Hats Off to Saratoga

In Saratoga this weekend, I won money, lost money, spent money, did a lot of drinking, and had a great time. I also took lots of pictures of the wacky and gorgeous hats I saw at the Saratoga Hat Contest. I didn't catch who the winner was, but capturing all the chapeaus on film was enough for me. Here are some highlights:



























And finally, my favorite of the entire day. Big, frilly, stylish, black-and-white and paired with a beautifully simple outfit:

How to Make a Derby Hat

I have professed my love for big hats worn at horse races. I have also discussed how to pick a hat for your face and how to wear that hat properly, with a dress and minimal, classic accessories. In this post, I'll show you how I made my own Derby Hat.

Google "derby hat" and dozens of online couture hat boutiques will come up. The Derby Hat is not only a long-standing tradition, but also brings good luck to you when you wear it, and some people take this tradition very seriously. So if you're lucky enough to be attending the Kentucky Derby, your outfit is of paramount importance. There are, apparently, women out there who will spend upwards of $400 on a gargantuan hat festooned with feathers, netting, ribbon and flowers, which she will wear to only one race, on one day, ever.

I am not one of those women.

I am also not going to Churchill Downs this weekend, but I am attending the Hats Off to Saratoga Festival in lovely Saratoga Springs, New York. I have two navy-ish dresses that I plan to wear to the track Saturday and Sunday, and I have created my own custom hat for the weekend. Yes, I do realize this is probably a huge faux pas, wearing the same Derby Hat twice in one weekend (or in one lifetime), but... I don't really care.

So! Time to make your hat. Before a chef begins cooking, he gets mise en place. Before embarking on any project, it's good to lay out your materials ahead of time. For this project I suggest:
- the hat
- silk flowers (several small and one large)
- feathers (many)
- ribbon
- netting (optional)
- thread and needles
- Tacky Glue or a hot glue gun

Here are my materials laid out on the kitchen table.



Then I took everything to where I do all my crafty-work: my bed (weird, I know).

1) Start with the feathers. I attached mine so they would lay across the crown and fan out. Pour some glue over the spot, lay down 2 feathers and sew them onto the hat. As you get comfortable with this process and feel they are secure, add more.



2) When you are satisfied with your plumage, it's time to add the band, if you don't have one or want to change yours. Cut a long piece of ribbon, wrap it around the crown, and bring the ends together where the feather bunch is. Secure with pins, then sew the ribbon in place with small stitches. Cut off any excess.



3) Now we add the side flowers. You will need to cut or detach smaller stems from the large flowers. Place the bunch where you like, then sew it in place by looping thread over and through the branches.



4) Once you have the framing set, you add the focal piece: the large silk flower. My hat has a magnolia-ish flower. Pick something with size and volume! Using matching or inconspicuous thread, sew the blossom onto the hat where the brim meets the crown. Be careful not to sew through any top petals (you'll see the stitches).


Here is how the hat looks now...



5) Now the hat is basically done - you just need finishing touches. This is the point where I added the extra ribbon, pushed in the rest of the feathers, and made small adjustments. You can add more flowers, netting, whatever you like, but it will be harder to sew anything into the crown once the large flower is sewed.



5) Last thing I added: the single ostrich feather. I thought it added a great pop and a change from just navy/white.


And there you have it... a custom-made Derby hat to match whichever lovely sundress you want. My plain hat cost $17, and the decorations all together were about $18, which makes this project a very affordable one. I'm already laughing and excited about the pictures we will take this weekend. And maybe I'll win big!

Here are some tips for making your hat look great:

• Find a place to consider your focal point - where the attention to the hat will be drawn. The statement will be more sophisticated than silk flowers sticking out of every corner of your hat.
• Sewing through glue will get your hands, needle and thread messy. Consider yourself warned. But the sturdiness is worth it.
• Attach decorations without pulling them through the holes in the straw, if applicable. That'll poke you in the head!
• Have fun with color, but shopping for things like feathers and flowers can give you ADD. Create a palette (3 colors tops) and stick with it, if you want to look sophisticated.
• Consider your dress. If your dress is on the fancy side, go for a hat in a fabric, rather than straw, and keep a clean color palette.
• Hats come in many shapes and sizes. Take the time to pick the best one for you.
• Finish off the look with nice, big sunnies.
• Have fun and work that Derby Hat! If you're feeling a bit shy, first, take a look around you, and second, have another drink. You're at the races - enjoy!

