Sculptural occasion headpieces, cocktail hats and veiled pieces, each blocked, wired and finished by hand in the London atelier. A headpiece gives you height and presence without a brim, which is what makes it the easier choice for a seated service, a low ceiling or a long day of photographs.
This is the full shelf and it includes the bands. If you already know you want a band, go straight to fascinator headbands.
Choosing yours
Three things that decide a headpiece
Height without the brim
In a seated row, under a low ceiling or in a crowded marquee a headpiece works where a wide brim does not. You keep the presence without asking anyone to move.
Blocked and wired, never glued
The base is blocked or modelled by hand and wired at the edge so the shape cannot drop. Crystal and beading are set a piece at a time.
The Royal Enclosure rule
Royal Ascot asks for a hat, or a headpiece with a solid base of at least 10cm across, and fascinators are not accepted there. Say where you are sitting when you order.
Read the dress codeElsewhere
Narrow it down
Fascinator headbands
The bands on their own, on a fixing matched to your hair colour. The easiest occasion piece to put on unaided.
Fascinator headbandsHats with veils
Birdcage veiling cut and hand attached in the atelier, across the eyes or the cheekbone.
Hats with veilsBridal headpieces
Ivory, cream and blush pieces for a bride, and made to order work matched by hand to the dress.
Bridal headpiecesMade for you
Monika will design a headpiece around your outfit, match the colour by hand to your fabric and fit it to the way you wear your hair. One to four weeks from the first conversation.
Everything worn on the head that is not a hat sits here. Cocktail hats, veiled pieces, sculptural combs and bands, all made by hand in the London atelier.
Cocktail hats, veiled pieces and bands: which to choose
Choose by how much height you want and by how the piece has to hold. A cocktail hat is a small blocked shape worn tilted to one side, held on a comb and a hair matched elastic, and it carries the most presence of the three. A veiled piece adds a birdcage of net across the eyes or the cheekbone and reads as the most formal. A band is the lightest and the easiest to wear, and it is the one that suits short or fine hair.
Scale answers to the occasion rather than to the outfit. A tall sculptural piece belongs at a race meeting or a gala where people are standing. In a church pew, a marquee or a low ceilinged register office, a piece worn low and to one side gives the same lift without becoming everyone else's problem.
How a headpiece is built
The base is blocked or hand modelled first, then wired at the edge so the shape cannot drop. Sinamay and parasisal straw are stiffened and hold a sharp line. Silk, satin and velvet are draped and hold a soft one. Crinoline is wired into sweeping curves that keep their form. Crystal and beading are set by hand, a piece at a time.
Nothing here is glued together, and the fixing is chosen for your hair rather than fitted as an afterthought. A comb grips hair worn up. A hair matched elastic passes behind and holds where a comb has nothing to grip. A band carries a heavier piece across the whole head. Tall pieces get two of the three.
Questions
What is the difference between a headpiece and a hat?
A hat has a crown that sits over the head and usually a brim. A headpiece sits on the head and is held there by a comb, a band or an elastic, so it covers only part of the head. Headpieces include cocktail hats, veiled birdcage pieces, sculptural combs and headbands.
How do I choose between a cocktail hat, a veiled piece and a headband?
Choose by height and by formality. A cocktail hat carries the most presence and is worn tilted to one side. A veiled piece is the most formal and adds net across the eyes or the cheekbone. A headband is the lightest, the easiest to put on unaided and the one that suits short or fine hair.
Can a headpiece be worn to Royal Ascot?
The Royal Enclosure asks for a hat, or a headpiece with a solid base of at least 10cm across, and fascinators are not accepted there. Other enclosures accept a headpiece or a fascinator. Say where you are sitting when you order and your piece is confirmed against the rule before it is made.
Will a headpiece stay on fine or short hair?
Yes. Fine or short hair is the case a band is made for, because the band carries the weight across the whole head instead of relying on the hair to grip. Where a piece is tall, a hidden comb and a hair matched elastic are added so nothing depends on a single fixing.
See also fascinator headbands, hats with veils, bridal headpieces and race day hats.