The Upstairs Sewing Room: Hat

So it is finally here! My daughter’s wedding in the Netherlands. What a wonderful day, the weather was perfect and it was everything that the bride wanted for her special day.

Although this is not a perfect picture of the Mother of the Bride dress, it is one of the only shots I have of the full view of the dress. I was really happy with the way it came out and it was really comfortable for the day. Good thing too, as I was in the dress for about 14 hours total. The party lasted until midnight and although I ditched the hat and gloves after the church, I kept the shoes on until probably 11pm.

I actually received many compliments on the hat! As stated in prior posts, I found it at a hat shop in Berkeley, CA. I felt very “put together” with the hat and gloves! We don’t really get much of an excuse to wear such things in the U.S. so I took full advantage of it!

We have a hat! I'm a little behind in my blogging what with life and all! But we have a hat for the wedding. And I didn't have to make it!

While in Berkeley last weekend Meghan and I went to the Berkeley Hat Shop on Telegraph and I found The One!!

Details below on Berkeley Hat Company. They are this little hole in the wall place in Berkeley that you have to look for to find. They carry all kinds of hats, from funky hipster hats to Kentucky Derby hats and everything in between. Not the most organized shop and you have to dig for stuff, but a great place to kick around. Street parking only and no extra charge for the drunks and druggies hanging out on the corner!

Address-Phone: Berkeley Hat Company, 2510 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley CA 94704 -- Tel. (510) 962-4428
http://www.berkeleyhat.com

Berkeley Hat Company

As you can see from the pictures it is a cross between a hat and a fascinator. I didn't really want the "church lady" look and a small fascinator didn't really work for me (and I couldn't find one I liked). Meghan and I came across this beauty! It has a real 1950's look to it, which works because the dress is from a vintage reproduction 1951 pattern!

Now I know, it's not gray! Well, there was no gray to be had. Anywhere. So since this one fit the style I was looking for, I went with it. It also gives me the option to carry a beige handbag and that means that I don't have to shop for a bag!

So excited since it was also only $60!!! Seriously. I looked at some hats in shops and online and there was a price range from $100 up to $500. I just wasn't going to pay that. So this beauty was carried home with me!

Now you may ask yourself "how am I going to get that on the plane to go to Europe?" Well I have the perfect solution! Meghan gave me a floral hatbox she had in her apartment and it worked perfectly on the plane. It was something she picked up at a yardsale for $2 to hold yarn or notions and she gave it to me to carry my hat some with me. The idea was that this would be a trial run for the June trip. Well, not only did it carry the hat without getting crushed. It set on the top of my handle of my luggage so wonderfully it will be no problem at all to take it with me. And my plan is to fold up my dress and place it under the hat so that I can carry the wedding outfit with me on the plane. Fits perfectly in the overhead compartment and I don't have to worry about what to wear in the off chance my luggage gets lost! Yay!

So with the hat purchase complete we are just about done for the wedding! I have the hat, gloves, shoes and handbag. The dress is basically done. I have sent away to have a custom belt and covered belt buckle done for the dress so stay tuned for that post soon!