Davey

This one just made itself. It's one of those silly tube scarves, pinched off and stuffed.

This has kind of become the hat a week blog. Running out of Far Away hats. Not sure where I'll go next, if I do. Getting kind of busy in the fall.

Tractators

It is what it looks like. I go back on forth on whether I like this one. I think I do. The title is from an old Dr. Who episode, but at this moment I can't for the life of me remember why.

Life Support

Been taking a breather from blogging--apologies to any of my faithful readers.

In the movie Dune (the David Lynch one) the Fremen of Arakis wore suits that allowed them to completely recycle all of their bodies fluids with tubing rather like this.

The Cape

I think I said elsewhere--50 hats, one month, small budget--not all will be masterpieces. Real sponge, something decorative (I'm not sure what it's really used for), on hat. Reminds me of pictures of dunes and the fences that keep private beaches private. I''ve never been to the Cape and I've lived here 10 years.

A Hat Blog

Today, a link to a hat blog I found and the fascinating woman I've begun to correspond with:

Fashion Musings

Gloves

I love rubber gloves as objects--I really do. In college I designed costumes for a show called "The Swan" where a character turns from swan to man. The director and I discussed all kinds of swan costumes and one of the things I made was a swan wing made from a broken umbrella and rubber gloves (the love interest was a nurse). I also made a life size origami swan out of batting. In the end nothing was used and the actor simply rolled out of a basket of laundry and transformed through acting--it was the best choice for the show, but I was always kind of sad that none of those great images had made it to the stage. I ended up using the origami swan in a window display. I believe I have the glove wing around in storage. I love the way rubber gloves look like discarded skin--yup, I'm weird that way.

Cobra

Another one of those Dollar Store pillowcases. Pretty straightforward, stitched to a small cap frame and a ribbon added. Should have painted the markings on the back.

Chinese Gymnast

I named these as I made them, and during the run of the show. I understand why I named this Gymnast, but I can't for the life of me remember why Chinese?

Aggghhhh!

And alas, Blogspot will not let me upload pictures at my chosen time of 11:15. Till tomorrow then.

Foreign men and American Flags

Just struck me as funny tonight.

Drat, Blogspot!

Have a post all ready except for the photo and Blogspot will not let me load the photo! So never fear--back tomorrow (this isn't one of those nights where I just forget).

A Fashion Triumverate

Here it is:
Lisa Fonssagrives Penn in Balanciaga photographed by Irving Penn. Doesn't get much better than that. I worship her--always have--perfect beauty, fascinating woman.

CD

Like I said, they can't all be masterpieces. This is hat base, cheap scarf, and bright blue AOL CD on top. Nothing profound. This was briefly called Head Wound.

Drunken Garden

This was to be a variation on the Garden Party Hat. But on some of the flowers I removed the wire stems so that they flopped listlessly over.

Tissot

Sargent is a better artist in many ways (and I based my wedding gown on Madame X), but Tissot is the best to use as a source. I did a paper project of Midsummer's Night Dream where the Greeks were in Tissot gowns and the fairies were in trompe l'oeil.

Rakish Raffia

The hat is one I've worn. It's a sleeve from a medieval coat with one end gathered up. The raffia I had left from a window dressing job and they just seemed to go together.

Another person I'd love to be, or at least know

Isabella Blow

(and no, I did not mean for that to rhyme).

Ombre Ribbon

This one doesn't have a name because it's in progress. It's made of woven wired ribbons shaped to form the crown and stiffened with a spray on fabric stiffener.

Cushion Your Fall

I've been saving this one. This was the showpiece from "Far Away." The main character has to make it on stage and then it has to be in the parade, so there were four versions of this--three in various stages of development for her to work on and this one. It is, obviously, a top hat base, with three small handmade silk pillows stitched on top. The green fabric is patterned in leaves and I used it for the apron that her aunt wears in the first scene when she's a child. It's stiffened with iron on interfacing and the edge is cut to follow the shape of the leaves. This was a completely planned hat (see the early for designed vs. found), but when it was done I still felt it needed something. At the time I was working during the day as a visual merchandiser for a fabric store and I ran through the aisles looking for something to embellish it. The four points are knitting needles of translucent plastic in various gauges. The title comes from a certain style of ladies riding helmet (the top hat would have been lined in metal to protect during falls) that were worn with a sweep of netting tied round the band often creating the bell shape echoed above. Obviously one would like to fall on pillows and not knitting needles.

