It’s the most wonderful time of the year! But it’s not Christmas - it’s the month of my favourite celebration; Halloween! And I'm making Hats for Halloween! October 31st in the year the world went crazy, 2020. Plus, it’s on a Saturday this year - bonus!
There are rumours that Halloween is cancelled due to the pandemic we find ourselves in. Makes sense; safety first, but this doesn’t mean we cannot have fun, especially when it comes to fashion and dressing up.
What is your outfit going to be? I have already started making mine and I cannot wait to reveal to you all what I have been up to. A little hint which will be found on my Instagram page, @JulianGarnerHeadwear.
Every year around August the madness for Christmas begins. Christmas departments start opening in major stores across London. Why do we not celebrate what we have right now, this month? Between the opening of these departments, and Christmas tunes playing on repeat, there is Halloween.
Last year my partner and I had more trick or treaters than ever before. This time last year I told my partner we should go even bigger, then the horror of all horrors hit, COVID-19.
For all businesses everywhere, we have really had to reinvent what we are going to do to bring in the money. Last year, a little too late to market then, I released two pieces that I had been so excited about but couldn’t afford to have the wooden hat blocks made so I could hand block them. The moment the hat blocks arrived I got to work and created two of my absolute favourite headpieces.
This year I have made sure that I have left a decent amount of time to market them and throughout the year I have been dropping reminders of the styles on my Instagram to drum up interest. They are the Naughty Devil and Kitty.
The Naughty Devil and Kitty are made out of wool felt, the most sustainable felt available on the market, and the hand blocking process is tiresome, but the result - a sophisticated take on the usual devil horns or cat ears we see in the shops - is so good.
Both styles can come in whatever colour you want. The Naughty Devil I have made as samples in the typical shades of autumn and Halloween; black, red and orange. The Kitty can come in any shade but again the samples have been made in Black, Baby Pink and Leopard Print. The Kitty is embellished with Preciosa crystals from the gorgeous team at Crystal Parade. The choice of crystal colour can be whatever you want. Just get in touch and I shall make sure my notebook is ready at hand to complete your bespoke love.
One of the business reinventions I am also taking on is the amount of time I spend on social media. This is time we never get back, by the way, and the return is very little. Having watched “The Social Dilemma” on Netflix, a horror documentary in itself, I have decided to take action.
Slowly but surely I will be reducing my online social media presence and filtering all my time spent on it through one Instagram channel, @JulianGarnerHeadwear. This will give me the opportunity to style the hats that I make into my drag aesthetic and as a result, have content to post to my millinery Instagram and saving myself precious time.
With Halloween fast approaching I decided to model the three samples colours available in the Naughty Devil and captured these pictures. Let me know which one is your favourite!
There is going to be another, very special type of product released soon on www.JulianGarner.com which I have been super excited about and the making of it has been so much fun. For now, I will only be making the one style and testing the market out but rest assured I can make whatever it is you want and we can even add a little more sparkle to it if need be. I will give you a little clue, you are going to be the coolest cat in town.
Next month, November, I will be writing about Crystals in The Studio, hints, and tips, that are all available from the amazing Crystal Parade team. We also have a surprise for you just in time for Christmas!
December's blog post will be about a Crystal Challenge. Poppy from Crystal Parade has sent me a selection of crystals that I have to make something with and then, wait for it, you can WIN the headpiece!
The way to enter will be included in next month’s blog post ready for you to get involved and be the WINNER you are!
For now, I will leave you with this quote by Elvis Duran that I feel is so fitting for the month of October as well as the times we currently live in;
“Halloween is not only about putting on a costume, but it’s about finding the imagination and costume within ourselves.”
Write soon…xoxo