My first job was at age 16 selling hats in a Chicago hat shop. That was in the 60s, when hats were on every woman’s head, but the fascination never stopped.
Researching Chicago's millinery past is a passion, including a blog: FrouFrou4YouYou on Wordpress. The blog has many different articles, tho I seldom update it now. https://froufrou4youyou.wordpress.com/2016/02/26/chicago-millinery-history-conventions-in-chicago-1800s/
I post on Instagram as @marymillinery.
If you wonder if FrouFrou4YouYou ships internationally? Yes, before the pandemic. Hats have gone to: Amsterdam, Netherlands, Kiev, Ukraine, Pavia, Italy. Firenze, Italy, Paris, France, Tokyo, Japan, Chiba, Japan, Munchen, Germany, Madrid, Spain, Hagerstown, Sweden,Switzerland, Bangkok, Thailand, AU, Canada and UK.
Part of the Chicago millinery history is Raymond Hudd. He was a wonderful milliner and an inspiration to many. The School of the Art Institute of Chicago has an award in his name given annually to students in the fashion program of the School of the Art Institute. If you already purchased a Raymond Hudd hat, you should be feeling very good, as perhaps it has actually appreciated in value. Phyllis Diller, a noted American comedienne, wore Raymond Hudd hats, 500 of them. Her jokes, on index cards, are in the collection of the Smithsonian museum. Her estate auction featured several of Raymond's hats. You may enjoy going through the estate sale flip book to see them: http://www.juliensauctions.com/images/auctions/2013/phyllis-diller/flipbook/files/mobile/tablet.html#171
The millinery history of Chicago is a research passion. Please feel free to contact me with your stories of the old days.
Released Jan 2013: updated Ebook for 2013 Hatatorium:An Essential Guide for Hat Collectors. Written by Brenda Grantland, Mary Robak, Jeffrey Moss, Tammy Markwick, and Friends. http://www.hatatorium.com/
This is an interactive reference manual for hat collectors and online hat sellers. There are many color photos in the book itself, but it also interfaces with a dedicated website database (also created by the authors) with over 1,000 color photos of collectible hats from the past century. How-tos are illustrated by several short videos.
The Hatatorium allows the user to look up a label, a style of hat, or a material or construction method used in a hat, and other information key to determining the probable date and value of a hat. It has a chapter for collectors on hat care, cleaning, reshaping, and storage tips; a chapter of tips for getting great deals on vintage hats on eBay, Etsy, and other online marketplaces; and a chapter novice hat sellers should read to avoid losing money trying to sell vintage hats.
One of the most important features is the chapter on Hat Styles (defining the various styles from the past century, with pictorial examples of most styles (including links to over 1000 photos in the database), links to examples in various museums, tips on identifying the age of a hat from variations in the style, and interesting historical background.
The chapter on milliners and store labels is an alphabetical listing of milliners and store labels of the most widely collected vintage hats. Milliners names are linked to separate Hatatorium website albums, containing color photos of hats in the authors' private collections. It also has hundreds of links to fine examples of their hats in museums around the world.
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