Skunk Cabbage Rose

There's a word game sometimes called "First/Last" where you have the first word of a two word phrase and the second word of another two word phrase and you have to find the missing word that would fulfill both phrases--skunk cabbage/cabbage rose. I'm not actually sure what skunk cabbage looks like but this seemed appropriate, looking like I think it would smell (art is about impression). It's a yarn scarf from a craft store on a foam ring with a velvet flower on it. I'd almost forgotten this one, but I liked it a lot and I'm sorry I didn't save it.

Foam

I sort of imagined the shape and the ombre edging and sketched it for the director who liked it so then I had to make it. In a better material it could be quite successful.

Ammo and Glass

I went back and forth on calling this one Army Dreamers after the Kate Bush song or Ammo and Glass. I did convince the sound designer to use Experiment IV as the ending music (credit music? exit music?) for the lines, "They told us/what they wanted/was a sound that could kill someone/from a distance/so we go ahead/and the metres are over in the red," thus getting in my Kate tribute. It's a plastic bowl, plant fronds (and fake fiddle heads--a creepy plant to me), glass stones and a bias strip cut from some other project. Again, a hard hat to wear in the show, but then so are real army helmets (wore one in a show, almost concussed myself every night). In the end the title is an homage to Wizard and Glass by Stephen King, part of the Dark Tower set. A glass helmet would be very foolish, yes? Sometimes though, on the right actor all I could think of was Arte Johnson in Laugh In, peering from around the bushes, "Vewy Intewesting." And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how my mind works.

Trash Day

Not all could be masterpieces. This has doll parts on it, and I almost didn't put it in the show, but oddly enough, the director thought it was fantastic and made the pregnant cast member wear it every night. Creepy

Safe as Houses

This was sort of a combination of planned and found. I knew I wanted to build a tower on a hat base--I just wasn't sure what I would build it out of. SPONGE! Just like cards, only easier to glue.

Fairy Ring

Boa wrapped on wire. An alum of my college made and sold hats that were fabric wrapped wire under the name "This Mortal Coil." This is my variation. I have this one. I'm hoping for an occasion to wear it.

The queen

Nothing more to be said...

Silk Purse

Horrible I know but this is made of pig's ears that they sell in pet stores. I'm not sure who was lucky enough to wear it. I had to store it on a high shelf because my dog kept thinking it was for him (I don't feed him pig's ears regularly--he just knew). I knew I wanted something frighteningly organic for one of the hats and this was it.

The Hun

I'm back from my vacation--much to write back at Novel Eye but no time to write it.

This hat started with another of those fantastic boas on a cheap straw hat with a dollar Christmas tree topper on it. The shape reminds me of the helmets worn by the Mongolian armies.

In honor of my trip

I'm off tomorrow morning to San Francisco to see the man in the picture above in concert. Posting will be suspended until I return over the weekend.

Nanny McPhee

Watched this this evening and thought this was a lovely hat even though it's on an awful character brilliantly played beneath the prosthetics by Angela Lansbury.

Pox

I have a morbid mind. A friend had given me a bag of these beads and the red hat cost a dollar I think and I thought they looked like pustules. There you go...

Far Away

Here is a picture from the Royal Court production of "Far Away." I only wanted the middle picture, but I'm not home so lack editing software. I haven't said much about the play itself. It's strange and disturbing but I like it. Basically it's a story of the end of the world, everything is at war, even the animals, even the weather and in the middle there is this parade of hats on prisoners where the winner gets...? I'd love to see some of these up close.

Tendrils

Is exactly what it looks like. Headband with Holiday sprigs attached. If I were really making it to sell and not for a show I'd cover the band in a pretty fabric.

Sunday School

Obviously related to Thorns, a wreath, upside down, with beads added--like projects in Sunday School. "Let's decorate the Ark of the Covenant with Macaroni!" "Let's decorate our crown of thorns!" In a warped world.

I wish I was Philip Treacy

Not mine. The fabulous Philip Treacy. I really wish I could be him--or at least work for him.

Just for a little variety

This is bottle I papier-mached and painted. The hat is a spare button from a blouse I no longer own. There's three dimensional latex paint that can be built up, This wasn't it, but I squirted some out straight from the tube, teased it with the brush and let it dry. Not too bad. I have a bunch of these painted bottles (not the same--all different) and thought about trying to market them, but each venture I imagine seems to take so much time and demand that it be my primary focus. I need to find a promoter.

Acts of Futility

Another play from Acts of Futility. The hat is on the table. Just a basic wide brimmed, short crowned hat covered in a heavy black cotton, hand sewn. I made the coats out of the same material. They were very Matrix like and the guys loved them. I had the worst time with the wigs. They were just cheap plastic Halloween wigs, and regular hair products did nothing. We wanted them to look stringy and unwashed. I ended up having to thin white glue and run it through clumps by hand. You can get a better look at the floor that my husband I hand painted as well. I really knocked myself out on this show.

