WHAT HAT OR FASCINATOR SHOULD I CHOOSE FOR A RELAXED BUT STYLISH WEDDING?

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU ORDER A BESPOKE HEADPIECE

A REAL CLIENTS DESIGN STORY

THE BRIEF

THE CLIENT

The client in question in this weeks post is a regular past client and a joy to work with. She is a confident successful lady, very stylish, fashionable and young at heart. She is petite in stature.

THE OCCASION

A family wedding (husbands son getting married), late spring, smart group of people but also low key in a marquee at a lovely pretty village gastropub.

THE OUTFIT

The lady opted for the Armelle skirt and Cecily top by Reiss.  Her shoes, Jimmy Choo bright orange suede pumps and bag a metallic tangerine clutch also by Jimmy Choo.

OBSERVATIONS AND DESIGN THOUGHT PROCESS FOR A BESPOKE HEADPIECE

My challenge was to make a headpiece that was appropriate to the occasion.

She's the wife of the father of the groom so a part of the bridal party but doesn't want to upstage anyone, she needs to make an effort but not too much of one.

The wedding is informal but still special of course, so her choice of skirt and top is perfect but she needs to give it that little bit more formality with something on her head.

A small "high street" fascinator isn't going to cut it in the design stakes, not enough presence or edge for her.

Her personality is confident and fun and so should be reflected in the design, whilst being kept in balance with the vibe of the day and her role in it.

A hat is overkill for this occasion, and a brimmed hat would dwarf her petite build.

A perfect match is too twee and cliched, the piece needs to be tonal and loosely tie together the elements of her outfit and keep it younger and fresher.

The top has a high neck so nothing too fussy is required or there will be too much going on around her face, it needs to be simple.

The print in the skirt is very modern and graphic in style so this needs to be reflected in the design.

The client doesn't want flowers or feathers on this headpiece, which to be honest is fine with me as I don't see those as part of this design.  She did state though that she quite likes bows.

Her parting is on the right hand side so this is the side that the piece is to be made for. (see this video that explains why)

She wants to be able to wear it comfortably and securely and to just be able to pop it on and forget about it. Her hair is bob length, average thickness, I don't need to consider fine or bouncy wiry hair with this piece, a simple hat elastic and a little comb to prevent and movement will be all that is required.  This doesn't require special fitting by a hairdresser or back combing to anchor it and it won't leave hat hair when taken off.

I'm sure there are many more thoughts I could document here but these are the key ones that were at play when I designed this commission.  This client is a lady with whom I've built good trust levels and so her design requirements extended no further than…

"Just do what you think, I trust you and I know you'll make me something I love, you always do!"

The best and worst kind of brief, I can trust my instincts and create what I believe is the right design but "no pressure"..."not"!

THE RESULT

I handblocked a button base in triple layer sinamay, mixing 2 colours in this process to keep the shades of orange slightly ambiguous and tie to the different elements.  

I used her comment about liking bows as a start to the trim design and combined it with a petal structure as reference back to the skirt print, I also used a narrow dark brown trim to reflect the outline on the skirt, this strengthened the design and reference the modern graphic feel.

The petals were formed with bias shaped and wired sinamay and then curved into shape once mounted.

THE VERDICT

She loved it!

I was really happy with it too, I think it captured her sass and style whilst being appropriate to the occasion.

Please let me know what you think!

Until next time,

Harriet x