Cheers,
Hayley

How to Wear a Big Hat

Admittedly, a huge hat isn't as easy of a piece to wear as a cute clutch, or even a statement necklace. The big hat is its own statement, and it's important, when diving into this delightful adventure of feathery, flowery goodness, to achieve coordination and balance in your ensemble.

The Steps to Picking the Right Hat
1) Pick your dress. A gal can get away with a skirt/top combination, or nice linen pants, but a sundress works with a hat even better than bourbon and muddled mint leaves.
2) Pick your shoes. At the track I recommend flops, or wedges if you're feeling posh, but stilettos will sink into the grass and cramp your fun. But the point here is, if your shoes make a statement, tone down the hat.
3) Pick the right hat for your face shape (see below).
4) Pick embellishments for the hat that either pop the outfit or coordinate with it.

Race hats come in many shapes and sizes, so aside from being outrageous and fun, they must also flatter your face. Below is a guideline for picking a hat style that complements your face shape, courtesy of www.hat-a-tude.com.

• If your face is round or square, you'll want to go for a straight brim, large brim, fedora or low crown hat. Avoid deep rolled short brims, and hats too small for your head.
• If your face is narrow, you can pull off the flat crown, the gambler, the low crown, or the flat, wide brim - just about anything, except high crown hats. You'll look too long.
• If your face is oval-shaped, dive right in - you can pull off any of these looks.

Hat-a-Tude also recommends that no hat should be wider than your shoulders, and to keep the proportions of the hat in check with your body height and frame. Check out this link for definitions of each of these styles.

Once you have picked your hat size and style, and your dress, you generally have one of two routes to choose: you either emphasize the dress, or the hat. But not both.

If your dress is patterned, unless it is very subtle and low-key, keep your hat color and decor to a minimum to avoid looking psychotic and overdone. Or, you can match the two, or stick to a black-and-white pallette. Here are a few examples of this classy combination (photos from hat-a-tude.com):







If your dress is a solid, or a very subtle pattern in a neutral or close to it (solid embroidery, seersucker, very subdued florals), feel free to let your hat do the shouting. This is the route I plan to take:






Once you have your outfit and hat style decided upon, time to decorate that thing. As you can see from the pictures, the hats' colors always coordinate with the outfit. If your dress is patterned, keep the hat solid or put in one other color from your dress, and keep flounce to a lower level. With solid dresses, the hat can incorporate just about any colors you want, but it's best if at least one of those is the shade of your frock.

And when it comes to ornamentation, this is a time to have fun. Deck it out with lillies, roses, netting, ribbon, and feathers of all kinds. This chance doesn't come around too often, so make the most of it!

A few suggestions on making your overall look ladylike, sophisticated and beautiful:
1) Scale down the jewelry. Pearl or diamond studs, a ring and a bracelet are plenty.
2) Clutches are best for staying out of the eyeline of the hat (not on your shoulder). Try wicker or leather, but keep it simple and make sure you can fit a flask in there.
3) I prefer hair down under the hat, but keep bobby pins or an elastic handy - if you get hot, whisk the hair under the hat and you still look chic.
4) Wear sunscreen! Everywhere!
5) Keep your colors in mind when you get a mani/pedi. Sounds minute, but if you're wearing sandals and dressing up, people will see your nails. A soft pink or classic red are good bets.
6) Nothing looks better under a hat besides a sundress than a huge pair of sunglasses.

Coming soon: a photo essay on my hat creation project.

Goodnight!
Hayley

I finally, FINALLY get my chance to wear a big hat!

Yes, ladies. Next week I will be up in lovely Saratoga for Opening Weekend at the track!


But it gets better.

Much better.

August 1-2. At Saratoga. Is... the...

HATS OFF TO SARATOGA FESTIVAL

Yes, you read that right. I squealed like a pig on helium when I found out about this. The entire weekend is a festival of live music, local gourmet food and big effing hats.

A little background here: I wrote a post some time back in adoration of the gorgeous and enormous toppers ladies wear to the races, polo matches and such. The absolute Mecca of big hats is, of course, the Kentucky Derby. Churchill Downs becomes inundated with gentlemen in bow ties and croakies, and ladies in sundresses and wide-brim hats, fedoras, deep-rolled brim hats, and even couture creations that'll set you back several hundred dollars.

