Getting dressed up and wearing a hat to the races…how exciting!

These days, there aren’t many opportunities to wear one, so you should definitely make the most of it when you attend a race day. For most people, wearing a hat may only be a once-a-year occasion and it can be a bit daunting choosing a hat.

This ultimate millinery guide will explain the fundamentals of hat shapes and fabrications, provide advice for choosing the right hat, share tips for getting a hat made and finish up with some general information about millinery events, competitions and courses.

Here’s an overview of what I’ll be covering. Feel free to click on the headings below to jump to a specific section.

Part 1 – The Fundamentals – History, Hat Shapes & Fabrications

Before we talk about how to choose the right hat for your outfit, it’s good to have an understanding of common hat shapes and fabrications. A common mishap for new players is wearing hat materials that aren’t appropriate for the season, something that should be avoided.

The History of Millinery and the Races

Wearing a hat to the races is a tradition highly upheld, even today. The tradition dates back to the 1800s when men and women would dress in their finest, to represent their class and wealth status, which often included a hat. Not only were hats worn to protect against the elements, but also to display personal style.

In the past, horse racing was a sport enjoyed by the elite and provided the ideal platform for showcasing wealth. If you are attending the races today, you should definitely wear a hat to pay respect to a century long tradition, and hey, when else do you get the chance to dress up to the nines and wear a fabulous hat?

Wearing a hat is also a requirement if you wish to enter the Fashions on the Field competition, held at most race day events and in some member’s areas at race courses.

The Difference between Handmade and Factory Made

If you are familiar with the racing fashion scene, you might know that the word ‘fascinator’ is taboo. Fascinators are cheap and factory-produced in mass, overseas. They are sold at chain stores and there are thousands of copies of each design.

They are often glued or stitched together poorly. And even though they are mass produced, fascinators can still cost anywhere from $20 to $200+.

Millinery, on the other hand, is an art form. A milliner is someone who hand crafts a hat from scratch and has had intensive training to master their skills.

Milliners block the hat base using a range of techniques and then adorn hats with anything from feathers, beads, fabric flowers, quills, lace etc. The different words to use for millinery can be; millinery, hat or headpiece. Never a fascinator.

The Most Common Hat Shapes

There are many different styles of millinery available. Not all of them have a specific style name as each piece is individually crafted by hand and can be made into almost any shape one can dream up. However, some of the most common hat shapes seen today are:

The Boater

The boater is a very popular hat. It has a stiff crown and brim and was traditionally made from straw. Nowadays, the boater shape can be seen in both Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter, made from straw, leather, felt etc.

The Percher

Percher hats, do just that. They perch on the top of your head, usually centred on the forehead and give great height. They are blocked from a base, round and tear drop are most popular, and have embellishments added.

The Wide Brim

Probably one of my favourite style of hats, a wide brim hat features a crown with a brim that is enlarged. This style of hat makes a strong statement and looks amazing with a full skirt.

The Crown

The crown is quite versatile in its form, as it can be made from any fabrications and out of numerous blocks or without any blocks at all. This refers to any hat that sits across the top of the head like a crown would.

The Halo

The Halo is a hat that sits towards the back of the head and frames the head like a halo.

The Breton

A Breton hat features a round crown (or no crown) with a brim that is turned upwards all the way around, a standout hat!

The Free Form or Structured Hat

Hats are sculpted works of art and don’t need to be blocked off a base. They can be created freely, as the milliner works, being moulded and shaped in different ways. The possibilities of creation are endless.

The Fedora

A fedora is traditionally a soft felt or velvet hat with a curled brim and a crease down the middle. Fedora’s can be made from other materials too, to suit different seasons.

The Turban

The Turban shape has been quite popular in millinery lately. It gives milliners a wide scope to experiment with different materials and styles when creating a turban look.

The Beret

Berets, mostly seen in Autumn/Winter, are gaining popularity once again in the racing world. They can be made out of soft leathers, felt and wools.

