In spring/summer 2019 I took a millinery course at Morley College. Billed as a 3-month evening beginner course, I was hoping for some structured teaching but it turned out a lot more like an open workshop. The participants had varying levels of experience and I'd definitely describe it as a mixed ability cohort. Coming to class with ~9 years' garment sewing experience allowed me to keep my head above the water. A complete beginner wouldn't have had a chance.
Honestly, I think that to get the most out of the class you'd need to have a solid design idea in mind and seek the advice or techniques to realise it. I am so new to millinery I didn't really know what I was designing and, under pressure to start drawing up the pattern in Lesson 1, went for a very plain "practice hat".
The expectation was to work on multiple pieces at once and have several to show off at the end of the course (knowing that it doesn't specifically lead to a portfolio or a final show). I finished one, but it got damaged the week before the photo shoot due to an accident with the stretcher. To be honest, that completely took the wind out of my sails.
As determined as fate was to stop me getting the best out of class, I did learn some useful things though:
- Introduction to unfamiliar materials like buckram, wire and fusible glue
- The difference between a buttonhole stitch and a blanket stitch (and when to use both)
- The basics of hat design and construction (hint: bias is king)
- Felt blocking
- How to fix a piece to your head (combs, elastic, alice band, fitting etc)
- Directing a photographer and model
Time will tell if I pick up this discipline again.
K
