Toronto Hats and Wedding Bridal Millinery Service: November 2006

Thursday, November 30, 2006

Rhinestones make her talents shine

The Connecticut Post Online - Rhinestones make her talents shine:

"MILFORD — The radiant rhinestone designs Melissa Esposito creates on baseball caps, T-shirts, belts and handbags are bright enough to illuminate a path toward success for her company — Rhinestone ME.

Although Esposito has only been in business for two years, her work has already attracted national attention. Boston Red Sox superstar David Ortiz had Esposito decorate two baseball caps for him, and thismonth her glittering rhinestone caps will be featured in a pivotal episode of VH1's 'Ice T's Rap School.'

The television show follows the 'Law and Order' actor and rap artist's attempt to transform several eighth-graders from York Prep School into rap singers. The nine contestants will wear Esposito's hats when they perform as the opening act for Public Enemy at the BB King nightclub in Manhattan.

'Each hat had over 300 rhinestones. I do it all by hand. Every hat is done by me,' Esposito said.

Rhinestone ME came into existence after Esposito began decorating her own baseball caps and received numerous inquiries from people wondering where she got them.

'I wear baseball caps almost every day and they get boring. My motto is 'making the ordinary extraordinary.' I'm taking something plain and making it special and unique,' she said.

Esposito uses Swarovski rhinestones because, she said, 'they have the most sparkle' in 22 different colors — from fire opal and Capri blue to hyacinth and black diamond — to decorate all kinds of items with any kind of symbol or logo.

"By trial and error, I figured out I can do just about anything. I've had some odd requests. I did a radiation symbol for a woman who works at a nuclear power plant in Arkansas," she said.

An average cap can take an hour to complete. Custom orders often take longer, said Esposito, who goes through up to 10,000 rhinestones each month.

Esposito, the mother of three young boys, credits her husband, David, for her business.

"I wouldn't have been able to do this if my husband didn't fund me. He's my silent partner," she said.

Esposito's sports caps seem to be most in demand. She "rhinestones" the team hats of professional and college teams and has recently added NASCAR hats to her inventory.

"Some men like the bling just like the ladies," Esposito said.

While she charged Ortiz for the hats he custom ordered — as she does all her customers — Esposito said there is one person for whom she would make an exception.

"If Derek Jeter ordered a hat, it would be free and I'd be in the box with it," she said.
"

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Utah Jail Inmates Knit for the Needy

Utah Jail Inmates Knit for the Needy:

"Jail inmates are spending hours knitting caps, blankets and booties for children around the world. ''We might all be criminals,'' said David Evans, 25, of Blackfoot, Idaho, ''but some of us have big hearts.''

The pastime at the Cache County Jail in northern Utah began about two years ago. The handmade crafts go to a group called Save the Children or to humanitarian efforts organized by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Inmates have knitted more than 300 hats this year, about half with matching booties. They also have stitched mittens and small blankets.

''We are like an army,'' said Jane DeSpain, a Mormon Relief Society president who organized the project. ''There are humanitarian projects going on all over the world. They are part of that.''

Jail officials said they were wary about putting knitting needles, a potential weapon, in the hands of inmates. But there have been no incidents. The needles are counted and collected before 30 to 40 prisoners return to their minimum-security blocks.

''Anytime you are doing something good for someone else, you are improving yourself,'' said Capt. Kim Cheshire, jail commander. ''That isn't just for the inmates; that's for the rest of us.''

One man created a large hat that resembled the one worn by the cat in Dr. Seuss' ''Cat In The Hat.'' It stretched more than 3 feet, with broad red and white stripes and a braided tassel. Folded beneath was a child's hat to match.

Justin Paz, 19, of Logan, recently was making a blue baby blanket. As his tattooed hand worked the needles, he thought about the child, probably a boy, who would snuggle with it.

Paz said he's hooked on a hobby that is ''helping somebody.''

''Honestly, when I get out, I'm going to buy one of these,'' he said of the knitting tools.

"

Saturday, November 25, 2006

Mercury traces back to fur trade

News Times Live Growth and Environment:

"Right now, we're living through climate change, watching the flora and fauna to see what moves on, what arrives and what leaves the scene for good.

It's happened before. In the 17th and 18th century, trappers came to the New World in search of beaver and killed them by the millions. For a half century or more-- from 1860 to the early 1900s -- they were gone from Connecticut entirely.

According to Johan Varekamp, chairman of Wesleyan University's Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, it's instructive to remember why the Europeans wanted beaver pelts -- not for fashion but for warmth. At the time. Europeans were very cold.

'There's a connection between the climate and the fur trade,' he said.

For when the first Dutch and English explorers set foot on the New England and New York landscape, there was a centuries-long cold snap in place. The entire Northern Hemisphere was in the throes of the Little Ice Age.

Climatologists aren't sure what caused this deep chill. It may have begun as early as 1250 AD when the Atlantic ice pack began to grow and lasted until the mid-1800s. It caused famines in Europe and ended the Viking colonization of Greenland -- it was too cold to live there.

In those years, the Thames River in England and the Dutch canals routinely froze over.

Varekamp said that Dutch explorers like Adriaen Block came to North America not merely out of a sense of adventure or conquest, they came for trade. Europeans had trapped their native beavers into extinction by the 1500s and they needed a new source of fur to keep themselves warm. Beavers were plentiful in North America, and trappers killed millions of them for the European market -- so many that there was a glut and their price crashed.

The disappearance of these natural engineers changed the Connecticut landscape -- when their untended dams collapsed, the inland ponds and swamps they created dried up, allowing more rain and snow melt to flow across the landscape. Multiplied a million times over, that change might have influenced the climate as well.

But the beaver trade had other consequences. When the Little Ice Age warmed, there was still a market for beaver pelts -- they made great felt for hats. Europeans learned to use mercury to create felt from the fur and their techniques came to Danbury, the great center of hat-making in North America. Mercury from its plants flowed to the Long Island Sound for decades. It's still there.

Varekamp -- a Dutchman like Block -- finds satisfaction in tieing his present research into the Sound's ecology to the fur trade and the explorations of his fellow countryman.

The climate and animals never exist separately from human activity. Nor do past and present.

"Today, we still may find traces of mercury from the Connecticut 18th- and 19th-century hat making activity in the sediments of the Long Island Sound," Varekamp has written, "which closes the circle back to Adriaen Block, the fur trader from Holland who started it all."
"

Swedes hooked on knitting

Swedes hooked on knitting - SWEDEN.SE:

"Knitting needles and crocheting hooks, stuffed away in closets for years, are re-appearing in Swedish cafés and homes. And its not just grandmothers who are putting them to use – a couple of professional free skiers are twisting yarn into very modern headwear.

A few years back free skier Sverre Liliequist spent some time in the Rocky Mountains, USA. Traveling from one treacherous ski slope to another, he started passing the time with a needle and yarn.

For his active, outdoor lifestyle, he wanted warm headwear that also suited his personality. Finding nothing of interest in the shops, he picked up a crochet hook and started doing what his mother had tried to teach him over the past Christmas holidays. “I’m left-handed and my mom is right-handed so it took a little while to figure it out,” Liliequist says of his crocheting debut.

From pastime to business

His first attempt is still one of his favorites – a beret inspired by Jamaican Rastafarian hats. “It was a big hat – green, yellow and red,” he says. A couple of hats later and his friend and skiing buddy Kaj Zackrisson was also hooked, and they came up with shapes that were more suitable for skiing.

The new hats, or beanies as they are called, were fun and colorful and attracted attention on and off the slopes. Eventually, requests started coming in from other skiers and the pair began making more hats to give away as gifts or even pay the rent with.

In 2002, Liliequist and Zackrisson began producing and selling the hats commercially. Their company Kask started out small-scale, producing two models in the first year, which sold out in three weeks. “We doubled our business the following year and today we’ve expanded our line to include sweaters, mittens, belts and more,” Liliequist says.

