Yay we now have light at the end of the tunnel. There's so much excitement around planning for weddings and the races and I've noticed a huge increase in Internet enquiries this week for our spectacular hats now we have somewhere to wear them.

Currently the wedding restrictions are:-

15 guests from 12th April 2021 

30 people from 17th May

No restrictions after 21st June

Royal Ascot dates are currently 15-19th June so it won't be quite back to normal this year. Although Ascot racecourse has issued a statement that sporting events are allowed spectators after 17th May so check the restrictions at the racecourse if you're going.

We're so looking forward to seeing all our lovely friends and customers back in the shop on Tuesday 13th April, can't wait! It's going to be a great summer, we've all waited so long and patiently for this. See you soon 💖

I have just finished making a hat for this years High Sheriff ceremonial role in South Yorkshire Yorkshire for Carole O'Neill.

This is now the 5th time I have made a ladies high sheriff hat and am aware of all the traditions and requirements needed for a hat like this.

We decided on the shape of the crown and brim separately, with the hat colour matching the velvet used in making the suit.

The brim turns up sharply at one side so that the face can always be seen and is not in shadow as would happen on a too large brim. For images of the final hat shape refer to the couture section in the online shop.

The crown sides were covered using the same velvet as the suit and 3 neatly cut ostrich feathers in white to match the lace collar were stitched onto the front of the hat.

A single large fluffy ostrich feather could also be traditionally used, but as the lady I have made this for has more delicate features this would have been too overpowering and be seen as 'all hat' from a distance. The cut ostrich ensures proportions are all correct for the final look.

The high sheriff represents the queen at many civic functions around the county and is often in attendance if royalty visit throughout their 12 month tenure.

This hat is worn on many occasions throughout the 12 months so I always ensure it is of the highest quality and structure to withstand repeated wear and still looks as good at the end of their year in term .

This week most of our customers have been looking for hats & fascinators to wear at Royal Ascot, and all of our spring/ summer 2019 deliveries are now in.

The etiquette for this occasion is that the a hat ( or fascinator ) base must be at least >10cms or 4 inches in diameter, particularly in the royal enclosure. This is not essential for other parts of the racecourse, and it doesn't matter how it's held in place (ie hats with a shallow crown & headbands are acceptable).

Many of our customers have come in for a myriad of wonderful colours particularly electric blue, coral, blush and emerald greens.

If you're unsure whether the hat you require will be suitable for ascot, call into the shop with your outfit and we're happy to assist you. Please note we will not use digital images for colour matching as every screen shows colours slightly differently.

P.S. On the day at the races don't forget your umbrella if it looks like rain, as many hat fabrics are ruined if they get wet!

It looks like the invites are now being sent out as we've had several enquiries over hats for this event already.

Over the course of each summer HM the queen will hold a series of garden parties at Buckingham palace over June and into July.

The invite states that hats and fascinators are to be worn by the ladies as there is the possibility of meeting the queen.

The etiquette is not as formal as Royal Ascot where hats of a certain size only (10cms and upwards) are admitted into the royal enclosure, and over the years I have sold hats and fascinators in all shapes and sizes for the garden party.

It is probably better to keep the brim small/medium rather than extra large as seen at the races. This ensures that not only is the hat easier to wear but that your eyes and face are in view when speaking to the other guests. I always feel this is not a good look if someone has to duck under your brim in order to speak to you!

If you think back to the queen mother and the queen herself always wore a smaller hat with an upturned brim on one side so that the face was visible. The younger royals frequently opt for a pillbox or percher style hat, again for ease of wear but also so they have a good peripheral view.

It really helps if you can bring your outfit into the shop when choosing your hat so that colours can be better matched and it always helps to see the whole look together when making your choice.

We sell many styles and colours for this event and all our new summer stock is now in store. It is also possible to add feathers dyed to match other colours in your dress.  Crystals or pearls can also be added to the hat depending on the embellishments on the dress or the jewellery you intend to wear on the day.

We look forward to seeing you for this wonderful event and helping you choose your perfect hat.

Our new spring summer hats and fascinators are arriving in the shop for the next summer season.

