Tess studied sculpture at A level and then spent 10 years home sewing before classes in pattern cutting eventually brought her to millinery. Another 13 years on and she runs a small millinery label, named Anna Dominoes, making one or two collections a year as well as commissioned pieces.
The starting point for a piece can be the material itself (often reclaimed from old garments); the shape; a colour combination; or a particular aesthetic. She has an enthusiasm for 70s and early 80s fashion, vintage styles and alternative nightlife. Her work mostly finds a market with clubbers and performers in today’s alternative club cultures.
For some of her pieces, she sources and reinterprets 1930s and 40s millinery sewing patterns. At that time hats were a more essential garment, and it was common to make them from fabric leftovers; part of household management or wartime thrift. These days, research, trial and error, and problem solving are needed to understand the making techniques and often obscure foundation materials.
Tess has exhibited at London Hat Week, and received awards and/or commendations from London Hat Week Exhibition, Lock & Co Hatters, Bridport Hat Festival, and Lincoln International Millinery Competition.
www.annadominoesmillinery.com