Not just for skiers

Today, Swedish Kask is represented in more than ten countries, including Norway, Japan and Switzerland. Liliequist says that their designs are spreading from the slopes to other areas.

So, who are the customers? “A lot of them are people who are into skiing and the snowboarding lifestyle and spending time outside on a mountain,” Liliequist says. “But the hats also work well in the city. Lots of people want to have their own look. I saw a guy wearing one of our hats the other day and he was definitely not a skier or a snowboarder.”

Liliequist likes to work creatively, experimenting with designs and colors. One of his most popular hat designs, south of Scandinavia anyway, bears the blue and yellow Swedish flag. He makes his hats with acrylic yarn, which doesn’t itch like wool when things heat up.

Personal touch

Liliequist believes the knitting trend is flourishing again because there is “more soul” in homemade goods and handicrafts. “It is about finding your own style and doing something with creative ideas,” he says.

Kathrine Hultman Eriksson, who heads up Sweden’s Knitting Society, Sveriges Stickförening, says that fashion has also influenced the re-awakened interest in knitting. Today, knitted items, especially shawls, are in style. “Knitting comes and goes. It was trendy some 20 years ago and now it’s catching on again,” she says.

Hultman Eriksson says that an average of three new members join the knitting society every day, meeting in cafés around the country to knit and chat. “It has become quite popular to knit and it is very social too,” she says. “Knitting is also a great way to wind down and relieve stress.”

It takes all kinds

Nothing makes Hultman Eriksson happier than seeing knitting skills being passed down through the generations, spreading from the domain of elderly ladies to young Swedes.

Her own daughters used to be embarrassed every time she pulled needles and wool out of her handbag, but now she says they are proud of her knitting skill. Her husband pitches in by rolling up endless balls of stray yarn.

Liliequist says that Swedes don’t normally react when they see him with a needle and yarn in his hands, but he recalls one incident on an airplane: “I was sitting crocheting next to a woman from Pakistan and she started laughing at me. When I asked her what was wrong, she told me that in her country, only women did that.”

In Sweden, Liliequist sees a growing interest among other young men, who often send requests for information to the Kask website.

Hultman Eriksson would like to see more men knitting and crocheting before the trend wanes. “Interest in knitting will probably continue for another year or two and then fade, like all trends, but those of us who have always knitted will continue to do so.” She finishes by saying: “It’s healthy and not difficult – anyone can learn.”

Facts

Sverre Liliequist
After participating in numerous skiing competitions, Sverre Liliequist became Swedish champion in free skiing in 1998 and came in fifth place at the World Free Skiing Championship in Alaska the following year. Liliequist has skied in countries all over the world, including Sweden, Korea, Australia, Iceland, Canada and the USA. He made his first hat in 1996.

Wooly Sweden

Swedish shops offer a wide selection of yarn, which comes in all colors and textures, made from linen, cotton, silk, alpaca and, of course, Gotland wool. Gotland wool comes from sheep grazing on the island of Gotland, in the Baltic Sea. The wool is silky and lustrous and excellent for felting.
"

Friday, November 24, 2006

Paparazzi Police snap antisocial behaviour

More candid camera?

LONDRA GAZETE :: Ana sayfa:

"On Monday, Haringey's Safer Neighbourhoods' teams began using the £1,800 helmet cameras to film anti-social behaviour and support a five-day crime crack in Wood Green.

The officers will wear the cameras when on patrol and particularly in preparation for the Christmas period.

The cameras are the size of an AA battery and are mounted on to police headgear. Officers can then patrol as usual with the cameras recording digital images to a special utility belt.

The equipment is paid for by the Safer Communities Partnership administered by Haringey Council.

It will be used to gather evidence of offences to be shown in court.

Haringey Council's executive member from crime and community safety, Cllr Nilgun Canver, said: ' These cameras are a fantastic and effective policing tool. We know they work and they supply good quality images. 'We are proud to be part of this partnership with the police, working to keep Haringey a safe and welcoming borough over the Christmas period.'"

Thursday, November 23, 2006

Tips for fashion-challenged old men

www.explorernews.com:

"Tip No. 9: Panty hose weren't invented as headwear. I'm aware that rappers wear them, but that doesn't mean they don't look stupid. I've inquired about the rationale for this hideous head cover and the response is always the same, 'I'm making a statement.' I agree. No problem, being old makes a statement.

Tip No. 10: Wear your baseball cap with the bill in front 99 percent of the time. Wearing it backwards is OK when you're at the shooting range, using binoculars, a camera or telescope, and on most amusement park rides. Putting it on sideways is moronic unless you happen to fit into the category listed above (rapper), you're on a hike or walking and the sun is frying the back of your neck or the side of your head.

I hope you're starting to get the idea by now, and I'm sure you have some quirks that need immediate attention. Don't shake your head. You're a guy, and all men need fashion assistance. If you don't believe me, then ask your wife or best friend's wife. Take the initiative and evaluate your personal appearance before heading out into public. Your wife and friends with thank you for it."

Hoot Coutre Style Show

Marco Island Sun Times - 'Hoot Coutre Style Show' staged by Red Hat Ladies Dec. 5:

"The cast includes Dory Hertel, Queen of Royal Marco Cats; Daisy Arnos, Czarina Daisy; Pat Borniski, Contessa Pat; Claire Campbell, Dame Claire; Ann Festa, Princess Ann; Jackie Ford, Marquise Jacqueline; Jan Ossendryver, Baroness Jan; Trudy Schmidt, Lady Trudy Marco; and Carolyn Bohm, Duchess Carolyn.

Tickets may be purchased for $25 per person. Make checks payable to MIHS and send to Cindy Anderson, 848 Collier Court #303, Marco Island, FL 34145.
The Red Hat Society traces its roots to 1998, when Sue Ellen Cooper gave a friend a red hat with a copy of the poem written by Jenny Joseph in 1961. 'Warning' begins: 'When I am an old woman, I shall wear purple with a red hat that doesn't go and doesn't suit me. And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves.'

Cooper discovered other friends wanted red hats also and soon they were going out having a ball and attracting attention for others who wanted to join.

Today the Fullerton California-based Red Hat Society has more than 800,000 members and 36,000 chapters in the United States. Most groups consist of fewer than 20 women, so the conversation can flow freely. Women who join are over 50, go to the theatre, play cards and just have fun. The younger members, so-called 'princesses in training,' may attend gatherings but they wear pink hats and lavender dresses. When they turn 50, there is a graduation ceremony welcoming them as a red hatter.

The group performing is unique as they not only attend functions but they perform their 'Hoot Couture Fashion Show.'

The Red Hat group was established for friendship with no commitments such as fund-raising. The only requirement is when you attend any event you wear the red and purple colors. "

Love those lids

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Lifestyles :: Love those lids:

"As temperatures nudge downward and winter breathes cold down our necks, Chicagoans know Rule No. 1 for retaining body heat: a hat. Without one, a person effectively flings half their body heat into the wind. Yes, we get it. Hypothermia: Bad! But hats are so much more than function.

'It's like [people] channel their individual style through their hats,' observed Jules Ridgnal, 19, a fashion student at the International Academy of Design and Technology in the Loop.

We sampled folks from ages 3 to 80 about how they wear their hats, Chicago style.

• Fashion design student Chiquita Jenkins, 18, found her nylon and faux fur 'trapper' hat at Adidas a few weeks ago. With its ear flaps and chin snaps, and a brim to keep the snow off her face, the Taylor Street resident is ready for winter. 'It's a nice, fun hat,' she grinned. Her classmate, Sommer Ruby, 18, knew by fall she wasn't in Missouri anymore. She ducked into Claire's between classes. 'Everyone had black beanies,' she said. 'I got one with a pink flower to be a little different.'

• "I think it's called 'vintage,' " Drew Malley said of the worn brown fedora he bought for $20 in Milwaukee. The wine retailer grew up in Alaska, so he tends to greet winter with a certain amusement and pluck -- like the red feather in his hat. His wife, Jenna, thinks the hat's "funny."