I adore huge hats on women. To me, they are the perfect concoction of grace, elegance, femininity and whimsy. And there are very few places in which one can still pull this look off. Even less in the North than in the South.

So while it may be a few years before I get to the Derby, I am thrilled to be attending Hats Off to Saratoga. Hats are a long-standing tradition at this gorgeous park, and next weekend, Saratoga will be hopping with people and live music. They even cap off this weekend with a hat contest on Sunday. I am in a wedding on Friday night, but I will rise early and come hell or hangover, I will be at the track by noon on Saturday.

But wait, it gets better.

I have decided that instead of shelling out $300+ for a custom hat I'll wear once (I'm saving that dough for Italy), or settling for the gramma-style pink straw numbers they sell at Sears, I am going to make my own hat. Not the hat itself - that I'm buying - but once I have the dress picked, I am shopping for a wide-brim hat and tricking it out with flowers, feathers, and ribbon. Maybe even some netting, if I'm feeling frisky.

Next post: the right hat for you, and dress/hat combinations to die for.

GIDDY UP!
Hayley

In Defense of Four-Furlong Hats

This past weekend, I traveled to the delightfully quaint and lively city of Saratoga Springs. If you've never been, I highly recommend it. Long, shady streets lined with Victorian summer rental houses, endless lawn parties, a preserved 19th-century racetrack, a lake, hot springs, and a row of beautiful shops. Even a great boutique called the Pink Paddock, for all us Lilly fans!

I spent only one night in Saratoga, and my big brother and I had a great time betting on horses, enjoying the weather and doing a nice bar crawl. But my favorite part of visiting Saratoga, primarily the track, is the people-watching, which is better than you'd expect. While the crowd is classier overall than, say, Belmont, the attire still runs the gamut from shots-and-T-shirt to bow ties, sports coats, dresses, and, naturally, big hats.

The Kentucky Derby is not only the most prestigious horse race in the country, but the place to wear your brightest, loudest sundress and most immense, wide-brimmed, view-obstructing hat. While I haven't been to the Derby, though I plan to go soon, I may be attending the Travers in Saratoga Labor Day Weekend. And of all races to attend after the Derby, this will be the perfect place to trot around in the most old-fashioned, ridiculous, never-wear-it-again accessory I will ever wear.

Below are some of my favorite looks: ladies in hats, great dress/hat combinations and articles I'd consider buying for the Travers. Others are looks that are just fabulous for how ostentatious and quintessentially southern they are. I won't make this a huge investment piece, for obvious reasons, but the thing to remember about bonnets is this: the bigger the hat, the more you need to spend to keep it classy.

Enjoy!

Classic & Beautiful

Wide floppy brim, and appropriate ornamentation (the Run of the Roses!)

Hef and his girls, surprisingly classy. My favorite is the one on the left - simple (skin-tight!) solid dress with a straw hat, with added ribbon and dark glasses.

A more fashion-forward choice, in a neutral color. I love the asymmetrical brim.

Lilly's take on the Derby. Great straw hat with her signature print ribbon, and you could probably pull off wearing it to the beach (the right beach, of course).

On this champagne-colored bonnet, the featheres and ribbon don't look too-too because of the neutral, uniform color family. Plus, the more structured brim keeps the hat out of your face, not obstructing the line from the mint julep to your mouth!

Runway Derby look.

Black and white all over - clean, timeless and the most formal combination.

Outrageous and Fantastic

I hope the people sitting behind her got discounts on their tickets. But those feathers are simply wonderful!

Good effort pairing this textured periwinkle hat with a white dress, but the flipped-up brim and cutout pattern are just not quite right.

Audrey Hepburn. The only woman who could pull off a hat that weighs more than she did.

Found on a couture hat website. Might work with a solid black dress, but the heat defeats that, and the big white rose is a bit matronly. Still, not the wackiest one I've seen.

Now this. Is what a race hat looks like. Bright colors, piled-on flowers, wild feathers, netting and a huge brim.

Another black-and-white confection, which isn't bad in theory, but the porous material would give me a headache when the sun came through. Besides, why go this small-and-tall when you could go big-and-broad?

One word: titanic.