My breath was taken away when I stumbled upon Terry Graziano's 2008 line of hats. The statement "hats that transform" has hit the mark with the Fedorable, Sweetheart, Capricious, Cape Hatter, Moxie and Maven. My personal favorite style is the Fedorable. I know I would wear one of those hats everyday and feel like Grace Kelly while wearing it! Beautiful work Terry! I want to share what she has written about her and the design of these radical hats.
"My name is Terry Graziano. I started making hats about 15 years ago, just for myself, because the vintage hats I loved were too small for me. I took a class in traditional millinery techniques, but I didn’t enjoy the processes that I learned there. At the same time, I was in design school learning to sew and make patterns for clothing – and that process I adored! So I began experimenting with ways to use those techniques to create the hat shapes that I envisioned. Out of that exploration, and a desire to make multi-functional pieces that fit a variety of head sizes, terry graziano hats was born.
My creative process now begins often by starting with classic millinery shapes and then imagining what else they could do, given different fabric and construction choices. I use a combination of draping, flat patterning, and machine and hand sewing, to achieve my new styles. It can be a long and labor-intensive journey, but I learn so much every day and find it endlessly enjoyable and exciting! My hope is that you will enjoy wearing a hat that can change silhouette and mood at whim, and that this will inspire your own creativity and spark your imagination with different possibilities for expressing your individuality.
I personally handcraft each hat with great care and attention to detail, using designer mill-end surplus fabrics (ones that would otherwise end up in a landfill) in the most luxurious textures and colors. Each hat is fully lined in silk for comfort, and they are adjustable for head size and shape to create a custom fit."
