Green David H. - The making of a milliner: hat-making projects

The Making of a

MILLINER

HAT-MAKING PROJECTS

JENNY PFANENSTIEL

DOVER PUBLICATIONS, INC.

MINEOLA, NEW YORK

Dedication

This book is dedicated to my husband, the love of my life, Bart Pfanenstiel; my parents, Linda and Ron Gerst; my sister, Heather Delaney; my mother-in-law, Judy Pfanenstiel; and all of my hat friends whose love and support has guided me through my millinery journey. My mother says it best, You have to BELIEVE, and believe I did.

Author/Book Design: Jenny Pfanenstiel

Editor: Fielden Willmott

Proofreader: Dr. Heather Delaney

Illustrator: David Green, aka Starvin-Artist

Photographer: Steve Squall

Additional Photo Retouching: Jessica Budnick and Hayley Hall

Makeup Artist/Hair Stylist: Isidro Valencia

Still Life Stylist: Megan Wilde

Model: Cassandra Mastropaolo

Copyright

Copyright 2015 by Jenny Pfanenstiel

Foreword copyright 2015 by Natalie Warady

All rights reserved.

Bibliographical Note

The Making of a Milliner: Hat-Making Projects, is a new work, first published by Dover Publications, Inc., in 2015.

International Standard Book Number

eISBN-13: 978-0-486-80899-4

Manufactured in the United States by RR Donnelley

793478012015

www.doverpublications.com

Table of Contents

Foreword

There is power in wearing a hat.

Just ask the women who lead the entertainment and fashion industries today. Take, for example, the near obsessive media coverage of the fascinators worn by Pippa and Kate Middleton. Or the hats made famous by the legendary Isabella Blow. And, of course, Lady Gaga.

For the rest of ussay, anyone who has ever worn a couture hat by Jenny PfanenstielI think Julie from Arlington Heights, Illinois, puts it best. She posted this comment on formemillinery. com:

I purchased your hat at Arlington Million. At 67 years old I have been invisible for a number of years. That hat was like magic. Men stopped and turned to look at me. They opened doors for me. I had at least 20 men and women tell me they loved my hat. We went to a restaurant after the race and the owner came to our table and said, you make my restaurant look good. It was a wonderful day. I got so much attention and had more fun, all because of your hat.

For years, Jenny has been drawing legions of admirers who are in awe of her millinery talent, and to those who have met her or have donned any of her stellar creations, the circumstances as to how I met Jenny might come as quite a surprise.

We met on a muggy day in May of 2009. I was an editor at Country Living Magazine, which was hosting an event called Pitch Your Product, held on Chicagos lakefront. During this Shark Tank-like showdown, hopeful entrepreneurs were given three minutes to sell their ideas to a panel of judges: me and two enterprising women with well-established businesses theyd founded on their own.

A clearly nervous but elegantly be-hatted Jenny regaled us with her exotic designs and lifelong dreams to start a millinery shop. Her passion was obvious, her verve so clear, we briefly fell silent. Unusually so. I imagine the rest of the contestants probably hoped wed stop critiquing or interrupting with advice.

I remember, as Jenny presented her case, that I felt honored she would consider our opinions at all. We unanimously felt that she possessed great talentsand that her business plan was sound.

Since that day, I have watched her career skyrocket from one high point to another as her creations have appeared everywhere from the pages of Vogue, Tattler, and numerous other magazines, to the crowns of some very distinguished heads, including Oprah Winfrey, Barbara Corcoran and First Lady Michelle Obama. All this within five years of founding her business!

Despite her overnight success, Jenny takes a very honest look at her craft in her new book The Making of a Milliner. She even admits she never sketches a hat pattern: I just cant draw.

It just might be her own lack of drawing ability that makes The Making of a Milliner so accessible. In a breezy, conversational tone, Jenny provides thorough, step-by-step directions for nine hat designs. Her words are helpful for novices and experienced milliners alike. After reading this book, I cant help but dream about buying a wooden bowlany size, mind you!some sizing liquid, a few yards of parasisal, and starting to block my own original beauty.

Jennys book is an excellent gift for the craft enthusiast. It is loaded with all sorts of hat trivia and anecdotes. Even if you never make a hat, its a fascinating journey that allows you to become fluent in the process, tools, and materials. Once-antiquated items such as parasisal and horsehair are introduced with detailed descriptions of their special attributes. I loved discovering that the interior hatband (sweatband) is made with Petersham, a fabric often confused with grosgrain but with fluted edges so it can be shaped inside a hat.

Jenny also introduces two exciting new materials: the bamboo-based jinsin and Plastic Fantastic, both of which greatly expand the horizon of possibilities in hat making. Its worth noting that the resurgence of millinery has spurred such innovations.

From the easier hat blocking guides to the expert levels of working with jinsin, Jenny walks us through every step with an ease and confidence that will set you on your own hat-making journey.

In the end, her book is empowering and powerfulmuch like wearing a hat.

NATALIE WARADY

Introduction

Would you like to try on a hat? Dont mind if I do! Pull up a chair, pour yourself some tea and come along with me on this journey. Learn how to make exceptional headwear, and you may find yourself crafting incredible headpieces ranging from everyday wear to runway ready. I take great pride in the craft of millinery, and I want to share with you the rich history of millinery and the skills needed to create your own beautiful hats. The art of millinery dates back centuries. My goal is to keep this craft alive, because lets be honest, who doesnt love an amazing hat!

A seemingly easy wardrobe accoutrement often becomes a conversation starter, creating the perfect statement and setting the stage for yet another memorable life moment. When I think about some of the most important events in my life, I often connect these memories with the hat that adorned my head that day. Hats not only complete your style; they create a wearable journal of lifes adventures. Throughout this book, you will find a little bit of everythingfrom how to properly wear a hat, to the different types of hat blocks used for blocking and creating a variety of unique head pieces, to a series of exciting and fun millinery projects to get you started or to advance you through your own hat-making journey. For years, I have been teaching hat-making workshops in my studio to men and women of varying skill levels. Much like the hat-making workshops, this book is designed to increase your knowledge of hat making whether you are a beginner or an advanced milliner. No prior millinery experience is necessary.

Each hat project is laid out step-by-step for easy learning and follow-through. Like anything else, once you learn the basics and the foundation of hat making, you can experiment with the techniques to create your very own unique chapeau. Within each hat project, there is a list of materials needed, as well as where you can purchase them. Though I will be demonstrating a particular technique using a particular type of material, these techniques are interchangeable across different mediums, so I encourage you to play, experiment, and let your hands do the walkingdont be afraid to try new things and get creative! There are projects that include the art of blocking straw and wool over hat blocks, which provide a specific structure for the hat, while other projects call for sculpting and manipulating materials using only your hands. I am a firm believer in letting the material be your guide to a finished product. I do not sketch my hat ideas (for the simple fact that I cannot draw), but I do start from a concept created from my dreams. I really enjoy creating a hat by holding the material in my hands and twisting and turning it until it moves in a direction that is free flowing and not forced.