Night & Day - Milliner's Guild at the National Arts Club

When we received Milliners Guild President Linda Ashton's invitation to the opening of the Milliners Guild's Night and Day Show at the National Arts Club on Gramercy Park, we were thrilled.  A hat exhibition by New York milliners in a jewel box of a town house on one of New York City's most iconic parks -- what's not to like?  Inspired by the lyrics of Cole Porter's 1932 classic song, Night and Day, each of the 28 milliners created two hats for the event: one for day, and one for night.  Join us as we cover the highlight of the event, which was absolutely packed.
















For coverage of the event by Bowery Boogie, click here or go to: http://www.boweryboogie.com/2013/03/recap-night-and-day-with-the-milliners-guild/

As soon as we walked into the joint, we ran smack dab into dapper man about town Robert Bryan and  Friederike and Shane, quite possibly the coolest trio present that evening. Friederike's hat is by Amy Downs, one of our favorite milliners.






















Evetta Petty, whom we'd first met at the Milliners Guild event at FIT last year and who designs for her label Harlem's Heaven Hats stands next to her evening hat.






















Aaron Keppel designed this straw and felt saucer number for ID Designs as his day-time hat.






















This chic trio of exhibitors includes (left to right) Linda Pagan in equestrian garb, Jasmin Zorlu and Lisa Shaub.  The latter two wear their own hats.


































This is Jasmin Zorlu Millinery's evening design.


































For those of us with fashion A-D-D, it was hard to focus. What to look at first -- hats on the lovely guests or hats on exhibit?

















Night-time look by Connie Borda's Eggcup Designs.

















Jean chatted with Linda Zagaria (who is never without a stunning hat) and one of her friends, who sported the most outstanding mustach and glasses.






















Lisa Shaub Fine Millinery's night and day looks.






















Hat people -- our kind of folks!
























Janet Linville's day-time top hat.   Scroll down for her evening top hat, in lace.























Wanda J. Chambers and one of Ari Seth Cohen's Advanced Style ladies!


















Wanda J. Chambers' Once Upon a Hat's night-time look (front) and day-time look in the rear.





















This couple shows us all how to wear vintage.



































Milliner Kathy Anderson, who has been popping up in our blog a lot lately, had two hats in the show from Hats by Kat & Accessories Too.



































Barbara Volker's night-time hat had black tendrils pointing downward in the show, but was photographed in the program with tendrils pointing upward. It worked both ways!





















Jacqueline Lamont's day-time cap features a short brim in the front and this wonderful stitching in the back.






















Milliner Jacqueline Lamont and friend.




































Cigmond Meacham for CIGMOND designed a night-time hat that looked like a lampshade, complete with pull cord.























Mary Anna Smith of The Tipsy Topper (in one of her own hats) and her friend in a great-looking black cloche posed with Jean. Eagle-eyed readers will remember Mary Anna and her porcupine quill creation at last week's Easter Parade.



















This lovely lady had a definite evening look. Milliner Anne DePasquale, who was one of the exhibitors, appears in the background wearing one of her straw day-time hats.



































Ellen Colon-Lugo's night-time hat for Ellen Christine Millinery.



































When we arrived and met these two vivacious young ladies wearing vintage hats, we  remarked to the lady on the left that our friend Helen Uffner had a similar monkey fur hat.  Surprise! They both work for Helen and were wearing her hats!



































You know it's a great evening when they run out of champagne and hors d'oeuvres early in the evening, and NOBODY leaves.

One of the highlights of the evening was Cigmond, wearing a 1950s dress, and wearing a hat styled after a 1950s lamp shade. Notice she's even attached a pull at the side of the hat.

Here's Linda Ashton, President of the Milliners Guild, wearing a hat of her own creation.

We zeroed in on Moya Stone, who wore a fascinator she made featuring the Golden Gate Bridge. She lives, unsurprisingly, in San Francisco.  That's her next to Helen Uffner.  (Jean loved Moya's black bakelite cameo.)

Did you want to get a closer look at Moya's work?  What more appropriate name for this than fascinator?

 Vashti runs the Gallery Vercon in Greenwich Village. She made the hat she's wearing. It has a great modified ziggurat structure at the top.

This day-time hat that conjures up a bird in flight is the work of Jasmin Zorlu. Many of the milliners have Facebook pages or sell their hats on Etsy, so be sure to look them up.

Not enough men wear hats! This man sets a good example for those who are still trying to work up the courage to express themselves millinerily. But hey, guys - if Brad Pitt and Johnny Depp can do it, you can too.

Lacy top hat by Janet Linville.  Jean lurks in the background.

Two fabulous hats. The one at the left is festooned with African porcupine quills.

Milliner Barbara J. Volker wears her own work.

This white felt hat with a pink bow is by Marcia Lacher.

Linda Pagan of The Hat Shop wore a spectacular equestrian outfit. Our friend Chloe Pang (who appeared in our coverage of the grand opening of Gudrun Sjoden's Soho store) interns with Linda. Her friend's outfit was in keeping with the spirit of the exhibition.

For some reason, we couldn't get a good picture of this black felt hat with gold-flecked felt leaves, so we took the liberty of copying it from Marcia Lacher's Etsy page.

Before hitting the road, we just had to vogue in the National Arts Club lobby with its cool black and white tile flooring.

Jean thought the lobby would have made a great dance floor. (She's doing her version of the Harlem Shake.)

What we're wearing:

Jean is wearing: ITEMZ wool and polyester coat by Chris Baumgartner; Maria Del Greco turban; Ivan Grundhal skirt; Underground black and white creepers;  street vendor cross-body bag; vintage bakelite rings; Indian black with white polka dot and white with black polka dot cuffs from Chaos.

Valerie is wearing: a vintage red feathered hat, earrings from Etsy, Calvin Klein coat (from a thrift shop), unlabeled cotton bolero, red wooden bangle from Tokyo, unlabeled vintage leather gloves, white cotton shirt by Josephine Chaus, red plastic clip on bow tie/flash drive, pants by Comme des Garcons, red leather sandals by Nicole.