From my house I can hear a baby magpie calling its mother, a steady breeze rustling the leaves outside my window, the occasional car or bus passes my house and I can hear a low but almost constant stream of cars heading towards the shopping centre on the highway a few kilometres away.

I'm all set for Christmas, I had my online grocery order delivered yesterday, I bought the last present last week before school holidays started and I'm wrapping one present per day to  go under the tree to build the excitement for my children.

But I know from experience that many people are last minute shoppers. My dad is a last minute shopper, not from lack of caring but more so lack of time working from sun up to sun down and possibly the fact that living in  a small country town with limited options meant Christmas shopping required you to travel. So there have been many, many occasions where I've been out shopping on Christmas Eve. 

I've also worked as a checkout operator in Kmart years ago and I can tell you what Christmas Eve is like inside the store at 8:50pm when store close at 9pm. It's chaos and people are frazzled. I'm quite a practical gift giver most of the time, save for the chunk of wood that I stuck on my parents Christmas tree that has "I was Groot" written on it, but most of the time I like to get something that someone wants, needs or appreciates.

So with that in mind, I've created a handy little Wishlist for someone just starting on their millinery journey. 

My first suggestion would be millinery lessons. It's getting harder to find face to face millinery lessons but online is easy if you know where to look. 

For a very beginner, I would suggest hatacademy.com  It's where I started with a beginner course, and over the years so many lessons have become available. Hat- Academy was started by Elaine Mergard, who has over 50 years experience in millinery as both a milliner and a teacher. Together with Elaine are a vast number of tutors with an envious amount of experience and skills teaching lessons. It's fantastic if you want to learn traditional millinery but if you're not yet equipped with blocks, you can also learn some new techniques to make something more modern. Elaine is lovely and always helpful and encouraging and there is a large community of experienced and beginner milliners to surround yourself with. I have done many lessons over the years and there are still more I want to do so you'll never run out of things to learn on Hat Academy.

Hat Atelier would be another online learning studio that has some amazing lessons, I have almost all of them on my wishlist. Hat Atelier was started by award winning milliner Rebecca Share. Rebecca has curated a list of young Australian milliners who teach skills that have helped them create award winning designs, and most of the techniques can be used without blocks, making them ideal for the absolute beginner.

There are more millinery schools where you could buy someone lessons, however these are the only 2 I have experience with at this stage. A Google search or even social media search would potentially help you find a lot more.

Hat Blocks

Let me just put this out there: you do not need blocks to get started in millinery. It is not essential to start with blocks. You can make a lot of incredibly stunning pieces without the use of blocks, but if you want to go into traditional millinery you will need blocks. My top 3 places to get blocks are as follows:

Hat Blocks Australia is the home to Australia's favourite Hat block maker. Darryll Osborne has been making hat Blocks for over 20 years and he makes some beautiful pieces. I still have a lot on my wishlist, he has a gorgeous range of berets, pillboxes, cloche. But for the absolute beginner, he has collaborated with Hat Academy and Hat Atelier to create block bundles that are needed for specific classes. Due to his popularity and skill, there is a wait for blocks, but it is a wait that this well worth it, and as a Christmas present for a new milliner, it's a very exciting gift!

 Hat Blocks.co.uk has the most stunning vintage blocks. Actually Guy Morse Brown has a stunning range of blocks end of story. His fascinators, saucers, cloche blocks, crown blocks, and he makes men's blocks as well. I am yet to purchase from Guy Morse Brown but his blocks are very popular and he has a huge range. The hard part would be deciding which piece to start with but to make the gift giving part easier, he does have a gift voucher option.

Etsy is another place for hat Blocks, specifically vintage hat Blocks. I have purchased hat Blocks from Etsy and actually my favourite vintage set came from Etsy. A simple search for "vintage hat blocks" brings up a lot of results. The one drawback is that there are a few hat block sellers that do not ship to Australia, however if you're on Etsy, it's also a treasure trove for vintage flowers and swiss straw braid, a lot with a lot of other millinery supplies.

Millinery Supplies

While millinery can be made out of almost anything, for last minute gift giving, the best thing would be a gift voucher so that the new milliner can choose exactly what the first project will be made of.

My favourite online millinery supplier is House of Adorn. They have most things you can think of for millinery, including wires, steamers and hat boxes. They also have the fun stuff like feathers, braids, sinamays, straws, flowers, thermoplastics, trims and embellishments. They also have kits specifically designed for classes on Hat Academy and Hat Atelier, just to make things easier.

Magazine Subscriptions

For beginner milliners, staying inspired and connected to the craft is just as important as learning the techniques. A subscription to a magazine like HATalk e-magazine could be the perfect gift. This magazine is filled with tips, trends, and insights into the world of hat-making, offering a steady stream of creativity and knowledge. With stunning photography, interviews with experienced milliners, and step-by-step projects, a magazine subscription is a thoughtful way to encourage a budding milliner’s passion while keeping them informed about the industry. Best of all, it’s a gift that keeps on giving throughout the year.

Christmas is a time for thoughtfulness, and finding the perfect gift for a beginner milliner doesn’t have to be stressful. Whether it’s the gift of learning through online courses, the excitement of new tools and materials, or the inspiration found in a book or magazine, each of these ideas is sure to delight someone just starting on their millinery journey.

As you make your last-minute holiday preparations, remember that the most meaningful gifts are the ones that nurture creativity and passion. Supporting a loved one’s artistic dreams is a gift that will bring joy long after the holidays have passed.

So, skip the chaos of last-minute shopping malls and give a gift that encourages imagination, craftsmanship, and beauty. Wishing you and your loved ones a merry, creative Christmas!