Curtains were the first victims of my hat-making . Bales of 1940’s bark cloth curtains in wild tropical prints were reborn into the Mad Hatter styles which I created in the 1980’s. From there, I graduated into brocades and velvets in gorgeous shades of lavendar, burgundy, and puce, last seen as hanging panels in movie houses of yore.

This was the recycling of my young millinery career. Geometry became my science of choice, fitting pattern pieces in the front of a 1950’s circle skirt, worn, torn and tattered, but with enough fabric left to eke out a hat. Victorian buttons and estate sale feathers inspired my evolving collections. Bits of Harris tweed became pawns in a game of “what can I make with this?”

Those same Victorian buttons still show up on hats at Ellen Christine. We add carefully chosen elements from our now rarified archival collection of antique trims and ribbons to cloches, or fedoras. We cover the crown of an Edwardian-inspired hat with lush willow plumes, brought out from a box of priceless trim. Our decades-old stash of bits and odd pieces is our pride and joy. The world has eaten up the vast supplies that used to line the shelves of millinery fournisseur houses in Europe, and dead stock has all but evaporated as a concept in the vintage world. We are left to forage in flea markets and auction houses for rare vintage ingredients.

The new generation of green has arrived, and young designers are embracing the art of saving; re-inventing the garment industry for this politically correct world. In London, a Nigerian milliner named Tosin Trim works with the design firm Deploy, fashioning their discards into wonderful little cocktail hats to coordinate with their collection. On Overstock.com, you can find knit hats from Nepal made from recycled silk and hemp in brilliant hues.

The world is catching up with the idea of re-using, re-purposing, re-fashioning and recycling. The post-war consumerism of the 1950’s replaced decades of making do, and now has reached it’s apogee.
The Trashion Street Team , a group of indie fashion creators puts it this way:

“For us recycling is an art and an ideal. The Trashion philosophy encompasses environmentalism and innovation, and respects the human creative and healing potential.”

Now, the curtains are gone, but there’s always the local thrift store, a veritable mine for possibilities. Today’s discards are tomorrow’s treasures, upcycled with flair.

In fashion, where there’s a will, there’s a way.

Image courtesy of Deployworkshop.com