I have a real soft spot for creating bespoke headwear for mums who are off to the wedding of their child, but are at a loss for what sort of hat or fascinator to wear. Or are unsure about even wearing one or finding one they will like and, most importantly, feel good wearing. I've worked with many such mums over the years (including my own!) and I love to do my utmost to ensure that you can feel comfortable, amazing, and very much yourself with whatever you choose to wear!
I had a recent mother of the bride client, Jane, who faced a similar dilemma, and dreaded finding a hat to wear to her daughter's summer wedding. She was having a gorgeous vintage style dress made for her, and wanted something to compliment it, so with swatches of her dress fabrics to hand she made an appointment to pop into my studio to see if I could help her.
As with anyone who's unsure about what style of headwear they want, I encouraged Jane to try and anything and everything that caught her eye in any way. Thankfully I have an assortment of hats in my studio for just such a purpose!
Having narrowed down the shape and style to a classic pillbox teamed with a birdcage veil, we sat down with her swatches to decide on colours and details. One of her swatches featured beautiful embroidered flowers on tulle, so we decided on actually incorporating those along with some additional flowers and a few dainty pearls for added texture and interest. With a design in place I set to work.
As the fit of a hat, and placement of the trims, is such as personal thing, Jane popped back in once I'd made the body of the hat and pinned the trims in place to make sure it was just right before it was all hand sewn into place.
I love working with embroidered details, so I was thrilled to be able to make this oh so pretty bespoke pillbox hat for her to wear to her daughter's wedding. Plus the happiness when she tried it on is a big part of why I love what I do!
After Jane collected her hat, I had the following review pop into my inbox, and it just absolutely made my day:
"Today I picked up the most perfect hat for my daughter's wedding. I have never worn a hat before and was dreading having to buy one. Sarah was Fantastic. She encouraged me to try a selection of styles and listened to me as I explained my likes and dislikes. She perfectly colour matched my dress swatch and over the course of a few weeks put together the most beautiful hat I could ever have imagined - a 1940's style to match my dress. I had a second appointment to ensure the hat was exactly as I wanted before it was completed. I am delighted with the outcome. The hat is beautifully made and Sarah really is one of the nicest people I have met. I could not recommend her more highly. I will be back for the next wedding. Thank-you so much Sarah."
If you are even considering having a hat or fascinator made for the wedding of a loved one, or any other special occasion, I'd recommend getting in making an appointment to pop in to my millinery studio in Chatham, Kent, to try on some styles, and have a chat with me about how I can make you look and feel amazing in a bespoke hat or fascinator which is made just for you. Or if you have any questions at all, don't ever hesitate to drop me an email on info@MissAvasMillinery.com.