Deep Blue Sea (hat)
Encyclopedia
Deep Blue Sea is a hat designed by Australian milliner Ann-Maree Willett, made from Australian wool felt
and set with 26 precious opals from Lightning Ridge, weighing a total of 1447.5 carats.
Deep Blue Sea was the feature piece of the ‘Climate’ series of hats that launched Willett’s international millinery career. It contains more Lightning Ridge precious opal
than has been brought together on any other wearable item and became famous as “the million dollar opal hat”, then later as “the most valuable hat ever offered at public auction.”
, Italy. The collection, ‘Climate’, comprised a series of hats inspired by Australia’s natural environments and earned Willett one of the few Churchill Fellowships to be awarded for design in Australia, as well as a relationship with famed Italian company Borsalino
. The centrepiece of this collection, Deep Blue Sea was designed and manufactured as an item of runway or catwalk couture - a wearable sculpture rather than an everyday item.
Deep Blue Sea was inspired by the Great Barrier Reef
, the largest coral reef system on Earth, located off the coast of Queensland
in north-east Australia. To create the hat, Willett collaborated with opal miners Vicki and Peter Drackett of Down to Earth Opals, at Lightning Ridge in NSW, Australia and master goldsmith Gerd Gerold Schulz, also of Lightning Ridge and formerly from Idar-Oberstein
in Germany, a city famous as a gemstone centre.
Boasting 28 precious opals that weighed a total of 1486.34 carats, were custom-mounted in 337.5 grams of sterling silver and 18 carat yellow gold, Deep Blue Sea had a retail value in excess of A$1 million. It became widely known as “the million dollar hat”.
Following its debut in Milan in February 2007, Deep Blue Sea was shown at the L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival in March 2007, then the Australian Masters of Fashion Awards in July 2007, followed by a national tour of Australia. In February 2008, two of the opals on the hat were sold, leaving 26 opals weighing 1447.5 carats. The hat was exhibited again at the Australian Opal Exhibition in July 2008, then at the International Opal Jewellery Design Awards in July 2009 .
has been hand blocked into cups representing coral
polyps.
Each of the opals has been hand-carved by either Daniela L’Abbate or Christine Roussel, multi-award-winning master opal carvers regarded as world leaders in their craft. Opal types represented include black opal, dark opal and crystal opal. The opals are mounted in custom-made settings engineered and manufactured by Gerd Gerold Schulz using metals including sterling silver and 18 carat yellow gold.
Deep Blue Sea drew media attention for its extravagance and for its high value both as a hat, and as wearable precious opal. In so doing it joined the ranks of the world’s most expensive hats, alongside works such as Louis Mariette’s platinum and diamond ‘Chapeau d’Amour’, David Shilling’s
diamond, pearl and ruby encrusted hat formerly recognised by the Guinness World Book of Records as the most expensive hat ever , and Brent Black’s ‘The Hat’, woven by Simon Espinal.
Felt
Felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing woollen fibres. While some types of felt are very soft, some are tough enough to form construction materials. Felt can be of any colour, and made into any shape or size....
and set with 26 precious opals from Lightning Ridge, weighing a total of 1447.5 carats.
Deep Blue Sea was the feature piece of the ‘Climate’ series of hats that launched Willett’s international millinery career. It contains more Lightning Ridge precious opal
Opal
Opal is an amorphous form of silica related to quartz, a mineraloid form, not a mineral. 3% to 21% of the total weight is water, but the content is usually between 6% to 10%. It is deposited at a relatively low temperature and may occur in the fissures of almost any kind of rock, being most...
than has been brought together on any other wearable item and became famous as “the million dollar opal hat”, then later as “the most valuable hat ever offered at public auction.”
History
In 2007 milliner Ann-Maree Willett was invited to represent Australia with a collection of hats at Corso Como design centre in MilanMilan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Italy. The collection, ‘Climate’, comprised a series of hats inspired by Australia’s natural environments and earned Willett one of the few Churchill Fellowships to be awarded for design in Australia, as well as a relationship with famed Italian company Borsalino
Borsalino
Borsalino is the name of a hat company known particularly for its fedoras. Established in 1857, Borsalino produces felt from Belgian rabbit fur at its factory in Alessandria, Italy....
. The centrepiece of this collection, Deep Blue Sea was designed and manufactured as an item of runway or catwalk couture - a wearable sculpture rather than an everyday item.
