I needed to come up with something to replicate the feather ornaments in this hat. I think they were most likely whole birds but this is what I came up with. It’s a take off of a two sided 1920s vintage feather ornament that was make with black Rooster feathers on each end of a heavy wire.
What I used; two ~2″ lengths of sewn yellow-gold Rooster feathers, 4 or 6 natural Turkey tail feathers, brown florist tape, 10″ of thread covered millinery wire, Beacon’s Fabric Tac glue. Tools; Wire clippers and pliers, a 1″ bore curling iron.
I curled the cut edges of the millinery wire on both ends to create small loops.
I glued the sewn rooster feathers around the loops so that the natural curl of the Rooster feathers made them curve outwards.
I used the brown florist tape the cover the base of the yellow feathers.
I pulled the downey ends of the Turkey feathers off the stems.
I used the curling iron to curl the feathers so they more matched the curve of the base of the glued Rooster feather bundles.
I glued the lower halves of two-three Turkey feathers to the base of the Rooster feathers clipping the stem to length.
I covered the base of the Turkey feathers with Florist tape for an inch or two then wrapped some lighter brown florist tape around the very base of this. Thinking it looked a little like a birds beak.
To get idea where the ornament would go I pinned the Ostrich Plume on the right side. Then decided just where the center of the wire would be and how I would have to be attached to the straw of the brim and the crown.
I then put the feathers aside and worked on the ribbon/fabric parts on the hat like the edge petersham, the hat band, the loops and all the underbrim decorations. That done I could tack the feathers in place. In this picture you can see the fabric that will make the ties still with the paper backing directly from the printer.
