Atlantic Memories

Kristin Silverman

United States

• Block a Hat Lining Project by Jane Stoddart

One of the most common descriptors in my work is "unlined."

This competition was the perfect chance to challenge myself with a new style of lining. (My rare linings before tended to be sewn or gathered.)

"Perhaps you've chosen an unusually shaped block," Jane Stoddart wrote - and I certainly did! I wanted to show off the inner curves, dent and angled cut of this crown shape. I blocked the fabric over the crown and sewed it in separately from the brim lining, which I chose to have intentionally loose and gathered to reflect the ocean wave inspiration.

As I looked through the archives - whether the copper-swirled headpiece in issue 180 or the hat-as-art-of-something-else of Bes-Ben (Issue 176) - the same hat kept coming to my imagination.

I am captivated and inspired by the ocean. The swirls, the movement and the colors. So I created a piece to reflect that. I feel like the angled cut away of the crown of the block I used seemed wave-like. And the colors and the shapes and swirls of the beading show my vision of the ocean.

In addition to the beading on the surface of the felt, I wanted to add more dimension and negative space (think of the inner curl of a wave or the splash above the water), so I used wires to suspend beading out from the hat (two on the crown and one more subtle one on the brim).

The blocked crown lining not only keeps the beautiful crown shape visible on the underside - it also hides the wires and many stitches!

• Vintage fur felt hood
• Steel spring wire (and ferrule)
• Glass seed beads
• Grosgrain Petersham ribbon
• 20 gauge silver jewelry wire
• Rayon/nylon iridescent fabric
• Short barbed elastics
• Plastic combs
• Thread (embroidery thread, regular thread and beading thread)
• Felt stiffener
• PVA stiffener for fabric
• 3 sequins

• Fur felt blocked as a single piece over a combination brim and crown block shape.
• Hand embroidered the most dominant swirl shapes.
• Hand beaded to emphasize the shapes, and individually choosing colors to create a gradient.
• Poked 3 wires through felt at points, secured with stitches, filled wire with beads and inserted opposite end into the felt.
• Wired Brim.
• Blocked and stiffened fabric for crown.
• Gathered fabric for under-brim.
• Stiched underwelt of brim with invisible stab stitch.
• Swirled grosgrain, sew into head-fitting and add elastics & combs to secure.