I’ll never forgot the first time I visited New York based milliner Karema Deodato at the seasonal curated Harlem Makers Collective. I was so smitten with the sculptural details, use of material, and story in each of her hat collections. With the ongoing pandemic, my designer crush, Karema has never stopped working on her dreams. Recently she has just launched the spring/summer 2020 collection for Karema Deodato Millinery. This collection has a modern and effortless kind of elegance with silhouettes that are so relaxed and easy. . . just straight up cool.
Some of my favorites include a straw hat with jaw dropping colorful striped palettes, an oversized yellow linen-cotton bucket hat with neck tie and a simply delightful cotton eco-denim bucket hat.
One wonderful addition to this collection is the update to her popular Penn cap. This deconstructed design now has a lightweight addition for the summer and it now has a thoughtful surprise, a matching face mask…I’m sold!
Back in November 2019, I had the pleasure of interviewing “Be Spoken Hats” with Karema Deodato at her hat atelier in Harlem. Today she sent me her SS20 hats at my doorstep and some videos of her workspace and hat techniques.
Read below for a Q + A with Karema Deodato to learn about her SS20 collection and more.
Your hats always have a simplicity and sophistication that feels both modern and timeless. For this SS20 collection, you added some attention-grabbing colors to your designs like the Izzy sunhat and the Berry straw hat; statement-making hats that still fit in your brand aesthetic. What kind of questions or thought provoking did lead you to create these cozy spring/summer toppers?
Thank you! I always like to throw in a little color to my collections – it adds interest and also happiness. The yellow gold color is a favorite, mimics the sunshine-the quintessential signal of summer!
Describe your personality and how it unfolds into your hat designs.
I’ve always been shy and introverted so you will never find anything overly flashy in my collections besides a bright color here and there. Same applies to frills, I like to keep my designs practical and functional so anything “extra” has a purpose: the super long ties on the Polina allow you to wear the hat in 3 different ways: tied in the back, around the neck as a scarf (or face covering) or tied around the head almost like a turban. The trims on the tips of the Cornelia are extracted from the fabric scraps. Ditto the trims on the Berry which are made from ribbon scraps.
Are your designs based on what your internally feeling at the time or about what’s happening in the market? How do you combine both influences?
I generally design based on what I want to wear. In college our professors always told us to never do that-you must find your target market and design for them but what if my target customer is me? I count don’t I?
With regards to overall market trends yes I absolutely take that into consideration too. I changed gears a bit going into SS20 and decided to offer more styles under $100 to reflect the financial/unemployment crisis we’re facing right now.
Let’s talk about colors, style and fabrications…
I like neutrals as you’ve probably gathered but as I said above I love to throw in some color to add depth and interest. Styling is pretty basic with some exceptions like my Galette and Polina which start with a standard foundation that becomes manipulated. Fabrications are varied – I love to block my straws and felts but I adore the unlimited variety of textures and patterns that fabrics have to offer. I’m grateful that I can create hats in both mediums.
What are some challenges to your work that we might not know about?
Hats are a lot of work to make. Blocked hats are a multi step process and cut and sew hats (hats sewn out of fabric) take a lot of pattern development to perfect.
It is the weirdest time in humankind with the Covid-19 pandemic and State shelter in-place or stay-at-home orders that affect lots of people’s lives; physically, emotionally and financially. How do you stay creative and overcome any emotions by launching this new hat line?
Well the creative process has been extremely important to my sanity. I’ll be honest I was quite an emotional wreck, numb and inert end of March into April. The death toll in NYC and worldwide just kept growing. Friends and neighbors were extremely sick and there was so much unknown I really had no creative spirit in me – I was pretty much in low battery mode. Once numbers peaked in NYC and there was a glimmer of a light at the end of the tunnel then I was able to bounce into action but gosh the numbers are still terrible, we are losing too many people to this pandemic but we are getting through it and being creative is essential to our survival right now.
What immediate impact did the coronavirus pandemic have on your new designs? (I saw you come up with matching face marks for Penn cap, perhaps you can say something about this or anything related).
Yes the matching face masks for sure. Working with the materials I have on hand since so many suppliers are shutdown has also been a direct result but this has been a fun challenge for me.
During this time of shutdown and isolation, how do you stay connected with your hat community and address their needs?
Thank goodness for technology here. IG, Facebook, my website, my etsy – I have become more active with these in addition to personally reaching to to my customers.
What is your favorite hat for the beach? If someone is going to buy only ONE hat this season, which one in your recommendation?
I really love the Benedikta hat – it is so practical and sturdy. It works for just about everyone, has a big brim that flips up or down and has a quirky trompe l’oeil detail. I also love Risa as a beach hat – folds up nicely and the straw is very “beachy”.
What do you think best sums up the feeling when you look in the mirror, put on the perfect hat, and get ready to go out or start a day?
Oh wow I don’t know – ok this works?
Is there anything else you would like for people to know about your new hats? (or an announcement)
People can find me on IG @karemadeodato
During this time where people are covering their face with masks and their hands with gloves, have you had any requests to create hats that also have a protective quality?
Nothing yet!
You can shop all the collections from Karema on her website (use code: NANPHANITA to save 15% off on your purchase) and be sure to follow on social media for updates.
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