Sara and Dan, our millinery tutors from Sorensen Grundy Milliners have recently created a wonderful new hat: Construction Overhead.
Construction Overhead Hat by Sorensen-Grundy Milliners
We are so amazed by this ‘half hat’, its delicacy and the creativity behind. You’ll need to have a very close look to it!
Here is an article from My Modern Met about this magical hat.
Go to Sara and Dan’s website to explore more about their millinery world!
We just came back from the Première Classe from Paris last week and here are some photos of the hat competition!
Hat Competition at Premiere Classe Paris
Organised by our friend The Hat Magazine in collaboration with PC, this year’s competition has an Italian theme “La Dolce Vita”, looking back to the 1950s and 60s, to an age of Italian glamour, to frivolity and creativity.
Hat Competition at Premiere Classe Paris September 2011Moment of the award
Millinery courses for beginners and professionals are available at Prescott & Mackay School of Fashion and Accessory Design:
Short course for Cocktail Hats: One-day class
Short course for Blocked Hats: Two-day class
One-day course: Millinery Cocktail Hat
People often ask the following questions about P&M’s millinery courses: What do the tutor teach? What can the students achieve in one day? Can I make whatever I like? … Let’s take a look at one of the most recent hat-making courses and find out the answer.
Days before the course the staff members at P&M will contact each student to find out his or her preferred hat style. The tutors at P&M can then help the students to prepare for the courses, make sure that what the students make in the course meets their expectation and the students bring in the right materials.
Tutor Sara Grundy is a very experience couture milliner trained under the legendary milliner Stephen Jones for many years. Her style is very glamorous, subtle, full of attention to detail but never sticks to old rules. In her portfolio we can see hats as classic as a 50s red pillbox, or as bold as a golden hat she made for John Galliano’s couture collections, all made from safety pins.
Tutors at P&M are not only excellent designer-makers but also wonderful teachers. Sara and Dan have both taught millinery masterclasses in V&A museum, and Dan teaches at the Royal College of Art. Here at P&M, Sara teaches the One-day Cocktail Hat course and Dan teaches the Two-day Blocked Hat course.
Tutor Sara demonstrating hat blocking at P&M
In the Cocktail Hat Course, Sara will show you the most essential millinery skills which are combinations of your expectation and what she thinks you need to know in such a short time. On the May 27th course, all the three students want to make hats with sinamay, while Florrie wants to focus on flower-making, Sallyann wants to make a saucer hat, and Felicia wants to learn more in-depth techniques because she has made a few hats at home before. Therefore, Sara has firstly shown everyone the correct techniques of head measurement and millinery stitch, then gone ahead to sinamay stiffening and blocking.
Felicia is blocking the sinamay
While the hats are waiting to be dry, Sara shows students how to make flowers, how to deal with feather and trimmings. Sara’s teaching style is so efficient and clear that after half an hour three roses are made – the students can’t believe that they can finish such a job in such a short time!
Flowers made in the class!
After the students have gain an understanding of hat decoration, their hats/fascinators are ready to be binded, and the hat-securing piece – either a comb, an elastic or an alice band should be attached. Sara even showed students how to make their own alice band tailored to their head sizes.
Learning how to sew petershamHow to secure a fascinator
How to make your own alice band
In this seven-hour class, the students are not restricted to just one hat, if they use their time well, they can not only complete one but also will start to create other styles of hats and learn enough techniques to be able to finish them at home.
Felicia and her first hat
Sallyann trying on her saucer hat base
“Great fun and huge sense of satisfaction with the hats I made and how much I learnt. I loved it!” said Sallyann.
Florrie has worn her hat to Royal Ascot
Read more for Prescott & Mackay’s millinery courses:
P&M at Ascot
Has there ever been a better excuse to dress up and wear hats? During the week of Royal Ascot you can see ladies in their most wonderful hats even in the London Underground or on the platforms of the railways, all on their way to Windsor.
Source: Lodgebuilder
Days ago we saw this poster with celebrities, with costume provided by Vivienne Westwood and hats by Stephen Jones, who is considered one of the world’s most important milliners of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. He has created hats for countless top fashion designers and couturiers.
Source: Telegraph.co.uk Photo: Finlay Mackay
Thursday in Royal Ascot is called Ladies Day. It’s not only in this day you can dress beautifully – in fact, every day is ladies’ day. What kind of hat would you bring to this, the most famous horse-racing and fashion meeting in the world?
Photo: REUTERS/REX/EDDIE MULHOLLAND
Source: thesun.co.uk
Source: Dailymail.co.uk
People like us, who enjoy new challenges and a chance to learn, would bring hats made by ourselves. It’s never too late to be your own hat’s designer. Tutors at Prescott & Mackay will guide you.
Our tutors, Sara Grundy and Dan Sorensen, make hats for film, television and theatre, including Hollywood productions and the Mamma Mia! musical. They have been assistants to Stephen Jones for many years, have taught hat-making workshops at the V&A and Museum of London and have several years experience of teaching millinery, Dan at the Royal College of Art and Sara at colleges in and out of London.
We hope to see you at the next Royal Ascot, wearing one of your own creations.
Beginners Course – Two-Day Millinery – Blocked Hats
Beginners Course – One-Day Millinery – Cocktail Hats
If you want to learn the hairstyle to go with a hat, Toni & Guy has given some interesting demonstrations here. Read more on the Royal Ascot Magazine, page 75-76.
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