1950s Claude Saint Cyr hat with a bold tapestry weave.
Pillbox Hat Details
- Stunning pillbox hat from noted milliner Claude Saint Cyr.
- Woven tapestry in gray, black, and cream zigzag design.
- Black fabric lining.
- This hat is part of a collection made from traditional French Aubusson tapestry. This innovative collaboration between Saint-Cyr and her husband, interior designer Georges Martin, was inspired after Martin recovered the chairs in Saint-Cyr’s salon.
- Saint Cyr named the first collection Aubusson. She made only 160 tapestry hats, some with matching coats, over the next four years.
- The weavers, accustomed to making carpets, learned how to build a hat and use finer weaves.
NOT SHIPPABLE TO ITALY due to Italian customs prohibition.
![Tapestry pillbox hat size](https://madgeshatbox.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Tapestry-pillbox-hat-size.jpg)
Here’s a video on the making of French Aubusson tapestry courtesy of (c)Région Nouvelle-Aquitaine. You can view their entire playlist here.
Who was Claude Saint Cyr?
Claude Saint Cyr is considered one of the most important milliners of the 20th century. Known for her innovative materials and designs, her label was worn by the most fashionable women of the day.
Born Simone Naudet in 1911 in Paris, she began her millinery training at the age of 18 and worked with notable Paris designers, including Jean Patou, Marie-Louise Carven, and Rose Descat. Saint Cyr later trained in London, where she changed her professional name to Claude Saint-Cyr.
She established her millinery salon in 1937 in Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honor̩, Paris, later opening another shop in London in 1950. In collaboration with British designer Norman Hartnell, her designs were favorites of the British royal family in the 1950s and 1960s. In addition, she made hats for Queen Elizabeth for her 1953 coronation and the 1960 wedding veil of Princess Margaret.
Saint-Cyr closed her salon in 1964 but began working with French milliner Jean Barthet, a supplier of hats to celebrities such as Princess Grace of Monaco and Maria Callas. Eventually, Saint Cyr retired in 1972 but continued to act as a consultant to bridal design houses until the mid-1990s. Claude Saint Cyr died in 2002.
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