Outside of work, I had a rather long to-do list for this past week in New York and am very pleased that I managed to fit almost everything I had hoped in, including an appointment to make a custom hat with milliner, Orlando Palacios, in his uptown location on 57th Street: Worth & Worth.
I’ve always been a hat girl, but my appreciation for a well made hat has truly grown since discovering more hat lines this year to bring into Syllabus. After hearing about Worth & Worth from a close girlfriend I made sure to make an appointment while in the city, and I’m so happy that I did. I had the best time getting to know the cool couple behind the brand and of course getting to see Orlando work on my hat in front of me!
I had originally wanted to create a custom hat although once I discovered the Marfa… it was all I could think about. I have been wanting a more western-feeling hat and this one fit the bill perfectly. Aptly named after the city in Texas, it boasts that it can turn any woman into a desert flower. (All I want to wear this spring / summer are easy bohemian style dresses, this hat, and suede booties… so yes please to a desert flower!).
After falling in love with the Marfa I was sad to discover that the hat I loved wasn’t in my size. Fortunately, Orlando was able to size the hat down for me, and getting a peek into this process was definitely the highlight.
I was fascinated watching Orlando reshape, steam and remold my hat to fit me. The trim was sewn back in place, and I left with it on!
Fun Fact: Orlando is the only milliner in the United States to carve his own wooden hat blocks.
The next hat on my wish list (for my next trip to NY): the Bolero.
Photography by Lydia Hudgens