Making Felt Hats

BOOKLIST STAR REVIEW:
No invitation to the Royal Ascot horse race meeting? Head coverings not in vogue for an upcoming social event? Even if millinery isn’t de rigueur these days, UK maker (and self-proclaimed “Mad Hatter”) Heath will change the fashion rules. This seductive how-to tome could make even a non-DIYer interested in hat making. Heath’s six designs represent twenty-first century patterns, even though their origins might be reminiscent of the Downton Abbey or Jackie Kennedy eras. Techniques are fairly easy to master, like sewing straight stitches or wielding a steam iron, and the actual how-tos are well visualized, with step-by-step color photographs and lengthy captions as good guidelines. Running commentary that educates and delights is an added bonus, like on the use of mercury in the curing of felt for hats until 1941, causing the “madness” associated with makers. The practice stopped with the government’s requisition of mercury as a heavy metal for war instruments. Hats off!
— Barbara Jacobs  Booklist 2021 ***STAR REVIEW***