Renaissance

This is another of the hats I sell. A shot blue-green velvet with an etched leaf pattern (which unfortunately doesn't show up well here) and a shot green silk shantung that also makes the band.

Rhymes with...

This is a hat from Far Away that I actually designed before shopping. I drew it on a page. It's two top hat frames put together, the top one clipped to give it an angle, styrofoam half balls glued on and spray painted orange. I'd like to make this one out of real materials sometime--maybe actually steam wool and block it (hey, Red Queen, wanna help?). I love top hats. I've got designs for several in my head.

The Nelson

I'm rather proud of this one. It's made of two bridal bands sewn together holding up a throw pillow case with a few stitches to hold the shape. I just started manipulating the fabric, and there it was, Admiral Nelson's hat (albeit in fuzzy brown polyester w/ fringe).

Mod Hatter

Bucket liner, tile spacers, tubing. 'Nuff said.

Flower Garden

This is another found hat--a basic green felt, prob. 1960's-1970's. I'm not sure now why I bought it as I don't wear green. It had some sad green grosgrain on it which I removed and did not save. I then practiced my ribbon embroidery on it--purely random pattern. Then it still needed something else, so I runched wired ribbon and worked it along the band.

Thorns

I love this hat. It was certainly the easiest to make. For Far Away, of course. Like I said, I was shopping this show around Christmas. I'm not sure what you were supposed to do with this--wreaths I think, but the nice part was that it was tied together with separate strings, like basket weaving, so that if you cut one the whole thing didn't come apart. I knew I kind of wanted to do a crown of thorns thing with it, but after I had cut a few strings and watched it spiral down I knew I should just stop. Put on an elastic hat strap and away we go. Actors actually fought to wear this, even though it actually pokes into the head. People are funny.

Pier 1 Straw Hat

Thought it was about time to show a hat I really do wear. Self-portrait at work today--someday I'll get myself together and Photoshop my lovely office out of the picture, but not today. Once upon a time Pier 1 sold clothing. It was a very brief time, but during that moment I bought two straw hats. This is one. It's getting a little beat up because in winter I store it in a hat box which is just a little too small. I need to repair it in front. It has a big straw bow on the back. I really love this hat and it usually gets a lot of praise (except from people on the train--I think they think I'm going to bump into them with it.) The people in Shino Express--my favorite Sushi haunt--seemed alarmed by it too, so I held it. Shino is about the size of some people's bathrooms. I'm not kidding. It seats 6 at the bar and maybe a further 10 in seats if you don't mind bumping elbows. They remodeled and I think it became smaller. It's the best Sushi on Newbury St. in my opinion, maybe in the city, and everyone goes there. Express it isn't, at lunch at least. 20 minute wait. I usually place my order and run errands, like to the library and come back.

My Fair Lady (Movie Version)--Ascot

Musing's comment made me think of other hats I should profile.

This is, of course, Audrey Hepburn in the hat and dress from "My Fair Lady" (Movie Version) designed by Cecil Beaton. What's funny is it's probably my least liked outfit from that movie (love the yellow suit she "runs away" in), and my least liked hat from Ascot. The dress is all wrong for the period, which is funny because all of the other dresses are correct--and it's not like she was Marilyn Monroe in "Some Like it Hot" where Marilyn's figure was half the point. Audrey's figure was never her strongest suit. Nor was her voice. I love, love, love and emulate Audrey and wear Sabrina necklines whenever possible, but she was wrong for this movie. Poor Marni Nixon--who's voice we love in so many movies. There are other Ascot hats too, all in lovely black and white, that are just more fantastic.

My own personal connection to this hat is our high school production of MFL, where I froze when singing in the audition (whole long childhood trauma thing--story for another day) and ended up the Assistant Director and dialect coach (I do English accents well, if I do say so myself). I so wanted to push the lead off of the stage and the director/acting teacher knew it. Esp. since the lead had only auditioned because her mother made her! Anyway, we ordered the costumes and sets from some company that supplies that sort of thing to high schools and they were facsimiles of the originals. This was a very strange hat supported with what looked like a giant sachet to give it that angle. Much flattened and yellowed by years of grubby hands and small boxes. Other stories from that production were the stage manager getting trapped on stage during a scene change, a Henry Higgins who had to have his lines fed to him from offstage (I had such a crush on him--one of the few times I had a crush on a non-bishie--he was sweet but really could have cared less, although we did have some good math conversations), and a Alfred P. Doolittle who ripped his pants on stage.

