(Long Island, N.Y.) Not only is Easter Sunday the most holy day on the Christian Calendar it is also a time for tradition as Christians flock to St Patrick’s Catherdal on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan wearing their elaborate Easter bonnets to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
By the 1880s, the Easter Parade had become a vast spectacle of fashion and religious observance. This annual event became famous in Manhattan, New York and around the country. It was an after-church cultural experience for the well-to-do—decked out in their expensive clothes and finery to stroll from their neighborhood church to others to view the impressive spring flowers in bloom and of course to be seen! Habitants from the middle classes would observe the parade to learn the latest trends in fashion. By 1890, the annual procession held an important tradition on New York’s calendar of festivities and had taken on its enduring designation as “The Easter Parade.”
Today modern fashionistas including Celebrity Stylist Patricia Parenti and Milliner Designer Ellen Christine have chosen to take part in this very necessary tradition on Easter Sunday as members of the Milliners Guild.
Milliner Designer Ellen Christine
The Milliners Guild is an organization of small millinery business owners and milliners who specialize in the design, production and promotion of handmade headwear.
The group is committed to increasing the public profile of millinery as well as the public’s awareness and interest in millinery products.
The Guild is dedicated to working together to maintain and expand resources in order to ensure a steady flow of raw materials.
Through a collective website, special events and educational seminars the guild will provide consistent communication about this thriving and contemporary industry to the public, press and students of the craft.
Vice President and Milliner Designer Ellen Christine brings more than a good imagination and a selective eye to her specialty. Hats became part of Ellen Christine’s life ever since her grandmother let her select a pink straw hat for Easter. She began gathering practical design experience in her hometown, Philadelphia, where she apprenticed herself to an Italian tailor with main line clients. In Boston Ellen helped put together a costume shop for Strutters, the trendsetting antique clothiers. Her prize find was a wealthy socialite’s hoard of hats. It was an opportunity of a lifetime. “Those hats were my school,” says Ellen Christine, who perfected her craft by taking apart and reconstructing those 350 crushed beauties.
Ellen’s stylish Chelsea neighborhood hat boutique has created as much excitement in certain fashionable circles as did Calvin Klein’s Madison Avenue showcase and Cynthia Rowley’s SoHo store.
Celebrity Stylist and Glove Designer Patricia Parenti
As for Celebrity Stylist and Glove Designer Patricia Parenti, her passion for fashion started on the streets of Rochester, New York. Now, what was a nice girl from Rochester, New York doing hanging out in the trendy trenches of the NYC club scene? Well, she couldn’t wear her trendy gloves with her crinoline skirts and fabulous hats in Rochester. She started her fashion career in New York City as an accessories buyer and department manager for “The New Store” on 7th Avenue directly located across from Fashion Institute of Technology. She also was a freelance merchandiser for Omanti, a manufacturer of women’s blouse and leather apparel. Ms. Parenti went on to work on New York’s eastside as a shoe buyer and department manager for Castaneda and eventually designed an exclusive line of women’s dress shoes. At present, she is an assistant designer and sales representative for HEAD DRESS hair accessories. She also is a monthly guest speaker on the topic of costume design resources at the Fashion Institute of Technology, New York City.
In the 90’s Patricia’s talent led her to fashion styling for video and stage. She worked as an assistant costume designer for Rosemary Ponzo on the play “Elison and Eden”. The video “You Got the Right”, starring Johanna Deneroff, was produced for the United Nations human rights conference. The production aired internationally on MTV. She is currently a celebrity stylist working with many influential TV Stars.
The world market for hats, caps and millinery is projected to reach $6.3 billion by the year 2015. This is primarily driven by surging demand from emerging markets, novel fashion trends and product attributes. Further, increasing demand for retro styled hats and premium, high-priced caps is also contributing to the market growth, according to a new report from Global Industry Analysts (GIA).
These two ladies work constantly on promoting the importance of fashion and trends. Their main objective is to dazzle the public and press alike.
For more information on the Milliners Guild please visit www.millinersguild.org. For more information about Milliner Ellen Christine please visit www.ellenchristine.com and to learn more about Celebrity Stylist Patricia Parenti please visit www.tenderglovingcare.com