• Sean Brown, 30, bought his classic stocking hat after moving from his native Ft. Worth, Tex. "I liked the bright primary colors," explained the part-time college professor. What's he learned in three Chicago winters? "This is a late fall/early winter hat for me. It's not heavy enough for winter. Soon I'll pull out the ... earmuffs and wear them with a slightly larger, heavier hat over them."

• An avid skateboarder until a knee injury forced her into retirement, Marissa Spalding, 26, is still very much into skate culture and fashion. A barista at Intelligentsia Coffee, 53 E. Randolph, Spalding wears her Grenade skull beanie indoors and out, often all day long. "It has a liner that's soft, like fleece," said the Rogers Park resident. "For me it's a way to kind of say 'Hi, I like to skate and I like skateboard culture.' I also like to keep my head warm!"

• A wool tweed flat cap never goes out of style for Nick Pepe, 80, of Bridgeport. Pepe likes to shop for hats in January when the wind is whistling with post-Christmas markdowns. The flat cap -- called a "Blinger cap" in Britain -- looks extra fine worn backward and tipped to the side, like a beret.

• "Summer and spring you can be cute," said Regina Woods. "Fall and winter you have to cover up and keep warm." Woods, 45, manages both in a retro black velveteen "baker boy" cap with a jaunty rosette. Her friends call it her "Punky Brewster hat" after the 1980s television show. The North Lawndale resident works with children in the Chicago Public Schools.

• "It's not too cold yet -- this is sort of the anticipation phase," declared Phyllis Russell, a public policy specialist on work and families. Her purple wool cloche, she said, "is a Chicago fashion statement in the sense that we don't fight the weather, we embrace the weather."

• Sergio Delgado, 3, is warm as toast and cute as a button in his yellow, black and gray fleece tri-tassel hat. His mom, Rosa, got it for him. The distinctive colors and style make him easy to spot in their Back of the Yards neighborhood. "

Did Pilgrims really wear buckles on their hats?

Did Pilgrims really wear buckles on their hats? | SavannahNow.com:

"Back in 1621, the Pilgrims and Wampanoag Indians got together for what we call the first Thanksgiving. Almost everything you know about that day is wrong.

For starters, that day wasn't really a 'thanksgiving.' To the colonists, a 'thanksgiving' was a religious occasion, where everyone sits in church thanking the Lord for some specific event, such as winning a battle or being spared by the latest plague. That day in 1621 was actually a harvest feast, with secular activities (dancing, games, singing secular songs) that would never have been allowed at a somber, God-fearing 'thanksgiving.'

Think it's hard to get rid of Uncle Ernie even after the table's cleared and the turkey's all wrapped up in foil? The original feast in Massachusetts lasted three days. We're not sure exactly when it happened, either; it was sometime between September 21 and November 11.

There's no record, by the way, that the two groups ever reunited for a feast after 1621.

We're not sure precisely what was served at the original feast, but settler Edward Winslow did send a letter to a friend mentioning 'fowl,' likely seasonal waterfowl such as ducks or geese. The colonists had no sugar and wheat flour was scarce, so there was no pumpkin pie and cranberry sauce. No one in the colony had built an oven for baking yet, anyway.

No one in New England had any sweet potatoes (or white potatoes), either.

Some historians think that the first festival's fare may have included seafood such as lobsters and mussels.

We do know that the Wampanoag, led by Chief Massasoit, contributed at least five deer.

No, the Pilgrims didn't wear black-and-white clothing with large buckles on their hats and shoes. The black-and-white garb was reserved for formal occasions, including church; the buckles didn't come into fashion until much later in the 17th century. Such affectations weren't really the Pilgrims' style, anyway."

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Fewer women wearing headscarves in Turkey

Fewer women wearing headscarves in Turkey - Women - Middle East Times:

"ISTANBUL -- Fewer women wear headscarves today in Muslim majority Turkey compared to seven years ago, a survey released in Istanbul Tuesday by an independent think-tank showed.

The poll, conducted among 1,500 people in May and June by the Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV), also found that while Turks today identify more with Islam they also give greater support to the country's secularist political tradition.

'Turks are becoming more religious but their religious identity is evolving - it is becoming secular,' TESEV research coordinator Etyen Mahcupyan told a news conference. 'With higher levels of education, the adoption of urban customs, and better living standards, lifestyles [of different social classes] have begun to converge ... A middle class is emerging,' he said.

The survey showed that the number of women who do not wear the headscarf increased to 36.5 percent this year from 27.3 percent in 1999.

Among women who cover up, wearers of the head-to-toe chador have declined from 3.4 percent to 1.1 percent over the past seven years and only 11.4 percent of women wear the Islamic-style headscarf, which has heavy religion connotations, compared to 15.7 percent in 1999.

The number of women who wear a simple traditional head covering dropped from 53.4 percent to 48.8 percent, according to the survey.

The Muslim headscarf is viewed by secular Turks as a symbol of political Islam and is banned by law in government offices and universities.

The issue has polarized Turkish society, particularly since the Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party came to power in 2002 with abolition of the headscarf ban high on its list of electoral promises. It has so far been unable to honor this pledge. "

Sunday, November 19, 2006

Chile's Desert Hats

The Santiago Times - English Language Newspaper in Santiago, Chile - News in Chile and Latin America:

"(November 19, 2006) The temporary exhibit at the Museum of Pre-Columbian Art intends to show, through a collection of Andean hats, the myriad ways humans create symbolic objects for social purposes. A large board hung outside the entrance to the exhibit notes that the head is the most prominent part of the body. Logically, then, the head is one of the best places to display meaning. As human beings create a symbolic world unto themselves, the head becomes a symbolic resource, a space for non-lingual expression. In just about every culture, hats have been and are still used to communicate messages about the wearer’s social, economic, political, ethnic and gender identity to others.

The exhibition presents hats worn by peoples of Chile’s desert north, Peru and Bolivia. The cultures of the Andes have some of the most distinct hat styles and head adornments in the world. According to Inca creation myth, after the god Wirakocha created the world, one of his first acts was to give distinctive clothing to each nation, so that they could recognize each other by dress. Hats especially were used as one of the most distinguishable elements of dress, a fact certainly affirmed by the variety of hats on display at the exhibit. The collection includes hats from the Parakas, Nasca, Wari and Chimu peoples, and spans over 1000 years.

The exhibition is presented in a style that could just as easily be found in a pre-Columbian cave as in an art museum. The room is dark, with small lights illuminating the hats only, while recordings of Andean traditional song softly hum from a single speaker. Such a dark and hushed tone lends the exhibit a mysterious, exciting quality, delving the visitor into an atmosphere of the spiritual and arcane. The first objects a visitor sees upon entering are large sheets of semi-transparent white cloth with outlines of Andean peoples, the design presumably taken from murals at Inca ruins. The sheets hang in front of hats propped on poles above the outlines. The hats, however, do not line up evenly with the heads, but rather are skewed about the outline, as if refusing to fit drawn ghosts.

This presentation eerily juxtaposes the hats’ past use in a living context with the distortion and disconnection of modern spectators before the objects of distant, anonymous people. Hats worn by important cultural figures are presented in this same fashion, while other hats are displayed in typical museum style: elevated on black stands, enclosed within an airtight rectangle of glass.

The exhibit progresses chronologically and according to culture, beginning with hats typical of the Nasca and the regional dignitaries of the Incan Royal Council, and ending in the period of the Spanish Conquest. Large placards, written in Spanish and English, alert visitors to different eras and the style of hats corresponding to each. In fact, most of the information on the placards illuminates Andean culture and history more than elaborating upon the hats themselves. One with zero knowledge of the Incan Empire and Andean people will leave the exhibit familiar with the progression of the Empire and major historical events in the region.

Unfortunately, there is little information about the symbolic significance associated with those who wore the hats on display; in fact, such information is only provided when the hats belonged to dignitaries or shamans. There is no information concerning the specific labor necessary for making the hats, such as the making of wool, the treating of vegetable fibers, the preparation of dyes and the dying process, the typical amount of time spent making the hats or who usually made them.

