Milliners on Etsy

I arrived in Mexico late last night - actually early hours of today.  Just unpacked and ready to get out there!!!

But before I head out, I wanted to let you know about Jennifer. Remember Jennifer who was my guest blogger for a while and wrote  "Mondays Millinery Musings" about her Millinery work ( and lots of other things too!)?  Well, she and other Etsy milliners are featured in a great article on Etsy Storque blog post this week. 

She is part of "Milliners on Etsy"  - an Etsy Team - and they created a challenge for themselves that mimicked a Project Runway challenge.  They had to create a hat inspired by a garment or fabric they found on Etsy.

This photo shows the dress that Jennifer chose and the hat that she made. Doesn't it look fabulous and I love the way she picked up the pin tucks in the dress and reflected them in the hat.

Well done Jennifer. How great to get that good exposure!

Monday's Millinery Musings - France on Foot Part 3: Getting lost

BY GUEST BLOGGER JENNIFER

There are several ways of responding to getting lost on the trail: 1) Panic, not advised, or 2) Surrender wholeheartedly to being lost. The last option is by far the more interesting. Suddenly one becomes a different person inhabiting a wild new world.

Several years ago we were lost in a forest in Burgundy. We had cut back and forth in the hills for several hours on a very hot day. We ran out of water. At some point we realized that we had been led off trail by a series of mis-marked and missing blazes (trail markers). We found ourselves good and lost. At this point we abandoned the trail markings and went straight back to the compass and the blessed Serie Bleu map, which also has topographic detail. Dave, quite the accomplished boy scout, eventually  put us on the right track. But that didn't help with water.

Finally headed in the right direction, we slogged through the underbrush, sweat running down our bodies, and the dull headaches of dehydration our constant companion. The thirst was ferocious. After some time we found ourselves facing a very small, white sign with black lettering that said  "Le Source", a spring!  The narrow trail eventually widened  into a shady opening in the forest and there to our astonishment was Saint Anne! 

St Anne, mother of Mary

A grotto of large and small stones had been roughly fashioned and in a niche stood a small statue of Saint Anne. She stood calmly in her stone robes.  Other niches held sprays of plastic flowers: yellow sunflowers, pink roses, and a vase of spent blue irises. Clear, cold, spring water poured out from a small pipe under St. Anne's feet and flowed into a reflecting pool that collected water as it ran out of an opening between the stones into another pool. It was a nearly unbelievable sight!

When the lost are found, when thirst is quenched, the single most crystalline feeling is of joy. Pure and simple joy of the heart and mind. All cares fall away. We dropped our backpacks and sat a long while with Saint Anne and took comfort from her. We drank deeply from the spring and bathed our sunburned faces in the cool freshness of this tiny refuge that seemed to materialize just for us. We found our way easily after that to our village hotel and a good meal. This experience gave us much to think about and be thankful for.

I wish you simple joys as you walk along your way. You may feel lost sometimes, but you will find yourself. Not to worry.

Monday's Millinery Musings: The Poetry of Hats

BY GUEST BLOGGER JENNIFER

There are so many wonderful comments that have been made about hats over time. Here are a few matched with hats I have made.

"Milliners never seem to have any difficulty discovering geometrical shapes wholly unknown to mathematicians." - Evan Esar

"I myself have twelve hats, and each one represents a different personality. Why be just yourself?" - Margaret Atwood 

(This is my beautiful sister-in-law, Tracy, modeling the hat she wore to the Saratoga racetrack)

"Then wear the gold hat, if that will move her: if you can bounce high, bounce for her too, till she cry, Lover, gold-hatted, high-bouncing lover, I must have you!" - F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

"The hat is not quite sensational enough. Add a mass of black veiling..." - Christian Dior

"I wear a hat when I go shopping. I get better service." - Mademoiselle Staffer

Monday's Millinery Musings - France on foot - where to stay on the trail

BY GUEST BLOGGER Jennifer

The first part of the big fun of walking in France is planning where to sleep. There seems to be a comfortable bed available in the smallest of villages. Our favorites have been the chambre d'hotes, or bed-and-(continental)breakfasts, or B&B's. French B&B's have no resemblance to those in the United States (which I dislike). These accommodations are  in private homes and  are limited in size, by law, to no more than six rooms. The rooms have private entrances, and can be small apartments, or guest cottages. They are charming and private. Some chambres  d'hotes in the more remote areas offer a meal as well, if there is no restaurant nearby.