We have an exciting range of colours this year including soft blues and pale pinks. Watermelon is one of the big colours for this summer (a soft coral tone).

Yellows and a deep cobalt blue have been delivered, unpacked and wowed about! The shops going to be lovely and colourful over the summer months.

This summer many of the more unusual colours will also have matching clutch bags as we hear from our customers how difficult some colours are to get in other accessories.

The bespoke jobs are starting to build up too, so if you want something unique and individual making for that special ocassion please give us as much time as possible so we have time to order in fabrics, dyes or special feathers.

Today I have just finished making a hat for next years High Sheriff ceremonial role in East Yorkshire which starts in April.

This is the 4th time I have made a ladies high sheriff hat and am aware of all the traditions and requirements needed for a hat like this.

We decide on the shape of the crown and brim separately. The colour usually matches/tones with the velvet used in making the skirt suit.

If the lady is taller, a slightly bigger brim can be used but still not so big that the face is in shade or covered. This means the brim usually turns up at one side. See the couture section in the online shop.

I cover the crown using the same velvet as the suit and either a single large ostrich feather or a couple of neatly cut ostrich feathers in white to match the lace collar are stitched onto the front of the hat. Sometimes a button identical to the coat or shoe button is stitched onto the front of the feather.

The high sherrif represents the queen at many civic functions around the county and is often in attendance if royalty do visit throughout their 12 month tenure.

This hat is worn on many occasions throughout the 12 months so I always ensure it is of the highest quality and structure to withstand repeated wear and still looks as good at the end of their year in term.

I've changed the fonts and look to our website, hope you like it!

Throughout 2019 I will be extending and adding more of my handmade Couture range this year, one hat at a time as they are being made, so keep coming back to see what I've done.

My handmade creations will be posted onto Instagram @Anzhats so follow me for all my latest designs, or our Facebook page - The Beverley Hat Company

I'll be posting plenty of our SS19 stock on there too. 

Please bear in mind that although we have over 2500 hats in shop they can't all be posted online on my website so feel free to come and pay us a visit or call on 01482 861046 for specific colours or combinations of colour.

Hope we see you soon in the shop.

Anna

I'd like to wish all our customers a happy, healthy, successful and peaceful New Year for 2019

Our new spring summer stock will start arriving mid Feb onwards in this seasons wonderful colours. These include some fabulous shades of greens, watermelon ( a soft orange) reds, pale blues and pinks.

Two Pantone colours that are really big for 2019 include Living coral and princess blue, see my Facebook account (The Beverley Hat Company) or Instagram (@Anzhats) posts for the colours.

If you have a wedding this year, get your outfit first then come into see us for your accessories including hats, fascinators, handbags and pashminas in complimentary colours.

If your dress or outfit has 2 or more colours I can also dye and add matching feathers into your hat of choice, or add crystals & pearls to match your shoes or jewellery.

We have seen some fabulous outfits in the shop this spring with many bias cut floaty dresses to culottes and suits in some wonderful colours.

The on trend colours this season's are navy and soft blush pink which are definitely our best sellers, so we are well stocked on both of these. Many are not on the website as they sell so quickly. We only have one style of hat in each colour to ensure your accessory will be unique so it is best to visit the shop and try on all the different styles to see which suits you best.

Our next best selling colours this season are corals, oranges and emerald greens which are found particularly in the Ted Baker style prints. They have soft pastel colours with a flash of greens in the pattern, and it looks really dramatic and has a wonderful impact if we can match the greens with a hatinator and handbag.

Its been an exciting week in the shop, we started the week with the Tour de Yorkshire bike race coming past the front door on day 2 of the race with the amazing Bradley Wiggins and many other incredible competitors. Hats off to the sportsmen!

We've sold a number of hats this week for royal garden parties at Buckingham Palace. The WI is 100 years old this year so many of the members have had an invite to one of the queens annual parties.

The invite mentions hats as part of the dress code so we've seen a selection of beautiful outfits to match to hats this week. The ladies of the Womens Institute do an amazing job and raise a large amount of money towards charity each year, so its great the queen has honoured so many members with invites.