Deep Blue Sea was inspired by the Great Barrier Reef
Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is the world'slargest reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,600 kilometres over an area of approximately...
, the largest coral reef system on Earth, located off the coast of Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
in north-east Australia. To create the hat, Willett collaborated with opal miners Vicki and Peter Drackett of Down to Earth Opals, at Lightning Ridge in NSW, Australia and master goldsmith Gerd Gerold Schulz, also of Lightning Ridge and formerly from Idar-Oberstein
Idar-Oberstein
Idar-Oberstein is a town in the Birkenfeld district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. As a Große kreisangehörige Stadt , it assumes some of the responsibilities that for smaller municipalities in the district are assumed by the district administration...
in Germany, a city famous as a gemstone centre.
Boasting 28 precious opals that weighed a total of 1486.34 carats, were custom-mounted in 337.5 grams of sterling silver and 18 carat yellow gold, Deep Blue Sea had a retail value in excess of A$1 million. It became widely known as “the million dollar hat”.
Following its debut in Milan in February 2007, Deep Blue Sea was shown at the L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival in March 2007, then the Australian Masters of Fashion Awards in July 2007, followed by a national tour of Australia. In February 2008, two of the opals on the hat were sold, leaving 26 opals weighing 1447.5 carats. The hat was exhibited again at the Australian Opal Exhibition in July 2008, then at the International Opal Jewellery Design Awards in July 2009 .
Materials
Deep Blue Sea is made of Australian wool felt on a wire armature and features 26 carved natural precious opals set amidst swaying feathers. The feltFelt
Felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing woollen fibres. While some types of felt are very soft, some are tough enough to form construction materials. Felt can be of any colour, and made into any shape or size....
has been hand blocked into cups representing coral
Coral
Corals are marine animals in class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria typically living in compact colonies of many identical individual "polyps". The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.A coral "head" is a colony of...
polyps.
Each of the opals has been hand-carved by either Daniela L’Abbate or Christine Roussel, multi-award-winning master opal carvers regarded as world leaders in their craft. Opal types represented include black opal, dark opal and crystal opal. The opals are mounted in custom-made settings engineered and manufactured by Gerd Gerold Schulz using metals including sterling silver and 18 carat yellow gold.
Couture Context
Blue Sea is a flamboyant statement piece; it is millinery theatre, in the tradition of sensational hat couture. Its primary innovation is in incorporating more than 1400 carats of high-value precious Australian opal, in a full spectrum of colours and hand-carved into unique sculptural shapes, into couture millinery and fashion.Deep Blue Sea drew media attention for its extravagance and for its high value both as a hat, and as wearable precious opal. In so doing it joined the ranks of the world’s most expensive hats, alongside works such as Louis Mariette’s platinum and diamond ‘Chapeau d’Amour’, David Shilling’s
David Shilling
David Shilling is an English milliner, sculpturer, fashion and interior designer synonymous with designing extravagant hats and clothing displayed on Ladies' Day at Royal Ascot.- Childhood :...
diamond, pearl and ruby encrusted hat formerly recognised by the Guinness World Book of Records as the most expensive hat ever , and Brent Black’s ‘The Hat’, woven by Simon Espinal.
External links
- Opal - Australia’s National Gemstone http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au/symbols/gemstone.cfm Retrieved 4 November 2010
- Australian Opal Centre, Lightning Ridge NSW Australia http://australianopalcentre.com/ Retrieved 4 November 2010
- Australia's National Gemstone http://australia.gov.au/about-australia/our-country/our-national-symbols#AustraliasNationalGemstone Retrieved 4 November 2010
- L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival http://www.lmff.com.au Retrieved 4 November 2010
- International Opal Jewellery Design Awards http://www.iojdaa.com.au Retrieved 4 November 2010
- Ann-Maree Willett http://www.annmareewillett.com/index.php?pr=about Retrieved 4 November 2010
- Down to Earth Opals http://www.downtoearthopals.com.au Retrieved 4 November 2010
- The world’s most exclusive milliners http://www.worlds-luxury-guide.com/Fashion/Fashion-Designers/Most-Exclusive-Hat-Designers/Most-Exclusive-Milliners Retrieved 4 November 2010
- Louis Mariette http://www.louismariette.com Retrieved 4 November 2010
- David Shilling http://www.davidshilling.com/ Retrieved 4 November 2010