Map 903 - The Mother of French trail maps, and assorted inspiring reading 

We spend time researching and putting together our own travel guides with addresses of places we hope to stay, restaurants and sights to see. But mostly we lean heavily on the good recommendations of the local people we stay with. 

Serie Bleue Maps for specific trail routes within a region. Used to plan routes and walking strategies from village to village.

One of the many walled gardens in France

Our  chambre d'hote in the village of Pommard in Burgundy

The quiet. simple pleasures of a glass of wine and a bit of cheese and bread after a day of hiking. A fabulous dinner, soon coming!

Stay tuned for "Getting Lost on the Trail"...

Monday's Millinery Musing - France on Foot - part 1

By guest blogger Jennifer

In 1999 a friend at work dropped a book on Dave's desk and said. "You and Jennifer should do this." The book was France on Foot by Bruce LeFavour. It completely changed our view of what a vacation could be. It changed us.

We bravely ventured forth in 2000, armed with our map 903, France Grande Randonee or France Long Distance Walking Paths. This map traces nearly 37,000 miles of trails in France alone, and as Le Favour points out this is more than one and a half times the distance around the world at the equator.

The French trail system was established in the 1930's by the FFRP(translation: French Long Distance Walking Federation). This group of activists along with other individuals and preservation organizations were concerned because the paths, which had always been  open to everyone, had fallen into decline and were being swallowed up by the automobile and modern agriculture. In 1999 there were about 6,000 volunteers who did the hard work of maintaining these trails. The trails are not only maintained, they are meticulously mapped in the IGN Serie Bleue maps.

We have never rented a car in France. We fly into Paris, take the metro from the airport to one of the train stations, and a train to the area where we want to walk. To avoid the highways and traffic we take a taxi to the trailhead. This always entertains the taxi driver who invariably gives us outstanding recommendations for local restaurants, wines, and on occasion, excellent recipes. He basically drops us in the middle of nowhere, waves cheerily and shouts, "Bon Courage!" We love that. It's always the same.

At this point we are out of touch for several weeks. We carry everything we need in backpacks. We have maps and a compass.

Once we are within the trail system we can walk locally or regionally. The pleasures of walking through the French countryside are infinite whether it is through the lovely villages, vineyards or forests. We rarely see other hikers. Dave walks faster than I do so we are often far apart, meeting up several times a day. On the silent path one can hear the cuckoos in the forests, pick wood violets and wild geraniums, and hear the sound of ones own breath and footsteps. It is deeply relaxing.

We are often asked why we don't ride bikes instead of walk, we could cover more ground, get to places more quickly etc. For us it's too fast. Life whizzes by on a bike. When we walk we can really see where we are and an intimacy with the countryside develops. It is a friendship that is slow and welcoming with not only the land but with the weather and bird life.

At the end of the day there is always a good meal and a real bed. You may be wondering, "Where do you sleep?"  Stay tuned!

Monday's Millinery Musings - Goofball Photography

By guest blogger Jennifer
Jennifer's Etsy Store

Look what Ruth has given me to play with! Cool, huh? Don't you want one?

Oh what is it?

This is a light box that is going to make my life easier. With some coaxing it will pretend to lie flat only to spring back in my face menacingly. Other than that it is a nice pet. I can drape an antique linen sheet inside and take "studio" style photos of my hats and accessories. As you can see, now that it's summer I have moved my operation outdoors to a temporary work space under the arbor. In the winter I'll set this up in the dining room and shine opposing light sources into the box. It will look like a dog box with aluminum earmuffs.

