There was a time, and not so very
long ago, that every woman wore a hat when she went out-of-doors. Men did too,
though they had hats that fit further down around the head and stayed in
place. Those men that had hats that needed help staying put, such as drum
majors and cowboys, employed chin straps.
But the ladies---their hats were
quite often NOT fitted to the head, but rather perched on the hair, often at
some very un-sensible angle. Leaning forward, all the way to the back,
coquettishly to one side; these confections of straw, fabric, lace, flowers,
feathers, beads, lace and what-have-you often needed some help staying in
place.
For some hats ribbons are enough. But
others require a little more structural anchorage. This was done by means of
the then-common hat pin.
Made to be decorative with beads,
gems, flowers, and baubles of all sorts, it is also a very thin but sturdy 6
or 8 inch brass or steel shaft. The
length allows it to be threaded through the hat, through hair worn up on the
head, and back through the hat.
This would anchor it more firmly in
place, particularly necessary when there was a breeze....and though it is not
be ladylike to mention it, the hat pin as Personal Security Device has been
used throughout the centuries too. In the year
2010, hats are no longer
required for every outing. Many people do collect them though, and some
collect hat pins too.
There are those who enjoy the pins as
art all by themselves without any chapeaus ever being involved. In addition to
acquiring vintage pieces at auctions, estate sales, and online, you can also
make your own.
Fire Mountain Gems sells brass shafts
in silver and gold tone finishes. These are long head pins with points at one
end and a head bump at the other end to stop the beads.
Shown below in both colors, the pins
are easily bent, and care needs to be taken in storing them. 
Small rubber and metal stoppers are
available for the bottom points. I use the metal barrel part from comfy-clutch
earring backs to cover the ends when traveling.
Beads and other decorative pieces are
threaded onto the pins and glued in place using E6000 or superglue in small
amounts. A small hole can also be drilled into a piece that is then glued in
place over the head end of the pin.
Because polymer clay is lightweight
and so incredibly versatile in its uses, it makes ideal beads for use in hat
pins. Not too heavy, and it can be molded, stained, painted, glittered, and
treated with thousands of different techniques.
These interesting and collectable
fashion ornaments make excellent use of "orphan beads" or sets that
have only a few beads left---interspersed with others in a like color way, and
they are suddenly a collection!
Displaying these beauties is fun.
Unless you get the small safety pieces for the ends, its also the safest way
to keep them around! You can mount the pins in a shadow box or frame.There are
special hat pin holders that are shaped like little shoes, hats, or small
vases filled with a pillow of stuffing or sawdust. The hat pins are then stuck
into that like flowers.
Make sure that any displays are out
of the reach of children, and don't allow any mock sword fights--these are not
toys.
Another
option is to use the blue foam sheets that are meant for insulation inside
walls. Available in sheets, it is a foam plastic extruded in two thicknesses.
It is shaped with a hot wire cutter, and model railroad builder and scenic
designers have used it for many years.
It is wonderful for making
lightweight display units and miniature pieces---the miniature bed in my
previous column here had a mattress made of a rectangle of insulation foam.
"Styro-foam (TM)" is the brand name of ONE kind of plastic foam made
by Dow Chemical , and this is it; what we get in craft stores in white balls
and shapes is a different formulation.
Do NOT bake these foam pieces as
armatures, but they are great to use as light weight forms and you can apply
baked pieces using glues.
Look for this product at hardware and
home improvement stores. A hot
wire tool is plugged in and the thin wire becomes extremely hot when
triggered. This melts rather than cuts the pieces as the wire is moved through
the foam.
A metal ruler or other shaped metal piece can be used as a guide to
help create cleaner lines as the piece is shaped. Always read the tool package
instructions, use it in a VERY WELL VENTILATED AREA and unplug the tool
immediately after use.
Once
shaped, pieces can be glued together with a low-temp glue gun, or hi-temp held
a bit away---the hot glue can easily melt the foam. Superglue, PVA glues or
E6000 can also be used with it.
It can be painted with spray paints
but a slight surface change occurs due to chemical interaction, making it look
more pocked or melted which is useful when simulating rock or monster skin.
You can use acrylic paints and also
rubber stamps and inks, and even glue on polymer clay medallions like this one
shown here.
The two wedge shaped blocks shown in
the display above were hot glued onto a painted wooden plaque for an easily
made and unique hatpin showcase.
Any color, any style---foam is a
versatile basis for decorating and it can be made with scraps from other foam
projects or a specially cut piece. When
the paint is dry, insert the hat pins, and take advantage of vertical display
space!
Copyright©1995-2010 Sarajane Helm All rights
are held by the artist
Reproduction without permission is
a violation of copyright law
