Update: The Milliners Guild, “Film to Fashion” display at The Metropolitan Museum of Art has been extended through January 6, 2025. To make an appointment to view / buy the hats contact Laura Einstein, Manager of The Gallery at The Met Store at 212.650.2908.
My hat "Vanity" on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Gift Shop
I love a pinch me moment and I really love that after 26 years of making hats professionally, I am still having them!
Last week, a hat that I designed as part of the Milliners Guild’s, Film to Fashion Collaboration was installed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s, Gift Shop.
As a former resident of NYC, The Met has always loomed large for me and I have spent many hours strolling its halls and enjoying summer cocktails on the roof overlooking Central Park. In those early days, I dreamed of having one of my creations in the permanent costume collection and although I am not there just yet, it’s a real thrill to have something I created, a piece of me, on display in the building!
This installation is to celebrate the winners of the Milliners Guild’s, “Film to Fashion” competition honoring milliner Mildred Blount and her work on film costuming in the 1930’s and 40’s - much of which, sadly went uncredited. I served on the Milliners Guild committee that put together and oversaw the competition and was asked to create a piece for the event.
Our hats will be on display and for sale through October 30th. You can view all of the hats included here.
My inspiration: Actress Eve Arden playing magazine editor Cornelia Jackson in the office scene of Columbia Pictures 1944 musical Cover Girl. photo credit: The Closet Historian Blog
The inspiration for the cocktail hat I created was the 1944 Columbia Pictures film Cover Girl. The film which is a musical stars Rita Hayworth, Gene Kelly, Eve Arden and a delicious array of fashion including many fun hats. I grew up watching films of this era with my grandmother and they still supply endless inspiration for my designs today. This is the time where hair styling became more popular and hats got smaller, the birth of what we today call a cocktail hat or fascinator. For my cocktail hat (pictured below) which I named “Vanity”, I reimagined the draped, free form hat Eve Arden wears in the office scene (pictured above) into a chic and modern, summer cocktail hat. I gave it an added touch of whimsey by adding a trim at the back to create a 360 degree design and veiling accents as a nod to the many veiled hats showcased throughout the movie.