I'm having a big laugh about my abilities as a photographer. You would too if you could see some of the goofy get-ups, props and make-shift lighting I've been forced to in the name of learning to take photos for my Etsy shop. Etsy is an on-line artist's marketplace and every item listed in the shop requires FIVE, not one, photos. This can be a challenge for the photographically impaired.

In an odd way I feel somewhat successful in this pursuit. So far, I can use my dinky, pocket-sized digital Konica Minolta (formerly used for hiking trips) on the automatic setting. If there is one technique, it's that I crawl all over the subject and shoot it from as many angles as possible: here and there, near and far, this way and that.

With the help of my geriatric Mac and woefully outdated iPhoto software I can operate 2 magical buttons to great advantage: CROP and ENHANCE.

When a decent photo accidentally appears I am crazy with happiness.

It seems to me that we all have so many gifts within us.  Often just a good play day can give a strong glimpse into what we are capable of doing on our own.  For me, it has happened around photography. I surprise myself at times and that is a beautiful thing.

At the end of the day, we always know so much more than we think we do. 

It's June 21, and the first day of summer. Have you surprised yourself lately?

Monday's millinery musings - Mr. John: King of Millinery, my hero

By guest blogger Jennifer
Jennifer's Etsy store


A few months ago I took my first hat blocking class from the fabulous milliner, Wayne Wichern, and received initiation into the special mystery of the flat travel hat which has been popular for decades. With a steam iron Wayne turned a shapeless straw bag (hood) into a hat that could be packed absolutely flat and then could pop up to be a real hat when worn. It is quite a remarkable thing to see since it has not a single sewn stitch and is created entirely with the iron. It is a technique passed from milliner to milliner and is best demonstrated. It is feminine, simple and elegant.

Mr. John (1902-1993) gave us the flat travel hat and his legacy to milliners runs deep. For 50 years he reigned without a second. He was the highest paid milliner in the world and has been described as being as famous to millinery as Dior was to fashion. An irrepressible exhibitionist with a Napoleanic streak Mr. John made hats for 1,000 films, hats for celebrities and the famous of each decade of his career, a stainless steel hat, a banana hat with a zipper, an airplane hat, an Eiffel Tower hat, a hat for a live elephant to wear to a Republican convention (requiring Mr. John to stand on a 10 foot ladder in order to fit the hat on the elephant himself) to mention a mere few of his accomplishments.  He was a witty visionary, full of humor and honesty. Women loved his hats, still do, and on occasion a few can be found for sale on ebay.

If you are an old movie buff you'll recognize a few of Mr. John's hats:

Greta Garbo's jewelled  helmet in Mata Hari

Marilyn Monroe's showgirl headdress in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

Vivien Leigh's wheel hat in Gone with the Wind

Marlene Dietrich's veiled cloche in Shanghai Express

For a long and fascinating article about Mr. John, read Drake Stutesman's article: "Gives Good Face: Mr. John and the Power of Hats in Film". It is interesting that no book has been written about this remarkable man and his life.

As I labor on in my little workroom, making inventory for my next teaching and vending adventure, I find myself thinking a lot of Mr. John. Ironing hoods into "Mr. John travel hats" I am encouraged by his advice, given long ago, to young designers: "Buy buckram, select materials, and start: practice. Your factory must be in your head."  It says to me to keep things simple, build skills, and trust my intuition.

A Flat Travel Hat with Dot and Bow Veil

Mr. John finally threw in the towel and closed his business in 1970, done in by what he described as "orthopedic hairdos and french fried curls". He couldn't get over that women had traded in their milliners for hairdressers.

Mr. John died at 91 and to the very end bemoaned the loss of women's hats and the beauty and refinement they gave women.

Do you know what Mr. John did for you that you benefit from daily? He put a strap on your purse. He was the first to do it! He also put soles on ballet slippers so they could be worn outside and opened the door for flat shoes. Mr. John liberated us from teetering around on high heels clutching our strapless purses (they aren't called clutches for nothing). Try to picture it,  and if there's time read the article so you can really appreciate Mr. John, King of Millinery. My hero.