I recently went to visit Camille Roman of La Tour de Force in her studio as I needed some hats for a shoot. Of course I fell in love with her oversized bows! I had a chance to ask her some questions about her work:

What inspired you to become a hat maker?
CR - I love that creating hats allows you to form a landscape for a concentrated area of the body. I have been designing hugely elaborate couture looks since I was small, though back then they were costumes for a troupe of figure-skating dancers with gymnastic capabilities. I started making hats as it allowed me to realise some of these idea of a smaller scale, in a way that I could afford to produce them.

How would you describe your style?
CR - I like drama and extremes, so extremely minimal or extremely complicated in a visible way. I am really interested in how people form visual association, so there are always a lot of literal references in the collections. Always the aim is to create something dramatic or humorous while covetable at the same time. If I was going to verbal mash-it though, I would say;
Parisian glamour + Japanese abstraction.

You’ve recently moved to designing garments has that been a natural progression for you?
CR - Totally, I have always designed clothing alongside the Headpieces, and a lot of the time the details easily translate well in either form. At the moment I am still focusing on creating garments that work as components in the way that accessories do. The next season’s collection is called ‘The Peripheral Ingredient’ because there will be a mixture of Headpiece and Clothing which essentially have the same role in an outfit.

Did your experiences at Lanvin, Zac Posen and Johnny Loves Rosie influence you?
CR - Definitely, I think your experiences in other design houses always help you work out how you want to run your own business. I have always gone away from these places having more respect for the designers because of the way they operate with alot of integrity. I think it is really important to get things done perfectly, but always make sure that the people you work with are having a good experience. Working such long hours in fashion- you really have to enjoy it or what’s the point!

Do you wear your headpieces?
CR - As strange as it sounds, I only wear them in the creative process. I am pretty minimal in terms of my personal style, i could just wear a tapered pillowcase every day, therefore I am not interested in designing for myself as I find that pretty limiting. I love to design pieces that I want to see on other people, and that I think they will want. It is so satisfying to see other people wearing something you have made, and for me it’s about the realistation of an idea that can be used.

What advice do you have for students wanting to study fashion?
CR - I think it is really important to see your limitations as opportunity to be more creative. I think fashion is a pretty difficult subject psychologically because there is often so much pressure and a lot of competition within institutions. I think it is really important only to make sure judge yourself by your own standards and be objective, so that you can enjoy it as much as possible and always be sure of your purpose…. When people leave education, I believe it is the confidence in being able to achieve what you want and like that will keep you going, and is probably the most important thing to gain before you graduate.

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Fashion.Music.Style is working on it’s 4th issue now. We go quarterly and the magazine has gone national through Borders for this issue!  This issue is almost 50% bigger and the A5 size works very well as it’s perfect for housing the free 16 track cd. It’s rapidly becoming one of those magazines you want to buy, especially when you live outside the UK, so you can really see what is really happening on the music scene here.

Little Boots, Victoria Hesketh was great to work with. She’s got a strong style and she’s super cute with tiny size 3 feet! The hat she’s wearing is super cool Justin Smith Esquire and the dress is by Couture Clubbing.

Little Boots looks cute as a brunette but she looks great as a blond and now it’s hard to imagine her any other way. Styling makes a difference!

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Humphrey Bogart, Gary Cooper, Winston Churchill, and Harry Truman have all worn the Panama hat. It’s not just famous men, both Madonna and Naomi Campbell have been spotted wearing the Panama hat.

So what makes it so popular? When you try on a Panama hat and you touch the strong soft weave you feel sexy and special. I know that you can feel different and more confident when you wear a hat - I have one friend who doesn’t feel dressed or complete without a hat. I don’t know why hats seem to have magical powers but they just do - but not all hats. Some hats make you feel stupid so you have to find the right one!

The hat actually became popular during the building of the Panama Canal and they were worn by the workers for protection from the sun.

The weaving of the Paja Toquilla or Panama Hat has been known since the Spanish conquest in the 16th century. Ecuadorians weave Paja Toquilla straw  - the fibres from Carludouica Palmata more commonly known as  palm leaves.

Not all Panama hats are created equal. Hat prices are determined by the fineness of weave, the quality of weave, the quality and colour of straw and the dimensions of hat. So if you’re purchasing a Panama hat take your time - there are several styles and colours.

Monte Cristi Panama Hat image is from Lock & Co Hatters  - they have a great selection and are in London at:

James Lock & Co. Ltd.,
6 St. James’s Street,
London,
SW1A 1EF

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The finale filming of Season 5 of Britain’s Next Top Model took place on Tuesday evening where I met Abigail Clancy as she was admiring my Louis Mariette head piece!

I just love her Liverpudlian accent - it’s so cute! Anyway in 2006, the second season of Living TV’s Britain’s Next Top Model Abigail Clancy was one of the thirteen finalists in the competition, competing over 10 weeks for a modelling contract. Even though she didn’t win (Leanne Fowler did) the show coincided with the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and Abigial’s relationship with football star Peter Crouch was revealed. The UK can’t resist a pretty girl and a football and after being in Maxim, Nuts, OK!, GQ, The Sun newspaper, the Daily Star newspaper and Sugar magazine Abigail held her own!

Regardless of what made her famous she’s really sweet and friendly and I liked her in her own reality TV series Abbey and Janice: Beauty and the Best .

What is a WAG? For all the non-UK readers: a WAG is one of the Wives And Girlfriends of high-profile footballers.

Look out for hatter Louis Mariette as he’s one of the judges on Season 5 of Britain’s Next Top Model!

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I met Piers Atkinson a few years back when I first moved to London. He was very kind and generous. I guess I thought fashion people in London were going to be cold and cliquy but that just hasn’t been my experience.

This London Fashion Week Piers’ headpieces were on the catwalk at Ashish.

What influence has your mother had on you becoming a milliner?
PA - I think it was just something I grew up with so that give one a fearless attitude. Not that making hats is scary - stressful sometimes, but not scary!

What got you interested in fashion?
PA - I’m not very interested in fashion! I love style and I love creativity. I lived with Zandra Rhodes for a few years as a student so got into the fashion scene by default!

PA - Where did you study fashion?
I studied photography in Bristol!

What is in the pipeline for your next collection and where can we see it?
PA - It’s based on the Princess and the Frog and matters of faith, love, potential and sex!! I am making pieces for Ashish so it will be on the runway on 20th Feb. Otherwise all will be revealed in the press days in March/April!!

Where do you get the inspiration for your designs?
PA - it depends on my mood in the period of making and design, suggestions I get from friends and colleagues, this season seemed to be destiny as I’m using dolls and it’s barbie’s 50th and also Disney are releasing the princess and the Frog movie. Of course if I was a trend predicter I’d have known this ages ago. It just seemed a natural follow on from the pop-culture references of my past two seasons.

Was there anything that surprised you when you began creating the collection?
PA - Realising that I don’t really want to make sensible stuff??!!

Who is your fashion icon and why?
PA - Always has been Grace Jones during the Goude years. Wow! That was ART. I love the chic of the 30’s. I’ve been watching Poirot at home while I’m sewing away and the hats and overall presentation is inspiring!

What has been your best fashion moment?
PA - Seeing that Nick Knight image in Vogue and now the upcoming exhibition at the V&A. That is a real honour. And I have just heard that one of Fashion’s heavy wieghts (if you can say that! She’s as slim as they get!) might comission a hat for the event. I’d be thrilled.

You’ve worked in PR, as a photographer, illustrator, an editor and journalist and now design what’s next for you?
PA - Film. A book? Something with narrative!

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