There are, however, three archetypal hats displayed next to a flat screen on which the details of weaving are shown through digital animation. Strangely, these displays are presented at the end of the collection, provoking one to marvel at all the previous works seen. Also at the end of the collection is a presentation of short films, taken of various Andean cultural events in Peru, Bolivia and Chile. The films are a wonderful touch of living culture after the exhibition of vacant headdress, and they remind the visitor that Andean hats conveyed and continue to convey meaning to people in a living context.
"

Yarn Tamers knit, crochet caps for underweight newborns

Yarn Tamers knit, crochet caps for underweight newborns:

"The Yarn Tamers have knit more than 100 tiny caps as part of the group’s fall project to support the Caps to the Capitol Program. The colorful hats are on display through Dec. 8 in the Luann Dummer Center for Women, Room 103, O’Shaughnessy Educational Center, St. Paul campus.

The program is sponsored by the nonprofit organization Save The Children. The organization will distribute the caps to newborns in Malawi and Bangladesh and lobby President George Bush to send more aid for health care to Third World countries.

According to Save The Children, the caps can save lives by keeping underweight babies warm. In the developing world, 2 million babies die each year in the first 24 hours of life. Save The Children is hoping to accumulate 75,000 knit caps.

Pat Alexander, from the Faculty Development Center and the Luann Dummer Center for Women, estimates that Yarn Tamers will send 100 to 200 caps to Washington, D.C.

The St. Paul group has about 15 regular members and includes staff, students and off-campus members. There also is a Minneapolis group, and a group is being formed on the St. Thomas campus iin Rome.

The St. Paul Yarn Tamers meet at noon Wednesdays in the Luann Dummer Center for Women. The Minneapolis group meets at noon Tuesdays in Room 345, Opus Hall. The groups encourage anyone interested in knitting to join in at one of the meetings. If you do not have knitting experience but would like to learn, the group can provide you with instruction. There is no formal registration; just stop by a group meeting.

Members who are still working on their caps should bring them to the Luann Dummer Center for Women by Friday, Dec. 8, so they can be included in the shipment to Washington, D.C.

The Yarn Tamers would like to thank those who have donated yarn for this project. The group will continue to accept yarn donations.
"

Saturday, November 18, 2006

Kate can leave her hat on

MPDClick :: Kate can leave her hat on:

"Supermodel Kate Moss is a regular fixture on best dressed lists and now she has also been named the coolest celebrity hat wearer in a survey.

The trendsetter topped the list by consortium Luton First as the star who is ahead of the pack with her headgear.

'Kate manages to wear the most elaborate and extravagant millinery designs with great confidence and aplomb and, most importantly, without the hat seemingly wearing her,' commented a spokesperson for Luton First, adding that the model has 'the face to launch a thousand hat collections'.

Philip Wright of milliners Walter Wright believes a hat is 'the final statement in personal style'.

Robbie Williams also got the nod for being the male celebrity who wears a hat the best.

'He doesn't take fashion too seriously and appears to treat clothes as a bit of fun,' a Luton First representative commented.

Other celebrities who were praised for their fashionable hat wearing include David Beckham, Dawn French and Joanna Lumley, while royals Princess Michael of Kent and the Prince of Wales both also feature in the list.
"

Friday, November 17, 2006

Got to wear a hat

TheScene : Got to wear a hat:

"Christian Dior once said, “…without hats, an intrinsic part of fashion, we would have no civilisation.” This is the philosophy and motto behind Melbourne-based hatters Cupid’s Millinery. The milliners of this award-winning company create hats and headpieces that are innovative and distinctive in style.

Cupid’s Millinery have three labels under them which range in price. Their top-of-the-line label is called “Fillies Collection”, then moving a little down in price is the “Max Alexander” range followed by the label “Hat to Have”.

Ranging from $79 to $500, their collections are considered to be at the top of the range in millinery production, yet still manage to cover a wide price market. Speaking with company director Yury Finkel, he attributes the company’s success to their designs, which are both interesting and unique.

Cupid’s Millinery’s aim is to achieve affordable prices, as compared to milliners who make one-off pieces, without jeopardizing quality and originality. Their Fillies range is particularly recognisable and has stolen a lot of limelight over the 35 years of its existence.

Cupid’s try to vary their designs by using different shapes, feathers, trims or flower decorations, but mainly they set their own style and hence have had a lot of praise for their designs.

Finding the right hat to match your outfit for the races - and it is all about matching - can be a very nagging process. Finkel has seen many customers walk through the door trying to match the colour of a hat or headpiece to their outfit. “I would suggest,” Finkel imparts some words of wisdom, “that if you can’t find a hat exactly matching your outfit’s colour, avoid it.”

These days, hats are a lot more than accessories. There are those who first choose a hat and then find an outfit to match but Finkel explains it is much harder to match your whole outfit this way. “A hat actually changes the look of the outfit…it changes the purpose of the outfit, it could either accentuate the outfit or takes attention from it,” he says. There is certainly something feminine and glamorous about wearing a hat, but it is important to pick the one that suits your face, your frame and the look you want for the occasion.

What to look out for in 2006 for the Spring Carnival? As for trends, materials and colours are the only things milliners really keep to. Most milliners are using natural straws - in particular a product called sinamay. Big brim hats are also in this season, but look best on taller girls.

In terms of colours, keep an eye out for browns, bronze, reds and crisp whites. Navy is also making a comeback this season, and will also be the colour of winter 2007.

Cupid’s collections are mainly based on strategic designs, which mean that anyone can find a hat or headpiece in the collection that is suitable for them. “If the collection is done properly, anybody going through the door should be able to find a few suitable items,” Finkel affirms.

That is why head designer Olga Finkel (it’s a family business) designs with a particular type of person in mind who could wear that hat. Finkel knows that making beautiful creations is important, but making them so that they can be worn comfortably is vital also.

If you go to the races this season, look around you and see the exquisite hats many women wear. Milliners are designers who receive very little praise throughout the year, but come Spring Carnival and they dazzle you with their hats and fascinators that truly are works of art. If you want to look sensational for the occasion and keep to the tradition that the Spring Carnival has become, look no further than the Fillies Collection or something a little more affordable in Max Alexander and Hat to Have ranges. "

Saab going Muslim?

Mathaba News:

"There seems to be some strange correlation between Scandinavian cars and religion. Volvo used to be the car of choice for Orthodox Jews, apparently because it had enough headroom to allow them keeping their hats on. Is Saab trying to become the car driven by upper class Muslims? In their latest advertising they feature a woman driving a convertible clad in a headscarf, or Chlamys, designed by city banker turned fashion designer Osman Yousefzada. The outfit wouldn't pass the test of Muslim orthodoxy since it leaves the chest bare whilst covering the head, but it presents as an attractive item of clothing the very piece of cloth liberal secularists are usually obsessed with and frightened of.

Osman Yousefzada hails from Afghanistan and entitled his first fashion collection 'Kalashnikov'. Maybe we need to warn John Reid that in his own subversive way he is fighting an Islamist Jihad against Western freedoms by making women to cover up as part of a desire to gain status in society. Saab calls the 'ultimate convertible-driving scarf' a sexy attire sure to turn heads. Muslim women already know that heads are turned whenever they walk past, although usually with an expression of suspicion. Makes you wonder, will the French ban Swedish car imports next?

With a price tag of £150 attached, it might become as chique for Western women to drive around in an outfit that draws attention as would-be terrorists as it used to be for young men to wear prison clothing restyled as urban streetwear. Pity Jack Straw, he had it all wrong again.
"

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Sea of Scarlet

Sea of Scarlet - Hesperia Star:

"They came one by one, two by two and many by the carload. Some, like Roxanne Walker and her Victor Valley based Roxy’s Red Hat Rebels, didn’t have to travel far, but many others trekked from Banning, Orange County, San Diego, Las Vegas and other distant locales. And all shared one, single passion: a love for red hats and the good company that they bring.

