shop. From the
Danish "Punch" magazine (not the British Punch), 1876 September, No 37.
ModeArtistiqueMai1880
This hat is a good example of
a graphic two-color hat that matches the outfit.
The Danish "Puk"
1894
This is another example of
another two-color hat where the two colors are in the outfit.
Grands Magasins d Nouveautes;
Aux Classes LABORIEUSES 1897
This hat is a great example
of the overly decorated hats that where in vogue in the late Victorian time
period. There are two different kids of plumes, ribbon not only on the top of
the brim but also on the under brim as well, pearls and small flowers. Every
inch is covered with decorations.
Taken
from the cover of the Millinery Trade Review-New York showing a bust portrait
of Jane Harding, wearing a hat designed in the Paris establishment of Madame
Carlier. 1897. This a fantastic example of a monochromatic hat with one touch
of color in the base of the large flower that matches the collar of the blouse.
This really ties everything together the blouse also seems to be a very light
shade of the primary color of the hat.
Taken
from the cover of the Millinery Trade Review-New York showing bust portraits of
Baronne de Carlsberg and Suzanne, actresses at the Gymnase theater, Paris,
wearing hats designed in the Paris establishment of Madame Carlier. 1897
The
BaronneŐs hat is somewhat pastel
except for the cluster of leaves and berries that are the focal point of the
hat. Note that the focal point of the hat is now in the front of the hat, as a
general rule after the bustle period the focal points moved from the back in
both outfits and hats. SuzanneŐs
hat is in a variety of pastel shades and like many hats from this period (late
1890Ős) has an element that juts up from the center of the hat giving it
sometimes about an extra foot of height.
PetersonŐs Magazine Oct.
1884. The hat on the left is a great example of the addition of a color that is
not in the outfit that becomes a focal point. All the other colors in the hat
seem to also be in the outfit. The other two hats in the plate have hats that
match the outfits.
PetersonŐs Magazine Aug.
1884. The hat second from the right is a great example of a hat that only
coordinates with the outfit and has no elements that are in the outfit. The other two hats in the plate are
very simply decorated; the plumes match the ribbon details in the outfits. It
also breaks the rule of dark for winter and light for summer.
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