Hats were donned – and doffed
The women were taught how to make gorgeous headgear.
HATS, hats and more hats were in evidence at Stonecroft Ministries’ September meeting at the Port Shepstone Country Club last Friday. Frances Maher showed the women how to transform an ordinary hat into a classy one and how to also make their own hats with sinamay, wire and a glue gun.
Ms Maher said that sinamay makes wonderful, contemporary hats. “It’s such a light and airy hat. With just one crown and one brim block you have the tools on which you can shape your own beautiful creation. Sinamay is obtained from the layers of a banana plant stem,” she said.
“Hats have been around for a very long time. It is impossible to say when the first animal skin was pulled over a person’s head as protection against the elements and although this was not a hat in the true sense, it was realised that covering your head could sometimes be an advantage. Since their invention, hats have come and gone as status symbols and fashion statements as well as being functional sports and protective headgear.”
There are still, and presumably always will be, two basic styles, brimmed and brimless and two basic forms, caps and hats. Milliners take these shapes and with the aid of many trims and details, create a never-ending range of hats for men and women.
Paul Gibbs concluded the morning with his informative talk on the Emmaus walk from Jerusalem. “Sometimes people are so busy living their lives that they do not recognise the times when Jesus speaks to them,” he said.
Stonecroft Ministries’ next meeting will be on Friday, October 18. The theme will be the mystery of the Red Desert. Entry fee is R25 which includes tea and refreshments. Bookings are essential. Phone Maria at 039 6812801.
