(no millinery-related puns intended)
So nothing further was accomplished on this today due to 5 million other things to do, other than getting some Heat N Bond tso that I can double my buckram (can I just say formally that I hate any thing with “n” in the name instead of “and”? Come on people, use an “&” if you’re feeling the need to be snappy).
But I have spent the day worrying about something, and that is how this sucker will stay on my head. I was trying to keep the proportions/shape of the hat to purple/black striped fashion plate, which I think I’ve done successfully. But I’m never quite sure how to attach hats to a hedgehog wig, given that most of the hedgehog comes from ratting. My capote sits far down around my forehead, so that’s not a problem to keep on. But it looks like in this and other fashion plates, it’s not really sitting down low around the forehead so much as perching on top. I do wear a wig for hedgehog, so I could do a bun on top of my head that sits under the wig, which gets a hatpin through it… but I don’t want to spend the time to make a hat, only to have it flop around unsuccessfully!
So then I was thinking maybe I need to widen the crown and wear it lower, like the Vigee Le Brun painting (a look I don’t like as much, but which could be more practical).
There’s no great front shots of the hat from The Duchess, but the few there are again look perch-y, not low-on-the-forehead-y. Update: I found another hat worn in The Duchess that’s a similar style, and it’s definitely a percher. So I guess bun & hatpin is the way to go?
What do you think?
Mine was a percher and I just hatpinned it to my wig – no bun or anything. That thing was sturdy as hell ad never moved an inch… and I was flailing around playing battledore and shuttlecock and climbing trees and other craziness.
I think if the crown is wide enough to fit over the wig a bit you won’t need the bun and can hatpin into the wig if needed. Although oddly enough both of my big 1780s hats just sort of rest on top – no hatpin or anything. The other alternative is to sew a comb into the crown and stick that into your hair which can sometimes be difficult with a wig.
Two thoughts — I remember seeing someone *years* ago with the world’s biggest hatpin, threading it through hat, wig, hair, and then back out again. Also, when I took Mela’s lunardi class at Costume college last year she recommended putting two small horsehair loops inside the hat (where brim meets crown) to bobby-pin through.
Thanks all! I feel reassured. Catherine – that’s an interesting idea, I’ll think about it! I’m so jealous to have missed that class…
Similar to Catherine’s concept except I stuck a few millinery wired loops inside. They were very grippy and the hat would stay on even w/o the bobby-pins b/c they were pinching a part of my wig. 🙂
Perhaps several wig clips scattered around the crown would anchor it enough?
Another idea might be to put an elastic on it, which could be buried in the hairdo so as not to show.