The crimson sorority is so strong that last Wednesday’s luncheon in the Terrace Room of Hesperia Senior Campus was one of the facility’s largest gatherings.

“We were two shy of 300 people,” said Mary Wagner, a vice queen of the Fun & Frisky Hesperia Hatitudes.

Seated at numerous tables around the spacious dining facility, members of the Society wore all varieties of hat. Some were politely appointed, others handsomely decorated, still more sported dramatic, adventurous plumage. There were berets, tiny bowlers, bonnets, country-and-western and undeniably garrish hats aplenty. One woman wore a carefully design panty as a hat. Two others each wore brassieres as hats.

According to Red Hat Society tradition — the society has “no rules, no meetings” — members can deviate from red during their birthday month when purple becomes the color of choice. Red Hat Society “babies” under 50 must wear pink hats. Purple clothes accompany the red hats, while lavender is matched the younger set�s pink headdress.

The recent soiree also included musical entertainment, displays and memorabilia, and a hat fashion show featuring the diverse creations from a Palm Springs-area “milliner,” or hat maker. Before the “girls” strutted their stuff, Ricky Dean, the hat designer’s assistant, carefully fitted the 20 or so fashion model volunteers.

The Red Hat Society was founded by Sue Ellen Cooper (now know as the “Queen Mother') of Fullerton after reading a poem that begins “When I am an old woman ...” As a result, Cooper and her friends began wearing red hats and purple attire to celebrate their coming of age. Six years ago, after the group was featured in a magazine article, Red Hat chapters began springing up just about everywhere.

“We have about 40,000 chapters,” said Queen Virgie. “We’re even in Europe and Japan.”

The reason for the growth is simple.

“It’s so much fun,” said Walker, who is the Hesperia Police Station’s public information office when she’s not wearing her red hat. “It’s a great way to express yourself, and it’s good for your health!”
"

Can't stop the topper

edmontonsun.com - Fashion - Can't stop the topper:

"Hats used to be stodgy old things your grandfather wore. Today, they're the trendy toppers of braver and bolder fashion types looking to add an edge to their look.

Forget the boring old baseball cap. There's a hat for every style and taste this season, from fedoras and poor boys to trappers and jockey caps.

'Hats have come back in a big way and pop culture has played a big role in popularizing them,' says Dameion Royes, creator of Big It Up, a Toronto hat chain.

The fedora, for example, was traditionally a man's hat.

Now, thanks to R&B singer Alicia Keys, it's as popular with women as it was with men back in the 1930s.

"She wears it slanting down over one eye with blue jeans and stilettos to really funk it up," says Royes.

Also worn off to the side, the glamorous equestrian hat with rounded peak is back, typically found in this season's popular tweed.

Trapper hats are perfect for winter-fighting mode, says Royes. They're campy and cool, and convey true "hatitude."

"You're stylish but in an uncool way. It stands out. You can't miss it. You're a real trendsetter who isn't afraid of taking a risk," he says.

"You don't want the hat to wear you. You have to wear the hat."

Tweed and corduroy chauffeur hats and tuques with rims are also popular with young people, he adds. "

Friday, November 10, 2006

Hat company stays competitive

Philadelphia Inquirer | 11/10/2006 | Hat company stays competitive:

"The Bollman Hat Co. factory in Lancaster County rumbles and shudders, churning and pounding wool into dense felt for headgear, as if naked noggins all over the nation were in dire need of a covering, a fedora, a fez or a ten-gallon hat.

Of course, they are not.

Hats left high office with Eisenhower. And that - along with cheap imports - is part of the reason Bollman is one of just a handful of hatmakers surviving out of the hundreds that once operated in the United States.

'When JFK was president, he didn't wear a hat, and that had an influence on men,' said Bob DePasqua, a Bollman department head and 30-year employee at the factory.
Still, men's hats and millinery thrive as accessories, costumes, personal statements, safety wear, sunshades, rain deflectors, fish-hook storage racks, and bald-spot-concealment devices. And Bollman's 500 workers press and stamp to make available about 1.5 million lids per year.

Don Rongione, president and chief executive officer of the employee-owned company, declined to discuss revenue in detail, but said the company's best year was 2003, when sales reached about $100 million on the popularity of hats in hip-hop fashion. "We're down from there a bit," Rongione said.

Hat fortunes do come and go with fashion's whims. "Indiana Jones really helped our business for a long time," DePasqua said of the hard-boiled Harrison Ford movie character who treasured a battered outsize fedora through the 1980s.

Bollman has been making hats in Adamstown Borough (population 1,200) since 1868. The brick factory is a maze of machinery designed over the last century to turn tufts of bleached Texas wool into hats.

In the process, the wool is transformed, first into fluffy felt cones on "carding" machines that date from the 1930s.

The uniform woolen cones, stiffened with shellac, gradually take color and shape in a series of dye boilers; rolling, hardening and sanding machines; molds, presses and dryers - ending up as floppy hats, high hats for doormen and bridegrooms, cowboy hats, or virtually any conceivable headware.

"You see those fibers, and you end up with a finished hat," DePasqua said. "It's fun."

The U.S. Olympic team sported Bollman hats in the opening ceremonies at Nagano, Japan, in 1998. And the company makes about 12,000 scarlet fezzes each year for the Shriners fraternal order. "That's a neat little niche business we've done," DePasqua said.

The company battles to stay competitive in an environment where imports can sell "for less than half of what it costs us to produce" a hat domestically, said Rongione, the CEO. "It's a real challenge for domestic manufacturers."

On the East Coast, Bollman is one of the few remaining hat manufacturers - a club that also includes F&M Hat Co. Inc. in Denver, Pa., and Kraft Hat Manufacturers Inc., of New York.

Bollman makes hats under brands - some acquired in recent years - that include Kangol, Bailey, Timberland, and Country Gentleman, as well as private labels, and its toppers are sold in stores that include Wal-Mart, as well as boutiques in New York and Europe, where hats can sell for hundreds of dollars.

In the early 1990s, Bollman made 98 percent of its hats in the United States, Rongione said. But that figure has fallen to 35 percent, with the rest - including knitted hats and unfinished straw-hat bodies - manufactured in Asia, Mexico and Italy, Rongione said.

Even so, he said, by shifting workers to customer service, distribution, and other in-house jobs, domestic employment has remained steady at about 500.

Bollman has been employee-owned since 1985, when managers bought the company from the founding Bollman family. In addition to the the 500,000-square-foot Adamstown factory, the company operates a 132,000-square-foot distribution center about three miles away, near a Pennsylvania Turnpike exit. It also has three showrooms in New York and one in Fort Worth, Texas.

One man really does wear most of the hats that Bollman produces.

He is Jeff Kepple, who oversees the design and production of Bollman prototypes - hats in paisley, festooned with plumage, psychedelic, and experimental colors that defy naming. Hundreds of them are stacked in his small office just off the factory floor.

"We've got to keep coming up with new inventory," said Kepple, 48, who has worked at Bollman since he was 16. On a recent morning, Kepple sorted through some of the hats in his cubicle, pointing out the bindings and piping, ribbons, holes, buttons, bling, and rubber appliques that set each one apart.

Some may be "old shapes, but we dress 'em up," Kepple said. "We need to be innovative and do things that nobody else is doing."
"

Tuesday, November 07, 2006

The Truth About Gaffes

The Truth About Gaffes:

"A “gaffe” is a true statement that outrages the hypocrites, who then mobilize to shut the truth-teller up. The most common gaffes are about politics and religion, because those are the areas where the level of hypocrisy is highest. Which explains John Kerry’s problem last Tuesday, or why Muazzez Ilmiye Cig almost went to jail in Turkey on Wednesday.

John Kerry inadvertently spoke the truth about why some people end up in the US armed forces while others do not. Speaking to students in California, he said: “You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard...you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq.”

Cue mass outrage. How dare Kerry suggest that people might be in the US Army because they lacked the education for softer, safer, better-paying jobs, or indeed might have joined precisely to get that missing education? No, they’re all there solely because they are patriots, and anybody who says differently will be spanked soundly and sent to bed without supper.