Laurels

This is plastic Christmas ornaments on a Styrofoam ring where I cut out a wedge (did I mention that Far Away went up between Christmas and New Year's? Good fun for the whole family--HA). I so wanted to make this hat--I could see it in my head, but unfortunately it proved too fragile and was never worn in the show. Despite massive amounts of various glues the plastic balls would just snap apart. It had to be held like glass which was just not possible in the rush backstage. It's called Laurels because it reminds me of the laurel leaf crowns that the Caeser's wore.

Acts of Futility: Come & Go

These were three hats (and coats) I did for an evening of Beckett plays called Acts of Futility. This part was called Come & Go. The women are Robin, Wendy and Susan, playing (not necessarily in order) Flo, Ru, and Vi. I knew I'd never find hats and coats that matched the way I wanted them to so I had to make them. My husband and I hand painted that floor as well.

Alien Landscape

Ok, so this is me in a hat I made for Far Away called Alien Landscape. This was for an interview in a Boston free "scene" magazine to promote the play. The interviewer is a local playwright. We didn't meet--he interviewed me on the phone and then later a photographer came to rehearsals. I added the tilt when scanning this. I've removed my name to avoid stalkers, although I've been working on an acting webpage for some time where I'll have my name and face, so I'm not sure why. I like this picture, though I would have loved to have seen the others he took.

I've also added a small shot of Alien Landscape from the top. It's a plastic platter on a bridal headpiece and the objects were in a bag of mixed potpourri--very organic and fun. I meant it to be worn at a rakish angle, but it often went through the parade flat on top of someone's head because it was easier to wear. Most people don't realize that those elaborate headdresses of show girls and Carmen Miranda are extremely heavy to counterbalance.

As a side note Blogspot was highlighting a page called A Dress a Day, so perhaps someday...

Amherst Spirit

I love bowlers, always have. I like to hold eggs and marbles too, but that's a different story. I've had the purple bowler since late high school. I don't wear it much anymore because it doesn't have an internal band and wool is getting progressively harder for me to wear. When I graduated from college I received a framed print of the school from a gentleman who had given me a scholarship wrapped in this two tone ribbon. The ribbon had been cut to make the bow, so reusing it was tricky. I'd seen rosettes in some historical hat books so gave it a shot. This hat has already been on display when I was doing visual merchandising last year. I put up a bunch of my hats for "Ideas for Ribbon." Unfortunately people wanted to buy the hats. I can't sell what I try to sell, and yet people always ask for the things I don't want to sell. Go figure.

Sea Anemone

I saw this feather boa when I was shopping for Far Away and knew it had to be a hat. It really is a black boa with long white feathers in between. They flutter as you walk. It's got a certain 60's vibe. I have this one, but I never seem to have the occasion to wear it.

The Birthday Cake Hat

No picture today because I don't have a picture of this hat. I made it in elementary school and I hadn't thought about it in years. Today is my birthday and I was thinking about that as I woke up and I suddenly remembered this hat that I had made with my mother for some school spirit event.

My parents had a book store called "Frontier Bookstore" when I was a child. It had a frontier theme with bandana print for the bags and at some point my mother bought these faux straw boaters--I think for the presidential elections/bicentennial. They were made of some styrofoam material stamped to look like straw. I remember they came with a red, white and blue band and if you took that off the styrofoam was smooth underneath. There must have been some spirit day at my school--crazy hat day--and she and I decided to make one of these into a birthday cake--it was nearly the color of buttercream. Half of the store was a Hallmark gift store and there were pkg. toppers that were fuzzy balls. We put those around the brim like icecream, and gimp trim for icing and then poked birthday candles in the top. I really hadn't thought about this in years. My mother would say, "See, that's where your creativity comes from." I don't know if I want to give her all of the credit, but I've sure been making crazy hats for a long time.

Butterfly

I love this hat, although it's another one that I didn't keep. It's an upside down plastic bowl that I bought at a dollar store, a straw hat that I bought at a craft store and two wire frame, mesh butterfly's that I bought at a different dollar store. I've posted two views of it so you can get a sense of it's size. It also had the advantage that it looked great from all angles and could be worn front to back or back to front. I just kept manipulating the wire armature until I got what I wanted. I'm told that wearing the plastic bowl was a little uncomfortable and it slipped around a bit, but it always got a good response. The actors only had to wear each hat for a bout a minute and a half. The director had the dressers put the hats on in roughly rising arc, smallest to largest through the course of the hat parade.

I missed a day again because I didn't get home until 11 pm last night. I posted pics. of Hyde in hats at Mesmerized the night before so, that sort of counts.