A christening is usually indoors, usually short and usually smaller than a wedding. You may well be holding a baby for part of it, and that changes what the hat has to do more than anything else on the day.
Weight, brim depth and anything sharp near a small face are the three things worth thinking about. A pillbox or a low headpiece keeps the space clear when a child is against your shoulder. Every piece is blocked to your head measurement and made by hand in the London atelier.
Choosing yours
Three things that decide a christening hat
You may be holding the baby
A brim knocks the moment a child comes up against your shoulder, and a hat pin or a sharp trim near a small face is worth avoiding entirely. A pillbox, a beret shape or a low headpiece leaves the space around you clear.
Indoors, close up and quite small
Most christenings happen in a church or a chapel in front of family rather than a crowd, and the photographs are taken close. A piece scaled for Royal Ascot reads as too much in that room. Restraint is what carries the day.
Hats stay on in church
Women traditionally keep a hat on inside a church and men remove theirs on entering. If the day moves to a house or a restaurant afterwards, a light headpiece is far easier to keep on for the whole afternoon than a structured hat.
Made for you
Monika will design a piece around your outfit, match the colour by hand to your fabric and block it to your measurement. One to four weeks from the first conversation.
Hats and headpieces for a christening. Soft, considered pieces for the family, colour matched to your outfit.
Questions
What should I wear to a christening?
Day dress of the kind you would wear to a smart lunch, with a hat or a headpiece if you are family. Christenings are usually indoors and usually short, so scale matters less here than at a wedding. Soft colour photographs better than black in a chapel, and cream is worth leaving to the baby.
What does a godmother wear to a christening?
A godmother is often holding the child at the font, so choose something that will not knock and carries no pin or sharp trim near a small face. A pillbox, a beret shape or a low headpiece works better than a brim. Colour is matched by hand here to a swatch or a photograph of your outfit.
Do you wear a hat to a christening?
Family and godparents usually do and guests often do not, which follows the same pattern as a small wedding. Women traditionally keep a hat on inside the church and men remove theirs. If you are unsure, ask the parents, because a home christening is a great deal more relaxed than a cathedral one.
Can you match a christening hat to my outfit?
Yes. Colour is matched by hand to a swatch, a photograph or a piece of your own fabric. Every piece is designed and made in the London atelier by master milliner Monika Perlińska and blocked to your own head measurement. A commission takes one to four weeks from the first conversation.