Love Cindy Blackman – the drummer. She’s so cool. She got her first professional drum kit when she was 14 and in 1993 she auditioned for Lenny Kravitz over the phone and has been working with him ever since. She’s also married to Carlos Santana. She’s recorded 9 albums with her own bands and she’s also played with lots of other artists including Al B. Sure, Jackie McLean,George Benson, Don Pullen, Angela Bofil and Joss Stone.
Keely Hunter is a London based hat designer presently making wooden hats! I love the idea of a wooden hat and had a chat with Keely about her inspirations.
What inspired your collection? ‘NEW BUILD’ for me was all about contributing to design in a directional sense, hence I have produced a series of pieces made from wood and other non-traditional millinery materials. The focus is 5 minimalist designs with a maximalist twist. Punctuated by splashes of bold colour and drawing inspiration from architecture and conceptual sculpture I wanted to create a bold sense of design that looks firmly towards the future.
Where did you study?
I graduated from an HNC in Millinery from Kensington & Chelsea College (the course is taught by Kirsten Scott, who used to be the milliner at Chanel). Before turning to millinery I was a product developer/buyer in tailoring at Arcadia.
Are the wooden hats light, easy to wear?
The Mohawk is a bit heavy – but amazing! But everything else is actually quite light. Weight was obviously a key consideration during the design process, but this is something I have controlled so the pieces are wearable.
I asked Keely for a brief description of her hats:
Wood Mohawk
Birch, balsa and perspex create a sculptural hat giving a contemporary take on the classic punk-rock hairstyle.
Hinged Cap
Treated balsa-wood, connected together using internal aluminium hinges creating a sense of movement to the piece, which essentially turns the wood into a fluid fabric which allows curves and shape in a material that is normally flat and hard.
Walnut Veneer Fan
Walnut and walnut burr with veneer.
I’ve always been a fan of No Doubt so I’m looking forward to their next album, Rock Steady. it should be out in the next few months! Their first album ‘No Doubt’ came out in 1992 and they haven’t released an album since 2001 but have been working on this one since 2008 with a break as Gwen Stefani had a baby.
I absolutly love Gwen Stefani – she one of my style icons. I love that she never has roots and she’s been blond since she was about 14.
She’s had her own fashion label LAMB since 2003 (her mother helped make her clothes when she first started performing. She also played Jean Harlow in The Aviator. There are lots of blonds with red lips, from Marilyn Monroe to Deborah Harry but to make this look your own takes something special.
I'm a fashion stylist and consultant based in London. I've styled musicians from Kate Nash and Ellie Goulding to Billy Idol and Nero, and top models including Kate Moss... (more)
.jpg "Wooden Hats by Keely Hunter")
Keely Hunter is a London based hat designer presently making wooden hats! I love the idea of a wooden hat and had a chat with Keely about her inspirations.
