BESPOKE. BE UNIQUE.

4-6 weeks is usually needed for a bespoke order. If you need your hat sooner please contact me to discuss your requirements and I will try and squeeze you in!

No commitment to the bespoke process is needed at this initial stage as it is more of a chance for you to get a feel for what we can do together and whether you would like to proceed.

Usually 3 or 4 meetings are held at my workroom in Eastbourne, 5 minutes walk from the sea. The London-Eastbourne train is 1h30 and I am just a 15 minute walk from the train station.

The first meeting is to discuss your outfit and occasion, try on shapes and see what suits you. We will have an initial think about which designs and materials would work well with your outfit. If you already have your outfit you will bring it to this meeting. If your outfit is being made swatches are useful to see.

In this meeting I get an understanding of how you want to look and feel on the day and this is key to making you a hat you will love and enjoy wearing.

I am happy to come to London or to your home for meetings or to deliver hats where possible. I also use the Royal Overseas League in St. James as a convenient meeting point in London.

After this initial meeting I spend some time thinking about your design. I then put together a design proposal and an estimated price which I send to you for your approval. If you are happy to go ahead with the commission we arrange a date for the ‘first fitting’.

At the ‘first fitting’ the hat is partially made. This is an opportunity to check the size and shape is right and to make any adjustments before the hat is finished. It is also a chance to look at the trimming in more detail and I may have made some samples or options to choose from at this stage.

Since the hat is now partially made it can be easier to envisage the final effect.

I then complete the hat and you will have a ‘second fitting’. This is to check that the hat is perfect in every way and that you are completely happy with it and to make any final alterations that may be needed.

Once your hat is finished, it is carefully packed in it’s Lai hats box with tissue, care instructions and a swatch card which you can take with you should you need to match the hat to something when shopping. You will leave with your beautiful and unique hat which, with proper care, will last a lifetime.