The Republicans leaped on Kerry’s remark as a golden opportunity to paint the Democrats as unpatriotic and disloyal to the armed forces (even though most senior Bush administration officials, including the president, the vice-president, and the national security adviser, successfully avoided service in Vietnam). And yet Kerry’s remark was entirely true.

The Pentagon’s own figures show that only 10 percent of American enlisted troops have any post-secondary education, whereas 56 percent of the general population does. It has been true since Sargon of Akkad created the world’s first regular army over four thousand years ago: It’s mostly poor people who join the army, because rich people have better options. The military themselves recognize this in their recruiting ads, which stress the opportunities for further education during or after military service. It’s obvious, but you’re not allowed to say it plainly in public.

More admirable than Kerry, because her gaffe was deliberate and she refused to apologize, is Muazzez Ilmiye Cig, a 92-year-old Turkish archaeologist who said bluntly that hijab — “Islamic” head-scarves that hide women’s hair — are not Islamic at all, but a 5,000-year-old Middle Eastern tradition.

The great thing about being 92 — one of the few good things about being 92, apart from not being dead yet — is that you no longer have to care about your career or what people think. As one of the world’s leading experts on Sumer, the first civilization, Cig published thirteen books and dozens of scholarly articles on her subject and earned great respect within that small community. But then she published a book last year about her own convictions (“My Reactions as a Citizen”) and all hell broke loose in Turkey.

All she said was that the headscarf, now a badge of Muslim identity for devout women in Turkey and elsewhere, was actually first worn five thousand years ago by temple priestesses in Sumeria. Only the daughters of the rich and influential got temple jobs. So gradually the wearing of headscarves came to designate “respectable” women; that is to say rich women, not peasants and slaves. The fashion persisted down to Greek and Roman times, and was picked up by the Arabs when they conquered Syria in the generation after the Prophet.

Well, I could have told her that. I grew up a Catholic in Newfoundland, and the nuns who taught my sisters wore the full Sumerian gear. Until a couple of decades ago, Catholic nuns still dressed like any respectable Middle Eastern woman (of any religion) of two or three thousand years ago. Muazzez Ilmiye Cig was just stating the obvious historical truth. A serious gaffe.

So Islamist lawyers brought charges against her for “inciting hatred and enmity among the people,” and she ended up in court facing the prospect of one and a half years in prison. But twenty-five lawyers showed up to defend her for free, and the state prosecutor himself asked the judge to drop the charges, and in half an hour she walked out of the court a free woman, cheered by the crowd that had come to support her. The hypocrites do not always win. "

From the fashion judge's mouth

The Sydney Morning Herald Blogs: Fashion / Archives:

"I am sitting in the judge's enclosure of the Myer marquee, one of nine judges of the Womens Classic Racewear category of Fashions on the Field at today's Melbourne Cup. Somewhat awkwardly perhaps, seated right next to Vogue supremo Kirstie Clements, whose Derby Day outfit I slagged off yesterday. Oops.

A lovely group of ladies have just paraded their Cup Day outfits in front of us. And what a varied array of wares. I had been told that the Disco Divas had been discouraged from competition this year, in a bid to lift dress standards at the track, but two such Divas appear to have escaped Myer's scrutiny. One is wearing a wisp of a turquoise handkerchief-hemmed cocktail frock whose underslip is located directly beneath her derriere. With today's gusty winds, in other words, said derriere is getting a frequent airing on the podium.

Speaking of gusty winds I meanwhile was foolish enough to wear not one but two cocktail hats, one perched somewhat precariously on top of the other, tied only with a black ribbon. I was going for a kind of Toulouse Lautrec-meets-Elton John look. One hat is covered with orange feathers and lends a wig-like effect, with the end result that most of my peers don't seem to recognise me. I have just been mistaken for Belinda Seper by one. Having failed to take the wind factor into consideration however I am at considerable, imminent risk of suffering a millinery emergency. If the upper hat suddenly plops off into the lap of Kirstie Clements, I imagine it would be poetic justice.

Up on the podium Seven's broadcast co-commentator Alex Perry has just invented a new millinery term: the Fat. It is designed to describe a hybrid between a fascinator and a hat.

Off the microphone in between heats a bit earlier on, Perry made another salient observation:

'The Seppelt Salinger is flowing freely' quipped Perry.
"

Monday, November 06, 2006

I Was a Red Hat Dropout

I Was a Red Hat Dropout - OhmyNews International:

"I was a Red Hat Society dropout. Sorry, Exalted Queen Mother Ellen Sue Cooper, but when it came time for expected squeals of fun and frivolity, I couldn't fake it.

For those of you who've never encountered a batch of middle-aged and older women wearing red hats and purple outfits having tea, in line for the theater, or gawking at some local tourist attraction, the Red Hat Society is a "dis-organization" of 1.5 million women in 50 states in the U.S. and 30 countries.

At the New Year's parade, Londoners will have their chance to see the Scarlett Floosies" from Corryton, Tennessee in their red hat splendor among the marchers.

Sue Ellen Cooper founded the Red Hat Society almost accidentally when she presented a friend with a thrift shop red fedora in celebration of the big five-o birthday. They then gave red hats to others and a veritable movement was begun.

Now the members can apply for their own Red Hat platinum MasterCard, read Red Hat books and shop in a huge Red Hat online store which sells all kinds of Red Hat apparel, gifts, decorations and, yes, red hats.

Recently I was reminded of my brief history as a Red Hat Society member by an article in the New York Times. "Hats! A New Musical for the Rest of Your Life," opened in Denver, the article reported, and is slated to play in New Orleans next year and then in casinos around the U.S.

Among the contributors to this show are Kathie Lee Gifford and Melissa Manchester. Harrah's, the casino operators, is behind it all. According to the news story, Harrah's thinks it's a perfect fit with one of their target demographics: women between 49-53.

The red hat plus purple attire has its genesis in a poem called "Warning" by Jenny Joseph. Space does not allow me to reprint it here, thank goodness, but you have probably spotted it stuck to a refrigerator door somewhere. It's that kind of inspirational verse.

"We believe that silliness is the comedy relief of life," states the Red Hat's Society's purpose.

Okay, I was certainly on board with that. I was over 50. And I love hats.

So I went looking for a chapter in Florida. Chapters were easy to find as you might imagine since there are hundreds of thousands of women over 50 there, but many were filled up, taking no more new members. I searched and found an open one and joined online. Very exclusive.

Many of the chapters are simply named the "(Insert Name of Retirement Community Here) Red Hatters" but lots of others are called something on the order of the "Hot Flashing Mommas." Yes, really. I figured though what might be lacking in real wit might be made up in fun.

My Queen telephoned and explained that the next event was the Florida state convention. I would be welcome, she said excitedly, to attend this three-day conference. The site was only about six miles up the thruway so I decided to plunge in.

And plunge in I did. Right into the mall where I bought a purple faux suede pantsuit and jaunty red hat for the daytime events, a purple tiered flapper number for the evening and a purple not-revealing nightgown for the pajamas breakfast. I spent a couple of happy hours fashioning a cocktail hat out of fake flowers, netting and ribbon. Damn it, I was going to look good having fun.

My spirits sank when I drove into the parking lot of the hotel, a businessperson's featureless tower of glass and marble right off the thruway. Women were piling out of those boring reliable cars that women of a certain age in Florida favor. Many were sporting out of state plates. Snow birds, they're called. I spotted a minivan plastered with a sign," Permanent makeup. Eyebrows! Eyeliner! Lip liner! Tattooed in Real Life Colors! See Bonnie Sue!"

Well, I thought, "It's Florida."

The first event was registering and milling around. No one seemed inclined to chat. I longed for a glass of wine. No one was having any. Not if it weren't included in the registration fee.

And so it went. The evening dinner was pedestrian. Chicken. The fashion show was mildly amusing. Women strutted their thrift shop finds wearing sneakers.