The Disc

The disc shape is a favourite of mine. It is basically a disc shape, that can be slightly moulded to sit at a 45 degree (or higher) angle off the side of the head.

The Dior Brim / Mushroom

A favourite shape of mine is, what has been dubbed, the ‘Dior Brim’. This hat has a brim which angles downwards, in a sort of mushroom shape. I find this hat so feminine and classic.

Millinery Trends

Just as with fashion, millinery trends change each year. The fabrications, colours, shapes and techniques used can change to suit what is trending.

It is unknown who decides what will be the new ‘in’ look for millinery, perhaps inspiration is taken from hats featured in Couture runway shows, hats worn to a royal wedding or what celebrity milliners are creating. Once something gains popularity you will see quite a few milliners jump on board and create their own version of the trend.

In recent years, we have seen the percher, boater, wide brim hat, crowns and halos as being the favourites amongst race goers. Check out this blog post to learn more about Millinery Trends.

Fabrications for Different Seasons

It is very important to take note of different fabrications used for different seasons. If you are entering the Fashions on the Field competition, judges are on the look out to make sure you are wearing season appropriate fabrications.

Below is a list of common fabrications and the season they are appropriate for. For a more in-depth look at dressing for seasons read this blog post.

Leather

Leather is trans-seasonal and can be worn in both S/S and A/W. Select appropriate colours to match the season; brighter colours in S/S (i.e. yellow, pink, blue, orange, green, white) and rich winter tones for A/W (i.e. burgundy, red, emerald, navy, brown, burnt orange, deep purple, black).

Felt / Fur

For millinery, this is a definite A/W-only fabrication. In FOTF, you would be penalised if you wore a felt hat in spring. Felts come in so many beautiful colours and look fantastic worked into a variety of shapes from fedoras, boaters, turbans and pillbox styles.

Straw/Sinamay

The perfect lightweight fabrication for S/S, straw and sinamay cannot be worn in A/W. This fabric is also used to make a variety of silhouettes and is easily shaped. It can also be dyed almost any colour. Straw and sinamay are the most common fabrications used in bases and be covered in different fabrics, once shaped.

Fabric covered

As mentioned above, hats can be made from various materials and then covered in a fabric. Your choice of fabric will determine if it is S/S or A/W appropriate. A thicker fabric with a winter colour can be used in A/W and something bright and vibrant is fine for S/S. If you have a base blocked in a S/S fabrication such as sinamay, you can cover it to make it A/W appropriate with a fabric such as wool or tweed, as long as you cannot see any of the sinamay.

Jinsin

Jinsin is a woven straw fabric and, therefore, used in S/S. Jinsin is favoured for its sculptural qualities and you can also fray the edges, which looks really cool.

Eva Foam

A lightweight foam that is easy to mould, eva foam has gained quite a bit of popularity amongst milliners. Eva foam is thought to be both S/S and A/W appropriate.

Silk/ Silk Abaca

Silk abaca is a fabric made from silk and abaca fibre. It is popular due to how beautifully the fabric holds colour and has a beautiful sheen to it. Silk abaca is a S/S fabrication due to its light weight and straw like appearance.

Velvet

Velvet, as I’m sure most of you can guess, is an A/W fabrication. Velvets look expensive and present a lovely textured appearance, especially printed velvet.

Perspex/ Thermoplastic

Perspex and plastic hats are appropriate for both S/S and A/W. The deciding factor is the fabrications you choose to pair it with, so select something to suit the season.

Raffia

Raffia is a fun natural fibre to work with as it is strong, durable and easy to dye. It is only to be worn in S/S.

Metals

Metal fabrics such as aluminium and metal sheets can be used in millinery to create interesting and unusual designs. Metals are trans-seasonal.

Crinoline

I love the effect of crinoline as a trim for millinery. In my opinion, crinoline is appropriate for both S/S and A/W and is a beautiful touch to add depth and contrast to other fabrications.

