The Fairy Tale Collection by Karen Lewis

My latest range of head pieces based on well-known fairy tales such as Cinderella and The Princess and the Pea are on show at the Cambridge Arts Salon until 17th January 2013. Why not stop by and take a look.

A great summer read 'Some Girls, Some Hats and Hitler' by Trudi Kanter

My good friend Jill bought me a fantastic book to read before the summer. I took this on my holiday and thoroughly enjoyed it. 'Some Girls, Some Hats and Hitler' is a true story written by and about milliner Trudi Kanter.

It's a tale of a young and beautiful hat designer trying to keep her business afloat in Vienna whilst struggling against the beginnings of Hitler's oppressive regime, as Jewish people are humiliated and stripped of their dignity and finances. Her descriptions of fashion, trips to Paris and her designs are juxtaposed with the horrors of war. Trudi's collections reflected the new reality: she decided she would use more veiling to hide the sadness in women's eyes. She used her talents and position to attempt the escape of her family to start a new life in London.

A great read and an inspirational woman to all!

Metamorphosis

Been away from my blog for a while- just busy busy sewing for the spring wedding  and race season and when I'm not sewing I have been wrenching cloth samples from the jaws of my new dog Rosie. 
     
I have been watching the brilliant progress of team GB from the comfort of my sofa but I braved the crowds in London this week to get to the outstanding new exhibition Metamorphosis at the National Gallery. 
     
This is a unique collaboration between the National Gallery and The Royal Ballet combining the work of three contemporary artists, costumes and sets for three ballets all based on works by the Venetian artist Titian. 
     
Chris Ofili, Conrad Shawcross and Mark Wallinger together with a group of choreographers, composers and poets have come together to create a response to three of the master's most famous works-     Diana and Callisto,    Diana and Actaeon and    The Death of Actaeon, which were themselves based on Ovid's poem     Metamorphosis.      Each artists' work can be seen along side the paintings. 
     
Chris Ofili response to Titian's work is perhaps the most traditional. He has created a series of  large and colourful paintings, which concentrate on the master's curvaceous figures and echo the overtly sexual nature of the paintings, which comes through in Ofili's colour and shapes but he subverts the classicism of the originals by giving them distinctively Trinidadian backdrops. 
     
Conrad Shawcross is a sculptor and produced a robot  to represent Diana. In a glass case the robot can be seen moving seductively towards an antler it has carved. 
     
The final piece by the conceptual artist Mark Wallinger was definitely the most unusual and uncomfortable.  'Diana is about watching and being caught in the act...' Wallinger explains, and he has created a locked room with tiny peepholes for you to view her if you dare. It's brilliant! 
     
The exhibition also has a few costumes from the ballets and a wonderful series of films documenting the rehearsals for the performances. 
     
I really enjoyed this show; I only wish I had seen the three ballets based on Titian's extraordinary and beautiful masterpieces.

A Piece of Magic ….. is a Hat

A big thank you to all those who attended our recent exhibition at the Cambridge Art Salon and to those who made the event such a great success. For those who missed it, below are a few photos taken from the exhibition.

Millinery Exhibition - Cambridge Art Salon, 3rd - 15th May

A feast for the eyes awaits visitors to the ‘Cambridge Art Salon’ where the works of three bespoke milliners is being exhibited between 3rd – 15th May – offering an exclusive preview of their 2012 couture collections.



‘A Piece of Magic ….. is a Hat’ celebrates the creative flair of Karen Lewis, Sandra Belgrave and Daniel Pilecki – presenting an exquisite display of designs ranging from beautifully fashioned fascinators, elegantly sculpted headpieces, – and eye-popping statement hats.



The exhibition promises a dazzling array of couture creations from Cambridge Milliners – Karen Lewis and Daniel Pilecki – the former, drawing on her extensive experience of working with luxurious textiles – to produce sublime ‘jewel-like’ highly coveted hats, while Pilecki evokes the glamour of Hollywood with a series of show-stopping sculpted designs – proving imagination holds no bounds.



Joined by London based designer – Sandra Belgrave with a range of city slick, cutting edge – Ladies and Men’s Hats – with her signature twist, the exhibition will have hats for every occasion – many of which will be for sale.



Ladies need look no further if seeking inspiration for a head-start in this summer’s fashion stakes.



Magic indeed!


Opening Times

Mon-10am -5.30pm

Wed-10 -5.30pm

Thurs-10 -5.30pm

Fri-10 -5.30pm
Sat-10 -5pm
Sun-10-5pm

Alternative Fashion Week, Spitalfields Market, London

Hi everyone,  I’ll be running a stall at the Spitalfields Market Alternative Fashion Week on Thursday 19th and Friday 20th

http://www.spitalfields.co.uk/dspevent.php?name=ALTERNATIVE+FASHION+WEEK

Hope to see you there!

Karen

New designs for 2012

Just added a few of my new hat designs to the website. Why not take a look!

New designs