You may have seen Nerida Winter’s gorgeous creations on a recent episode of Fashion Bloggers and been in awe of how amazing they are. I can attest to the fact that she is one very talented lady! Nerida’s creations have been seen on everyone from Princess Mary to Jesinta Campbell and her work has featured in Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar and Elle. Here I talk to Australia’s milliner extraordinaire…
Getting started in millinery…
“I studied fashion at college and fell in love with millinery straight away. I loved that you could make something really different every day.”
My first client was Barbie…
“The first hat I made was a miniature one for my Barbie as a little girl. I would always enlist the pros (my mum and grandmother) to make her look as I saw fit! Many years later I had the pleasure of making some more miniature ones for Barbie in Grazia magazine. I absolutely loved this so much – I felt like I was 5 all over again.”
My design process…
“Some hats take around 5-8 hours and some take weeks and weeks; it depends on the complexity of design and construction. It all starts with a thought and endless possibilities then the hard labour comes in.
We start with a malleable fibre and manipulate it into a shape with industrial strength steam. From there it gets treated to keep its shape and waits to dry. After that is when the fun begins – trimming can be elegant, pretty, edgy and fun and very time consuming. If we are making to order for a client, it involves fittings to achieve what the wearer has imagined.”
My inspiration comes from…
“My head is a giant melting pot of music, art, fashion and history so whatever I am loving at the time will come out in the form of headwear.”
I’d love to create a hat for…
“I would have loved to play with Anna Piaggi – her spirit and love of fashion was so inspiring, so when I think of the ultimate, it would have been her.”
My rules for race day headwear…
“Putting on a hat should make you feel fabulous. There’s a fine line between fashion and race etiquette, so finding the balance is all up to you but being respectful is a must.”
My rules for dressing for the races…
“Making daywear glamorous is a good place to start – so no miniskirts and crop tops and the all important rule: keep your shoes on no matter how much they hurt.”
How I feel when I see my ideas become a reality…
“I still get such a great buzz from seeing my pieces come alive. As they are all new creations each time, the joy is always the same. I am very fortunate to have so many incredible people to work with so I never take that for granted.”
Photography: Georgina Egan