Next morning I was still hanging in and hanging out with the rest of the Red Hats in the dining room for breakfast in my purple not-revealing nightgown. Gosh, some women had really made an all out effort. I saw more purple marabou trimmed negligees than I imagined existed. I heard laughter, but it seemed nervous in origin.

Not one to be a quitter, I gave the Red Hats another try. This time, a chapter event. We visited a local chocolate factory famous for its Christmas lights. After a five-minute walk through not-such-a wonderland of miniature houses, bridges over nothing and Christmas trees, we were ushered into the store where I glazed through the large picture windows at the not-in-operation candy making machinery.

The next time? For me there was no next time.
"

Don't let autumn go to your head

Scotsman.com Living - Fashion - Don't let autumn go to your head:

"That John Bro- ckman missed a trick when he compiled What We Believe But Cannot Prove. If he'd called his essay collection What We're Pretty Sure We Understand But Can't Work Out How to Prove I'd have written him his opener, taking as my subject temperature loss via the head.

I'm a bit sketchy on percentages, but it's a widely accepted fact that most of your body's heat escapes out the top. But how do we know? I'm sure scientists have a nifty way of proving it but I wouldn't know where to start: do you wrap up style-conscious volunteers in layers of Marc Jacobs knitwear (topping things off with one of his autumn collection outsize woolly hats) and place them before a roaring log fire to see what happens when you take their headgear off? Presumably their fevers would abate a little, but whether that amounts to proof with percentages attached is a moot point.

You have thoughts like this when, at long last, you spy winter riding over the horizon. Because the heatloss proposition is a pretty good reason to go out looking for hats. My current favourite is the felt or knitted cloche with giant flowers attached. For anyone who has yet to actually see themselves while wearing one (the correct position being so low over the eyes as to make checking impressions in a mirror laughably unrealistic) I can tell you: they're eye-catchingly fun, although possibly best viewed from the side. From the front, what is visible of the lower half of your face - nose, cheeks, smirk - is borderline alarming.

The cloche's great advantage is that, like the French berets, baker-boys and multi-coloured woolly bobble hats making a bold comeback this year, it can be stowed away in a tote when you come in from the cold - a distinct help if you're going anywhere the Miss Marple keep-your-hat-on dress code is not appreciated (at a concert, say).

Its very squashability could teach the season's other apparently hot headwear look, the trilby, a thing or two. The trilby does not stow away in a tote. It also does not sit easily on the average head, so if you're planning to step out in one, keep it for a country walk on a bright and breezeless day and don't end up in a pub for lunch because you'd have to take it off, and a trilby doesn't look good sharing table space with a ploughman's platter.

That's what I believe to be true. But as with all things style-related, it defies all attempts at proof."

Head of the Class

The Sheboygan Press - Head of the Class::

"Students at Lincoln-Erdman Elementary School got a little crazy for a good cause during the school's recent Student Council Crazy Hat Day.

Students and staff donated $1 apiece to The Heavenly Hats Foundation, which purchases hats for children who lose their hair due to cancer treatments. A total of $318 was raised. Heavenly Hats Foundation was initiated five years ago by Anthony Leanna, a 15-year-old from Green Bay. More than 90,000 new pieces of headwear have been donated to patients and hospitals so far."

Those racy royals of Ascot

A concise writing about the Ascot scene and it's contribution to fashion in British society.

Travel | Those racy royals of Ascot:

"OF all the Queen's annual engagements, the one she probably enjoys most is Royal Ascot – England's counterpart of the Melbourne Spring Carnival. Each year in late June, Her Majesty, an unashamed horseracing lover, heads off for the racing world's most traditional and prestigious carnival.

Since 1768 the royal family has been attending the famous Royal Ascot five-day carnival at Ascot Racecourse, west of London. In a time-honoured ritual, the royal entourage makes the trip each day from nearby Windsor Castle to Ascot, arriving by horse and carriage in a spectacular procession along the racetrack.

Gushing with pomp and ceremony, Royal Ascot is king of the racing world and from where many of the sport's enduring social and fashion rituals derive.

One of the last true public displays of aristocratic Britain, a trip to Royal Ascot is like taking a trip back in time.

Undoubtedly the hottest place to be seen during Royal Ascot is in the exclusive royal enclosure. It's a veritable "who's who", where royalty and celebrities rub shoulders with Arab sheiks, business tycoons and the high and mighty.

Royal Ascot is perhaps most famous for its dress code. It is one racing event where men get as much attention for their attire as women. In a tradition started by Beau Brummell, a trend-setting English socialite and Royal Ascot regular in the early 19th century, the customary attire for men is top hat and tails.

Royal Ascot is also famed as a fashion catwalk, with women dressed in elegant, colourful race outfits and stunning hats. On Ladies' Day, the carnival's most popular day, women wear the most flamboyant millinery creations.

From picnics in the members' car parks, to the royal enclosure, in and behind the Grandstand, right down to the public areas, this amazing racecourse vista is dominated by a sea of top hats and vibrant women's headwear.

The rituals and sophistication of Royal Ascot have changed but the racecourse backdrop has gone through a number of incarnations. In 2005, Royal Ascot was temporarily shifted to York while Ascot Racecourse underwent a huge multi-million dollar facelift. While some of the racecourse's delightful historic architecture has been preserved, the highlight of this development saw a huge 400m-long grandstand replace all other stands.

Of course, the state-of-the-art stand included a plush new Royal Box, containing literally the best seat in the house. Here, Her Majesty, whose racehorses have won 19 times at Royal Ascot over the years, can watch her favourite sport in royal comfort.

Matching the calibre of Royal Ascot racegoers, the carnival also lures the big names of world racing. While jockeys such as Frankie Dettori and Michael Kinane sit aboard the most regally bred thoroughbreds, trainers such as Dermot Weld and Sir Michael Stoute, dressed in their morning suits, are all there aiming for Royal Ascot glory.

The highlight of Royal Ascot's racing is on Ladies' Day, with the running of the 4000m Ascot Gold Cup. Many of the runners are aimed at another great staying race – the Melbourne Cup.

Perhaps one of Royal Ascot's greatest traditions happens at the end of each day.

When the racing is over and jubilant punters have collected their winnings, everyone heads to the bandstand behind the Grandstand for a spectacular communal singing session accompanied by a full brass band.

Waving their small Union Jacks, the joyous crowd belt out such perennial British favourites as Rule Britannia, Tipperary and Auld Lang Syne and many more. "

Friday, November 03, 2006

America Imports 96% of Clothing

America Imports 96% of Clothing; Stormy Kromer Keeps The Made In America Dream Alive:

"LANSING, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--It's just common sense: When you can see your breath outside, you put on a hat. Is it American made or is there simply a logo slapped on it? Does the American consumer care? At Stormy Kromer they believe it does, with a new lineup of “American Made” Stormy Kromer gear including coats, jackets, vests and hats ready for the holidays. The original Stormy Kromer cap dates back to 1903; a line that has kept its original flavor with contemporary updates and patents, while being made in America. “It's remarkable. The American people can't even clothe themselves. Ninety-six percent of our of clothing is imported,” said CNN Anchor Lou Dobbs. He adds, “the fact is, if we have to depend on American manufacturing and garment workers, you know, all but four percent of us would be nudists.”

In 1903 very few products were imported; that was the year that Stormy asked his beloved wife, Ida, to help him modify one of his many hats from his baseball days by sewing on earflaps. The newly revised cap featured a soft flexible visor — and was a great departure from the traditional hats of the era. But to Stormy, the best part of his modified cap was that it managed to stay right where it belonged — on his head — high winds and all. It was just a matter of time before the Stormy Kromer cap became popular, first among other locomotive engineers, and then among all the outdoorsmen in the Midwest.

