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When we got engaged the proposal wasn’t planned and so there was no engagement ring – Phil fashioned one from a paper napkin as a token gesture! However, the up side to this was that I then got to choose the ring. As I collect and wear a lot of vintage clothing, accessories and jewellery my first thought was to go for a vintage … Read More Choosing a Vintage or Custom Made Engagement Ring
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So, I had this vision to hang DIY garland bunting around the inside of the dome in the main room at our wedding venue. It looked simple enough to do, just strips of fabric tied onto rope, easy right? A quick online search brought up this lace & gold example which I sent to my friend and Mate of Honour Nick. Yep we can … Read More DIY Fabric Garland Bunting, from vision to reality!
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I make a lot of headdresses for clients to wear to 1920’s parties – the Great Gatsby, Peaky Blinders or Speak Easy theme is always popular for dressing up in style! As original vintage clothing from this era is hard to come by and very collectible, it makes sense to just get an outfit together which ticks all the style boxes but is … Read More Outfit styling for a 1920’s Party – The Flapper
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There’s lots of benefits to working directly with a bridal client on a bespoke piece, but one that brings immense satisfaction is being able to incorporate items of sentimental value to the bride. This can be anything from a treasured piece of heirloom jewellery to a scrap of fabric or even a feather picked up from the ground at a special place. Below are … Read More Call me sentimental….
+ Day to day, Makes
This weekend I took a rare Saturday off to visit the Parkin Roadshow in Bristol. Parkin Fabrics are a family firm based in Lancashire. They sell mail order, so the roadshow is a great chance to see lots of millinery materials and supplies up close in real life and quiz the team about any technical issues regarding using them. I also learnt more about … Read More Parkin Roadshow – a sort of convention for Milliners!
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Earlier I showed you how to make a vintage diamante side tiara. Next up is a hair pin made with a recycled vintage brooch. These pins look great added to an up-do and work well in thick or curly hair. Here I have used an old 1920’s brooch, two hair pins joined together, silver knitted wire and silver 0.2 wire. Firstly cut a length … Read More Making a Recycled Vintage Diamante Hair Pin
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I have been making these side tiaras for a while now, but it all started in 2013 in response to an enquiry from a bride-to-be…. Paula loved vintage marcasite brooches and wanted a statement bridal headpiece made from them. I experimented with different techniques and ended up using silver plated wire to bind all the pieces together and fix them onto a blonde coloured … Read More Wiring together a Vintage Diamante Side Tiara
+ Day to day, Makes
Way back in April last year my friend Nick of Leto & Ariadne approached me about working together as part of the Two Make collaboration project organised by the Gloucestershire Guild of Craftsmen (of which Nick is a member) and the University of Exeter. So, at this point I should mention that I have known Nick for about 20 years, we met on the … Read More Two Make – What happens when a milliner and weaver work together?
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So….the last two blog posts have been about pieces I made for a collaborative photo-shoot….well here is the 3rd and final piece! The dress was made from 8 metres of pure silk taffeta with a lace-up back and flower corsage at the waist. I wanted to make a Pre-Raphaelite style floral crown to go with it, and Emmie was able to save some of … Read More And Finally….here’s the last one I made!
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In the previous post I introduced the collaborative photo-shoot I worked on recently with Emmie Miles Bespoke Dressmaking. The second dress Emmie designed was a 1930’s style silk satin gown with a train and feature embroidery on the waistband at the front. It had a soft, regal and feminine feel to it and I decided I wanted to make a vintage diamanté tiara to go … Read More Here’s Another One I Made Earlier…..
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I was contacted earlier this year by fashion designer and dress-maker Emmie Miles to provide hair accessories for her to use in a bridal photo-shoot. Emmie was in the process of designing and making samples for her latest bridal wear collection, I saw the sketches and loved what she was doing, and instantly envisioned what hair pieces I could make to compliment them. Photos by … Read More Here’s One I Made Earlier…
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Now it’s a well known fact that the English like their tea! And I’m no exception. So, a while ago I was inspired, partly by this obsession and partly by the Mad Hatters Tea Party theme, to make some hair pieces with miniature tea sets. Placed on gingham check fabric to look like a table top and trimmed with vintage lace. They have sold … Read More Tea for Two
Cotswolds milliner designing bespoke hats, fascinators & hair accessories 