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Modern and repro hats

MJCalloway

New in Town
Messages
7
Oh my goodness! There is a store that sells her hats right near where I work. Her hats are AMAZING! Especially the cloche hats. They may be repro, but they really do look like the real thing in person. I always stop into the store and try them on. One day I'll have enough money to purchase one.
 

carter

I'll Lock Up
Messages
5,921
Location
Corsicana, TX
Kiss of the Spider Woman

I like this one for October.

il_430xN.40623128.jpg
:eek:

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16018657

If I lived in Seattle, I'd have to buy this hat for someone special.
:)
 

decodoll

Practically Family
Messages
816
Location
Saint Louis, MO
Lareesie Ladavi said:
That is very cute, but $95 dollars? They on something? It's a a 5 dollar job. Man, we girls need to get together and open our own business. haha! :D

Well, this is a lot of the reason I stopped making hats to sell. It may look simple, but I look at it and see the tiny hand stitches that go into the covered wire at the back of the head all the way around, and if she does it the way I would, the blocking she did to the base under the tulle and more hand stitching to finish it off. Take at least a few hours of work and add in the cost of quality tulle, 100% wool felt and several yards of silk ribbon. It all adds up. Shouldn't she make something reasonable for her time?
 

graverobbergirl

New in Town
Messages
22
Location
Upstate NYS
decodoll said:
Shouldn't she make something reasonable for her time?

I totally agree!

I've just started selling some of the things I make, and they aren't very good, so I feel the need to sell them cheap. But then I am not reimbursed for my time at all. Anything hand made is SO time consuming. It makes me sick to look in department stores when they can sell you an item for $20 (because those who made it got paid next to nothing), when you know the amount of labor that would go into (its better quality) hand made equivalent. People expect similar prices from artisans and craft people without realizing this difference. Its the whole consumers not knowing where their goods are coming from argument.

(sorry to get on my soap box)

Gorgeous hats, and so coveting them!
 

Lareesie Ladavi

One of the Regulars
Messages
210
Location
Weatherless Socal
Geez, I wasn't trying to offend. Even the most expensive toile isn't all that expensive, same goes for ribbon. I'm pretty handy, so I guess maybe for someone like me, it seems pretty simple. For someone that doesn't sew, I guess maybe that is worth that price to them. It just seems pretty simplistic for the price. If you're willing to spend that much, more power to you. [huh] :)
 

decodoll

Practically Family
Messages
816
Location
Saint Louis, MO
I have a degree in fashion design... I know how to sew. Quality women's hats are mostly made by hand... tiny stitches that take time. Plus, a lot of the materials that are used in hats, heavy wool felts and buckram, aren't easy to sew through which adds more time. For that hat, she had to shape the wire, hand block the felt base, sew the wire onto the base (time consuming work), finish the edges of the base by hand, hand sew the felt covering to the wire, swirl the petersham ribbon and sew it to the underside of the base, and then sew on any embellishment like the tulle and ribbon. Not unlikely that it took her 4 hours of work. I just don't think a skilled custom seamstress should have to work for pennies. At just $20 an hour, which I wouldn't consider at all unreasonable for a craftsperson to make, that is $80 just in labor. I'm sure once you add all the materials together, they cost at least $15. If you want to make it yourself and save money that is up to you. Please just don't act like she is "on something" because she expects to be decently compensated for her time and skill. Sorry if this came off like I'm ranting... it is just a major pet peeve of mine.
 

ShoreRoadLady

Practically Family
Lareesie Ladavi said:
Geez, I wasn't trying to offend. Even the most expensive toile isn't all that expensive, same goes for ribbon. I'm pretty handy, so I guess maybe for someone like me, it seems pretty simple. For someone that doesn't sew, I guess maybe that is worth that price to them. It just seems pretty simplistic for the price. If you're willing to spend that much, more power to you.

I'm sure you weren't trying to offend. :) It's merely that for many craftspeople and sewers, it's a sore point when someone says that something is "so easy" when it probably isn't! I don't make hats, but I sew for myself, and sometimes it'll be said, "Oh, why don't you just do such-and-such - it's so easy!" Right... :rolleyes:

The key question is always, what is it worth to you? For me, I'm DIY enough that I might want to have a go at it myself, instead of paying $95 for a little hat. But it's doubtful I would do as good a job - after all, some seemingly "simple" items can take a *ton* of effort. So, if I really wanted that hat, I might pay the $95 to save me the time and effort expended not only in creating it, but in gleaning the information necessary to do a good job. Savvy? *puts on Captain Jack Sparrow hat*
 

ScotchWhisky

Familiar Face
Messages
73
Location
Seattle
The lady behind the BoringSidney Etsy shop is a friend of mine! She has made me a bunch of absolutely stunning hats... I can vouch for her creativity and talent and her hats are worth every penny! She's also outstanding about custom orders.

I will post some modeling pictures here as I wear my hats... This one is the Irene Dunne in beautiful silvery grey.

Photo6.jpg
 

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