Leicester based Italian milliner Giulia Mio won 1st prize at the first edition of the “Parkin Fabrics Hat Competition” 2018.
Giulia Mio submitted her creation competing with milliners from all the UK in January 2018. Her hat was shortlisted and received the news of the award on the 2nd of March 2018.
Parkin Fabrics Limited is one of the leading suppliers for fashion and millinery in the UK and Europe, supplying names like Dior and Philip Treacy. Parkin Fabrics provided every participant with the same kit and selection of materials, and gave the theme, “Influence”. They received more than 140 submissions and shortlisted only five hats. The final decision was left to a very prestigious judge, Mrs Rachel Trevor-Morgan, HM the Queen personal milliner.
“ I received the official news of the award through a friend via text!”, says the designer. “She must have got the email before me, and she got all excited and texted me immediately. I was over the moon! It is a great honour to be judged by Mrs Rachel Trevor-Morgan again. She was on the judging panel which already honoured me with the 2nd prize of the Feltmaker Designer Award in 2016. I can’t believe it happened again!”
The inspiration behind this hat was the style of the late ’40 when women saw the end of the war as an opportunity to express themselves again, but they still had to be inventive and use what they could put their hands on to create their headwear. The “restrictions” imposed by the competition pack forced me to think like those women again…and this is the result! An elegant and sophisticated red hat, with handmade felt and feathers flowers and a black veiling to wrap around the neck.