And that's it. That's where is all began right here in the USA. Today’s outdoor enthusiasts have embraced Stormy Kromer’s fashion, functionality and the fact that it is made in America. "Whenever a Michigan company thrives by creating world-class products, it deserves our applause," said Michigan Governor Jennifer M. Granholm. "When you visit Stormy Kromer's Michigan operations you can see how they keep their prices competitive through outstanding quality. The entrepreneurial spirit you see on display there makes me proud to be Governor of this great State."

Today, Stormy Kromer caps are still made true to the original design — continuing to protect all those lucky enough to own one. Anyone who's ever owned a genuine Stormy Kromer has undoubtedly felt the quality and functionality are among the world’s best. American made Stormy Kromer products can be found in retailers nationwide and in magazines targeting consumers of the “rural theater,” including hunters, skiers, fishermen, snowmobilers and campers who enjoy the outdoors. “Stormy Kromer products have received numerous awards and compliments from our governmental officials and consumers alike,” said Bob Jacquart, CEO of Stormy Kromer, adding “touring our World Class cut and sew operation gives people renewed faith that it is indeed possible to manufacture quality clothing products in the U.S. at a competitive price.”
"

Wednesday, November 01, 2006

No mad hatter but mad hats

No mad hatter but mad hats :: ABC South Coast WA:

"It’s the time of the year when many women and some men are on the hunt for the perfect hat for the races, but for milliner Richard Nylon hats are an all-year-round love affair.

“I used to make my own clothes and made hats to go with it,” Richard says about his early days as a hat designer. “I always went for the total look.” His love for detail paid off when he was spotted in a nightclub wearing one of his outfits. “I was asked if I wanted to be part of a fashion parade.” After that he sort of moved from designing the entire outfit to focusing on hats. “Fashion designer Gwendolynne Burkin asked me to do hats for her first collection.”

Like many other designers Richard is self-taught to a great degree, but appreciates the skills that milliners possess. “I love working with a milliner who is taught in a traditional way,” he says. Using traditional skills while being self-taught frees him from certain restrictions and traditions and certainly allowed him to develop a very distinct look.

Richard has made himself quite a name as one of Australia’s finest and original milliners, but there’s still a lot to learn even for someone as accomplished as him. “I would really love to know about draping,” he says. There’s a group of French milliners from the 40s and early 50s including Lady Dach�and Caroline Reboux, who got his admiration. “There’s lightness in their designs that I would like to learn.”

And there are also certain blocking techniques that he’d wouldn’t mind knowing about. Blocking is a process where a flexible fibre is placed over an object that is stiff and strong enough to be mould over. Traditionally wooden hat blocks are used, but Richard being Richard uses a whole variety of different items. “I use objects that I find. I’ve used lampshades before or little dishes,” he says.'

These days hats are mainly used during specific occasions such as horse races, but traditionally hats played an important role in Australia. “Hats were very important given the sunshine in this country,” Richard explains. In those early days most hats were imported from England. “Anything that royalty did was taken as an invitation to be a follower of fashion.” And of course royalty having designed and produced their outfits and hats in England, ladies in Australia had sent their outfits from the home country as well. The only hats that were produced in Australia in those early days of European settlement, were the hats that were worn everyday by the lower classes. ”They needed something to cover their heads to be protected from the sun and a lot of the women had basic weaving skills,” Richard says.

It took a while for millinery to start here in Australia, but once it did, Australian hats even made it back to England. “It was discovered what beautiful birds we had,” Richard says. Millinery in Australia only really started taking off in the 40s and 50s. “A woman had to have a hat for every outfit.” Before that, most materials were still imported from overseas as a hat produced from French materials simply had more kudos amongst Australia’s fashionistas.

These days Richard discovers a slightly worrying trend for milliners. “One of the biggest trends at the races are no hats,” he says. Headbands are another trend and fortunately for Richard and his budding milliners, wide brim hats are making a comeback taking over from fascinators

And what will be adorning Richard’s head this year at the Spring Racing Carnival? Being a real lover of fashion, he doesn’t only have one hat ready for the occasion, but three. “For the races I have a tricorn 18th century style hat, I am also going to have a bowler hat and one that is heavily beaded,” Richards explains his range of head covers for this year’s races."

Head for true colour

Head for true colour | The Courier-Mail:

"START with your headwear, then dress yourself to suit it.
That's the hot tip this racing season from Brisbane milliner Ann-Maree Willett.

Willett has been making hats for the women of Queensland and Melbourne for the past six years.

A regular trackside, Willett is a keen observer of punter fashion and says no racing ensemble is complete without a stand-out headpiece.

'That's what racing is all about, isn't it – the hat?' she says.

From elaborate adornment to smaller, more subtle, feathered hairclips, Willett tailors designs for her clients and she believes racegoers should wear what suits their particular style and personality.

Her design, right, was inspired by the beauty of Queensland. 'I wanted to use the Cooktown orchid because it is the native emblem for Queensland,' she says.

Handmade from silk, Willett attached the orchids to the base of the hat, which is modelled on a traditional army slouch hat.

When deciding on your own hat, Willett says you should go with what you feel comfortable wearing.

If you're loud and raucous, go flamboyant with the headwear, but if you're more subdued a subtle headpiece or hat is fine, she says.

'We are definitely moving towards more elegant headwear and more elegant race wear overall,' Willett says.

While black and red are always popular colours, says Willett, who gets regular fashion forecasts from Europe, muted brights are also big this season.

Look out for muted pink, mint, yellow, aqua or teal.

And if you can't decide between a hat or a fascinator (otherwise known as a brimless headpiece), Willett suggests taking your cue from the weather. 'Hats are definitely a must up here (in Queensland) because of the climate, so I think generally women want to look out for them,' she says.

And because it is spring, you should steer clear of heavy fabrics like felt.

Willett's hats, which are all one-off designs, range from $600 for larger more elaborate designs to $80 for smaller headpieces.

For a large range of Australian-designed headpieces, try Myer.

You can find a selection of headbands with feathers, bows and jewels attached at Portmans, Sportsgirl and Kleins.

"

Bring on the beret

Bring on the beret:

"Berets have a bad reputation. Think about it: What comes to mind when you hear the word? If annoying mimes and cheesy '80s Prince songs are on your list, don't worry. You're probably not alone.

But things are changing. The beret is one of fall's freshest and most sophisticated looks.

Worn originally by Basque peasants, berets have been co-opted by everyone from Mary Tyler Moore to police and military units around the world. While they've developed a cult following of sorts over the years, berets have never really had their moment in the style spotlight.

But after designers including Dolce & Gabbana, Ralph Lauren and Diane von Furstenberg featured berets in their collections for this fall and winter, the negative assumptions surrounding this much-maligned accessory have disappeared.

'When worn over the left brow, the beret has a sexy French 'thang' about it,' designer Daryl K explained to Vogue after her fall/winter show.

They've also become a celebrity favourite. Mary-Kate Olsen paired a bright red knit beret with a voluminous gown at the Christian Dior show during Paris' recent fashion week. In September, The O.C. star Rachel Bilson wore her white felt version to a Teen Vogue party with a flirty white minidress and cropped black jacket. Others recently spotted in berets include Diane Kruger, Ashlee Simpson and Kate Hudson.

The difficulty with berets is knowing what to wear them with. One wrong move, and a beret can make even the most carefully planned outfit appear costume-y. (So don't even think about pairing one with any of fall's new military-inspired pieces or, God forbid, a striped tee and black pants.)

Try to maintain a simple silhouette: A basic black wool beret worn with a fitted tweed jacket, dark skinny jeans and knee-high, heeled boots will work. A brightly hued beret with a tailored white shirt, dark pencil skirt and pointy-toed stilettos is also a great look.

And don't worry about how to wear it. Alison Deyette, fashion journalist from online magazine Style Bakery, says there are no rules. 'It's just about which way you prefer and how it looks best on you. I've seen it centred, slightly right, and slightly left,' Deyette says.

Ready to add one to your fall wardrobe? There are many options, ranging from the luxurious (Dolce & Gabbana's shearling version retails for about $540) to the more attainable and locally available (Le Chateau's chic, knit beret in black or ivory for $15).
"

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