Braid

Braid is usually made from woven strips of cellophane. Cellophane being a plastic fabrication means it can be worn in S/S or A/W, however some people see braid as being mainly for S/S. Braids can be sewn together to form the base of a hat, or used in strips with wire sewn in to create shapes.

Veiling

Veiling is a very big trend this year and is suitable for both S/S and A/W. Choose a lighter colour veil for S/S and a heavier, darker veil for A/W. Veiling can be worn over the face or as part of an embellishment on a hat.

Embellished

Stones and embellishments can be used in headbands and crowns in S/S or A/W. A jewelled headband in emerald, deep blue and burgundy would look stunning in A/W, whereas, light coloured embellishments will shine in S/S.

Feathers

Feathers are a trans-seasonal fabrication perfect for embellishing hats, or worn alone as a structural piece. Feathers can be cut and dyed into numerous styles and are a lot of fun to play around with.

Mesh

Stiffened mesh is often used in millinery and typically for S/S, however, I have seen a small trim added to a leather piece for an A/W look. Just a touch may be overlooked, if it is mistaken for a mesh made of leather or plastic.

Part 2 – How to Choose the Right Hat

Now that we’ve covered the fundamentals of hat shapes and fabrications, I’ll share some tips for finding the right hat to suit your outfit.

Which Comes First – Dress or Hat?

Some people like to decide upon their outfit first before selecting a hat, others are inspired by a hat and plan a whole outfit around it. Personally, I find it easier to start with an outfit and then have a hat made to complement.

How to Choose a Hat Shape to Suit your Dress

Selecting millinery is all about balance and making sure the overall look works together nicely. If you are having a hat made, you would show your design or outfit idea to your milliner, who then draws up some ideas for you.

When selecting a hat, the shape of the dress is important. If you have a full skirt, then you may want a bigger piece of millinery to balance out the silhouette.

Here @becccaah wears a stunning @peacockmillinery hat that plays on the print in Becca’s dress. The hat mimics the leaf print, whilst the embellishment matches the flowers in the dress. The dress itself, is quite simple in terms of silhouette, so having a statement hat is a good choice.

In this outfit, @tanyalazarou has chosen a wide brim hat to complement her full skirt dress. Her dress is quite voluminous, so a small hat would get lost and look unsubstantial with this outfit, whereas the wide brim balances it out nicely.

Jessica’s choice of a simple beret was perfect for her otherwise busy outfit whilst complementing it but not overcrowding it. She has a lot going on in terms of accessories and colour, so a simple hat was the way to go.

The beauty of millinery is that there are many different styles that suit a range of silhouettes and sometimes the best thing to do is to ‘try on’ different hats with the outfit. You can do this with an app called ‘Pic Collage’.

Using the PicCollage App to Visualise your Outfit

PicCollage is a phone app that you can use to help you visualise how your hat will look with the rest of your outfit.

Basically, you start with a blank canvas. Then you bring in the photos you want to use, cut around the pictures using your finger and make a collage of your dress, millinery, shoes and accessories. The end product is an image of the entire outfit right before your very eyes!

Sometimes you might have an entire outfit, except for your millinery. What hat shape will suit? Which hat should you pick?

Take a photo of yourself in your outfit and then use PicCollage to ‘try on’ a number of different hats from the comfort of your home. A full guide on how to use it can be found here.

How to Tie Your Millinery in with Your Outfit

To tie millinery into your outfit, you can either choose to select a colour from your outfit or a fabrication. Your millinery doesn’t have to match a colour though; you can always use your millinery to introduce an entirely new colour.

Your millinery shape should complement the shape and style of your outfit. If you have soft round prints or shapes in your dress, you could continue that onto your hat.

You can also take a feature or print from your dress and use it in your millinery. Flowers are a perfect example. If your outfit features roses, then find a rose embellishment, made out of feathers or leather (for example) as a feature on your hat.

Or if your outfit has a print that features a certain pattern, you could remake that shape onto your hat.