REPORT
Salt Cellar Hats
“I fell in love with this beautiful old building full of watery reflections … and the sound of the sea”
Plissé hat
I started out, all the suppliers were based in Luton, and I had to travel over there by bus and ferry to stock up! I’ve often had to think laterally, seeking out alternative materials for high quality finishes. Your eye becomes attuned to things that you’d normally never notice, be it clothesline or strimming cord to fashion into an interesting new trim. It’s sometimes a cross between being an artist and a tradesperson!” Lina was keen to share the upsides of her
stunning coastal location with others and in 2007 started hosting millinery masterclasses at her studio in Westport. “I discovered that people wanted to be more creative,” says Lina. “And millinery is the perfect medium to dive into as it gives direct experience of making and designing. My masterclass series helped create a wonderful ‘hat community’ in Ireland. Pre-Covid, I was also featuring international tutors such as Louise Macdonald, Eugenie van Oirschot, Dillon Wallwork, Jane Stoddart, Carole Maher, Christine Rohr, and Catherine Kelly.” Covid of course put a stop to face-to-face
classes of any sort but once again, Lina was adept at pivoting to deal with the challenges. “I’m very lucky to have a generous following and was able to sidestep into the online streaming world of Zoom workshops. This has been exciting and challenging at the same time as I had to learn new skills like lighting and set design. However, I’m really looking forward to meeting in person once again and I’m hoping to put together an autumn masterclass in Westport with special international guests. I also still prefer face-to- face fittings for my bespoke hats whenever possible, and fortunately clients have always been willing to travel certain distances for that. The demand for couture hats in Ireland has dipped since the pandemic but I’m sure it will come back and people will be happy to invest in something unique.”
More information
www.linasteinmillinery.com
may 2022 | 53
The picturesque little town of Porthleven in Cornwall is the most southerly working port in the UK. Now a foodie destination and a popular tourist hotspot, when Claire Francis arrived 30 years ago it was a quiet place with just a few remaining fishing boats bobbing peacefully in the harbour. Claire and a friend were running a hat making business from their bedrooms when the opportunity of renting a space on the quay arose, and thus Salt Cellar Hats was born. “When Porthleven was a thriving
harbour, salt was stored on the ground floor of our 200-year-old building and pilchards were preserved there,” explains Claire. “Our space is three storeys up, and the top two floors which we occupy were net-mending lofts. The whole place still smells faintly of tar. We thought we’d rent it for a year or two, but we completely fell in love with our beautiful old building full of watery reflections and dust and the sound of the sea.” You would be hard-pressed to find a
hat making studio that lies any nearer to the water’s edge and Claire relishes being immersed in the changing seasons. “The Southwest winds howl straight at us, the roof shudders and clatters and water sometimes pours
Claire Francis in her atelier
in here and there. We’re very close to the quayside and when the big winter waves hit, they sometimes leap right over our roof and I look out of the window right into a wall of water! At other times, every pane of glass glows with light. When I’m sewing away in the summer, I can see reflections moving on the old wooden boards that form my ceiling. I look out on all that sparkle and glitter, watch the children jumping into the sea and hear the little boats putter down below. Someone brings you a fresh mackerel or a crab and you can dive off the old granite steps.” Claire sells her hats to holiday-
makers keen to snap up a memory of this magical place, but she has many repeat orders too. “I use wools, silks, cottons and linens. My eyes are filled with colour, the sea, the sky and the stacks of fabrics everywhere. My workshop space looks exactly like it belongs to a fabric hoarder who’s been in a place for half a lifetime and has lots of ideas and not enough time! To be honest, I feel lucky every day and I can’t really imagine living or working anywhere else.”
More information
www.saltcellarhats.co.uk
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