About Hats by Rachel
Hats by Rachel was launched in January 2021 as a Theme-based and Vegan-friendly millinery business. From the mind of a Structural Engineer, the creations are beautifully formed and unique in style, with an appreciation for art evident in each piece.
A History of Art & Competitions...
Being from the same town as Philip Treacy and having a love of art made it easy for me to fall in love with the art that is Millinery.
In Secondary School I had the opportunity to experiment with early millinery: For a first year art competition (1st place) I made a wave hat from newspaper, wire, shells and spray paint; In a Transition Year 'Form and Fusion' (now called 'Junk Kouture') Competition my team and I made a large sellotape hat and outfit (we went on to compete in the All-Ireland Finals at the Point Depot where we won a category prize). For my Leaving Cert Art project I created a felt hat based on the theme of "Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness" (A2 grade).
During my college years (Masters in Structural Engineering with Architecture, UCD) I entered the Ballinasloe October Horse Fair Millinery Competition with a white hat featuring curved wicker and hanging origami – a play on the theme of silhouettes. A following year a Mad Hatter Competition was held at the Ballinasloe October Horse Fair, and judged by local milliner Ana Victoria Mulcahy, who awarded me 1st place for my Alice in Wonderland themed top hat.
In September 2019 I did a week-long one-to-one course with Dublin milliner Laura Kinsella, where I learned hat blocking and finishing skills through fabrication of three hats of differing type and material. Ahead of my official business launch in January 2021. I continued with self-learning and development of millinery skills.
Continuing with my love for competitions, I entered the HatTalk E-Mag online competition in 2021, and the Best Dressed Lady Competition in Tullamore Shown in 2022, where I received the runner up prize.
