Feather Flowers, Wings and Mounts – Trimmings Masterclass with Ian Bennett

WEEK ONE :is all about feather mounts, using a collection of your own feathers, body feathers like heckle & nagoire mixed with coque , biots and even peacock hurl. You will be guided through via demonstrations on how make different mounts. Beforehand think about the feathers you have but also the look of what you want the final mount to be like. Is it going to sit on a band? A trim in its own right? Part of a big brim, these are all things you need to consider before arriving. You can either watch as feathers are expensive or bring in your own to start making during the class WEEK TWO : Feather wings are truly statements in their own right. Hugely popular in the Victorian & Edwardian periods but fell very much out of favour as people associated the wings with the birds.. These wings are Different, they are wired fabric bases covered in pre dyed feathers, giving all the essence & drama of plumage , without it being a bird's wing. The great thing about this technique is you can make the wings as large or as small as you wish. Please note: YOU WILL BE ONLY MAKING ONE PROTOTYPE WING. WEEK 3 Feather cabbage roses. Using pre dyed nagoire, feathers, this the last of the three classes is all about the bold & the beautiful. A floral statement but in feather form. Using normal millinery equipment, I will show you how to make this fabulous feather statement, using one colour or multi coloured feathers. Ideal for full on Royal Ascot hats or an Alice band statement.

Excellent attendance and punctuality is required from all students. As the course is only 3 weeks, each session will include vital information for mastering each stage of the process. This course may require some completion of activities outside of class time, but this would be no more than 2 hours each week

For FEATHER MOUNTS , a good selection of feathers small body feathers mixed with longer fine feathers anything from heckle, nagoire, peacock hurl, coque , pheasant & Guinea fowl body feathers, marabout & biots ( think volume, fluffy, clean, angular) FOR WINGS & CABBAGE ROSES., You will need approx 100 nagoire for each wing. It may be less or more if you’re planning on a large wing you’ll need more! For cabbage roses, think of your colour, or range of colours. Each rose about 5-7” across will use 125-200 feathers for each rose, so make sure you have enough!!! Cotton covered Millinery wire ( 1.4 hard ) you will need only approx 1m for ALL 3 CLASSES - this can be purchased from the college £6 per 4m roll BRING CASH Note pad & pen Pliers/ combination pliers Masking tape Solvent stiffener & brush ( you can also purchase the stiffener but you must bring a clean dry jar & lid, you will only need a small amount) Tape measure Pencil or chalk pencil/pen Elastic bands or pegs if you have any. UHU GLUE Threads & sewing needles, Thimble Flower tape if you have any If you have them, small paint brushes & acrylic paints. If you are planning to make Alice bands or prongs in the future, you will need these! For each class

Other suitable courses where these skills would be beneficial could be level 1 into to millinery / level 2 city & guilds millinery