YKK London Showroom: Milliner J Smith Esquire

Smith is now exhibiting his forthcoming ‘Gold’ collection of hats under his brand, J Smith Esquire, in the YKK London Showroom from today, the 16th May until 24th June.

Smith has become well established for his creative hat designs, showcasing strong skills in millinery craft and tradition, producing well made, durable pieces, with a client portfolio that includes A-list celebrities. His designs have featured in established motion pictures such as Maleficent, where his hat was worn by Angelia Jolie. Amal Clooney (née Alamuddin) also wore a cream wide brimmed sun hat Smith designed for her wedding to George Clooney in 2014.

The hotly anticipated ‘Gold’ collection, taking three years to develop and involving extensive global travel for Smith to source materials and evolve ideas, officially launches in June 2017. Six pieces from this range will be on display exclusively in the YKK London showroom demonstrating how YKK’s fastening solutions helped Smith achieve his creative vision.

The collection comprises of:                                                                                                               

• YKK zip-encrusted traditional top hat                 
• A YKK zip and Swarovski bat mask                                                                     
• A YKK finger wave fringe
• A gold wig of zips
• A bodice of draped gold zips
• A zipped cloche hat

Materials, textures and understanding how these can be translated into something wearable have also been key inspirations for Smith in the creative process, pushing boundaries of millinery craft whilst maintaining the British tradition of hat wearing.

The exhibition at the showroom and launch of the ‘Gold’ collection coincides with the first of Smith’s teaching workshops at Pinewood Studios. He says: “I am proud that my brand, which I started from scratch, continues to prosper with the minimum of compromise and that I am still able push myself in my technical accomplishments and to fulfill my dreams.” 

Sabine Bourgeau, YKK Showroom manager said: “ We are truly thrilled to be welcoming Justin Smith to the showroom and delighted that he feels YKK materials have assisted in achieving his creative vision. At the YKK Showroom, our goal is to show designers the capabilities of fastening solutions in design collections, and it is so pleasing to see Justin utilising our zippers in such a creative way.”

YKK London Showroom is a unique resource for designers, students and customers, based in the heart of Shoreditch at 154 Commercial Street, for more information about the showroom, visit: www.ykklondonshowroom.com

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