Lovely Loleatta in Ronald Bernarde

Looking very pretty today isn't she? Looks like she's just ready for a Pimms and Lemonade and a quick game of tennis in that floral number...

Looks can be deceiving though as Ms Loleatta is a bit temperamental - she doesn't like doing what she's told, but I usually put her moodiness down to the fact she lost her arms.

Anyway, today she is modelling a fetching vintage piece by Ronald Bernarde, a prominent Melbourne milliner, or rather milliners (Ronald & Bernarde) in the 1970/80's. The hat was birthday present from my wonderful housemates, I'm not sure how you describe the style, it's almost a cross between a flat cap, beret and a turban. It seems to be layers of tulle with tiny silk flowers that have been intricately sewn on all it. Marvellous.

Hats in Vogue

Literally hats in this months Australian Vogue.
A little collage experiment,
Not sure where it will go,
I like peacocks, the words have no deep meaning.

Hats vaguely clockwise from top right: Naomi Goodsir, Marccain, Suzy O'Rourke, Suzy O'Rourke, Cubec, Hermes, Kenzo, Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren.

Erykah Badu - Millinery Muse

Erykah Badu is an inspiration, in fact bigger than an inspiration if that can possibly exist! The lady is pure magic; undoubtedly is one of the world's most talented singers, writers, musicians, wordsmiths, beatsmiths, rappers, performers we have seen in our generation and Baduizm in 1997 was one of the albums that changed my life. Yes BIG words there, but it really is true, no little piece of exaggeration, no need - I probably wouldn't have discovered the people, places, experiences I have without it. No doubt. She is my ultimate, all time, No 1, favourite ever ever artist and for someone with a lot of favourites in the world of music this is HUGE! Never heard of her? Then I think you need to step out of your cultural void for a second and find out about Badu... (Sorry that was a lot of gush!)

So just when I thought she couldn't climb any higher in my world, I saw her in a hat! I had the privilege of seeing her live for the first time yesterday.... and discovered that not only is she my music muse, but my millinery muse too. Could she get any better?! Wow! The lady wears a hat better than anyone I've ever seen ever before. Ever! She's always been identified for her totally crazy madical hair, which is almost a hat in itself, but it looks even more amazesome under a big jazzy hat. I will make a hat for Erykah, it is now my No 1 aim in life, Love of my life...

The best representation of the hair!

Hats for Evil not Good!

So someone sent me the first picture below, and I thought great I'll do a post on headwear used for pain and not pleasure, I'd not ever considered that this might have existed. Hats are always fun surely?! Anyway brilliant thinks me, so started googling, masks, pain, punishment and torture, lets see what that brings up - loads of gruesome stuff out there for sure..... oh yes there is.... and then I realised that combination of words didn't always give me quite the outcome I was after. I'm not THAT type of blog! But it did unearth some real cracking facts:

The Scold's Bridle

Take this bundle of joy, you wouldn't want to be Perez Hilton in medieval times or you'd get this slammed round your chops; it was used for rude, clamourous women who were considered to be spending too much time gossiping or quarreling. It had a bell on the top to draw attention to the wayward culprit and was used in workhouses in the UK up until the 1800's. To be honest, I'd probably turn the other way if someone wanted to whack it on Mr (or Ms) Hilton now, it might be an improvement!

Mask of Infamy - Ass

Then we have the Masks of Infamy, which were sometimes just used to subject the victim to public ridicule, a mask with long ears such as the one above signified someone who had been a right ass... obviously! I thought those people were easy enough to spot by their Ed Hardy T-Shirts, but I guess this was the medieval equivalent. You can find this piece of pleasure in the "Medieval Torture Museum" in San Gimignano in Italy. Tell me you don't want to go, not even a little bit?!

Some of these masks of infamy weren't quite so pleasant though, and had spikes and barbs and spears and all other manner of pain inflicting devices for the wearer to endure for their sins. The wearer would also often be chained to a post so if the mask wasn't hurting you enough, the village mob would probably help out. Not so nice, who'd look good in one of them? Maybe Dubya 'n Blair? They could have little twin ones, how cute! 



Dubya and Blair in twin masks of infamy! Arthur or Martha?

Russian Mask of Infamy

The Russians also got in on this Mask of Infamy business, not being afraid of a good dose of torture themselves. They also had a delightful sounding device called a head crusher where the victims head was put on a table and slowly crushed to a pulp by a slow, painful and heavy screw. Crunch. Pop. Splat!

Head Crusher

Next time I'll do a more pleasant post. Promise!

The rise (and fall) of the floppy felt hat

I've had 5 signs this week about floppy felt hats, which either means someone up there is telling me I should do a post on them or that I am hopelessly behind the times and should have done this 6 months ago like proper fashion people would have done. Probably the latter! They are just too perfect for dreamy strolls in the summertime breeze.
The signs:
i) Grazia tells me they're in (although no picture of the Mosster wearing one, so I'm not sure that's really true until this happens)
ii) I find one in Sportsgirl (must mean Topshop did it yonks ago)
iii) I come across this lovely blog complete with hat post
iv) And this totally gorgeous blog, which is my blog of the week
v) I spot 3 at a music festival at the weekend wearing them (amongst 10,000 people)... it seems like the straw trilby maybe phased out as the festival lovers hat of choice!

It's a sign... just make sure those wide brims don't get in your eyes ladies, that's the trouble I have with my very big and very yellow one! Positioning is key, but we must suffer for gorgeousness and mine is VERY big!

Ferne Cotton the most famous celeb I can find wearing one well, and the red is the colour I want

The most famous celebrity I can find wearing one... ahead of the times for once J-Lo!

Floppies from Catarzi, buy here

From Wise Rabbit Says

From Vogue Espana 2011 via Wise Rabbit Says

From Oracle Fox, this is exactly the look I think of when I look at one of these hats, hat from Topshop

And the perfect soundtrack for breezing around meadows in your summer dream hat...Incidentally by the incredible Kool & The Gang who I'm lucky enough to be seeing next week with the king of the Vibes Mr Roy Ayres, I hope they play this :o)

Melbourne's Got Talent!

And luckily for me I can find her at the end of the phoneline or in a bar of my choice anytime I need any style, antiques, taxidermy, what stuff to buy, photography, expatriate (yes fellow Pom - actually Pom is too vulgar a word, English rose is more like it - for her not me that is) advice, or advice of any other kind for that matter! Miss Rosie is a natural style icon indeed, one of those ones who just epitomises effortless cool and chic. Yep lots of cool and chic. Lots.

In in fact so much cool and chic that her humble abode had it's own page feature in the Sunday papers a couple of weeks ago. Proper Selby style, proper famous! Pretty much everything Rosie has you want to own, except if you did it wouldn't look half as good. Part of the wondersomeness (i.e. more than awesomeness) of her stuff is that it's all quirky and has a great story... and probably had an original function lightyears away from it's current use or what your brain in its most far out mode could ever imagine. The balloon mould is my favourite case in point.

Those not as fortunate as me and not in the inner circle, can get their own piece of Rosie style advice by popping in to Tarlo & Graham at 60 Chapel St Windsor any time she's in.

(And the Eagle Eyed amongst you may have also spotted the lovely lady in a post I made in the last decade... )

In the Papers

In the Flesh