For two Brooklyn milliners, springtime is about celebrating
the wonder and whimsy of the traditional Easter bonnet. Though
you won’t find too many Brooklyn women tying fat satin ribbons
under their chins, you will find them wearing daring original
designs at the newly traditional gathering place for hat lovers,
the fourth annual Easter Extravaganza Parade of Hats on Saturday,
March 30.
Organized by Mary Robinson, the bonnet-donners will begin gathering
at the grandstand at Fulton Street and Flatbush Avenue at 10
am. At 11 am, they’ll parade down the mall to Adams Street in
front of the New York Marriott Brooklyn.
Robinson, a milliner for more than 30 years, and owner of Mary’s
Fashion Hats at the Georgetown Mall, 2133 Ralph Ave. between
avenues J and K, expects 1,200 people to participate. This year’s
parade will feature Borough President Marty Markowitz as grand
marshal and will honor parade supporter Rep. Major Owens, who
Robinson said helped her hold fundraisers. Several bands will
perform, including the First Panamanian Drum and Bugle Corps,
the Toppers Brass and Bugle Band and the Mexican Marching Band.
Robinson said that this year, her hats are adorned with feathers,
crystals and rhinestones – once considered formal evening wear
– which are now suitable for day wear. She also said wide brims
are "in," and for Easter, the color to wear is lavender.
In fact, Robinson has chosen lavender and yellow balloons for
this year’s parade. New to this year’s event is the "world’s
largest Easter basket."
Robinson believes the Hats on Parade, which will have entertainment
for the whole family and will distribute caps signed by members
of the New York Knicks, helps to encourage positive change in
the Downtown area and the larger Brooklyn community.
"Young people don’t know what Easter’s about, these kids,
with their baggy jeans and $150 sneakers their parents can’t
afford," she said. "Easter to me is about dressing
up, prayer and families getting together. It is about youth doing
things better for themselves and to be better citizens."
Hence, at this year’s parade, Robinson’s own two daughters and
granddaughter will be joining her.
The hats in Robinson’s store are in a range of materials from
felt to straw to fox and mink, with any number of adornments:
silk flowers, rhinestones, gilded leaves and short veils. Many
are high-end designers, while other fantastic creations are Mary
Hats, Robinson’s own designs. She also carries the simple straw
pillbox hat, "inspired by Jackie Kennedy," in a range
of colors for just $15.
Ironically, another Brooklyn milliner, whose designs may also
be on parade March 30, blames Jackie’s husband for the disappearance
of men’s hats.
Marcus Malchijah believes that "JFK and baseball caps, killed
hats for men," recalling archival footage of former President
John F. Kennedy not wearing hats – and wistfully describing photos
he’s seen of Grand Central Station when the place was filled
with men wearing a wide array of fedoras.
Malchijah, of Malchijah Hats, on DeKalb Avenue between Adelphi
Street and Clermont Avenue in Fort Greene, forges ahead, creating
new hat styles for men and women.
He is also inspired by the season, he told GO Brooklyn.
"This is my most creative time," said Malchijah. "I
put a whole lot of thought in the next two weeks, because what
I create will run for the next couple of months."
His store carries his own creations exclusively.
"We’re considered the young upstarts in the biz," said
Malchijah, of his 7-year-old company. "We’ve made hats affordable
and personal again, not like department stores, which charge
$300 to $400."
His hand-painted, wide-brim, paper braid hats ($150) look like
leopard print in pink or camouflage in greens. Less inclined
to applying ornaments to his hats, Malchijah, in the process
of sewing the braids together, literally sculpts them. A signature
Malchijah hat, his "ankh" style, for men and women,
has an accordion-like ability to fold inside itself for a short
hat o
r to tower upward.
"I like to combo-nate," he said with a smile, displaying
an "ankh" hat which features leather, chenille and
crocodile skin in earth tones.
Malchijah also makes custom hats for special events including
weddings, and he has many celebrity clients, he said, including
Erykah Badu, Wesley Snipes and Queen Latifah. He even designs
the outrageous silver hats for "Casual Cal," the ringmaster
of the Universoul Circus, performing now in Prospect Park. Like
Robinson, he also designs hats for several Brooklyn church choirs.
Some of Malchijah’s hats are on display through April 27 at the
Brooklyn Public Library’s exhibit, "Fashioning Brooklyn"
organized by the five myles performance space and gallery.
While Robinson’s shop is set inside a formal dress boutique,
The Dress Club, Malchijah sells his hats in his workshop, where
spray paint art covers some of the walls. Customers can watch
him and his partners at work, steaming the hats and forming them
on antique wood molds.
Malchijah prides himself on his ability to make a hat out of
just about any material.
"You name it, I can strip it and sew it," said Malchijah.
He predicts that hemp, "a long-lasting material," will
be one of the main braids he uses in his hats this season. "I’ve
ordered many vibrant new colors I haven’t had before," he
said.
The average price of a Malchijah Hat is $90, but prices range
from $40 to $300 for custom-made hats depending on "what
I have to put into it," said Malchijah – both time and materials.
He also cleans, shapes and restores old or vintage hats, and
his hats come with a lifetime guarantee.
For women, movie star styles are new again, he said, showing
off a wide brim, black hat he created in honor of Audrey Hepburn.
For $175, this glamorous hat would be just the thing to wear
to this year’s Easter hat parade.
For more information about Mary’s Fashion Hats, call (718)
209-1568 and for Malchijah Hats, call (718) 643-3269.
