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To the future and back

Luminita Roman

X Terrace presents The London Hat Week Exhibition Preview


Photo credit: Luminita Roman


One of the last live events before London’s lockdown started on 16th March 2020. ‘The Great Exhibition -To the Future and Back’, curated by X Terrace, couldn’t have had a better location than The Shard - the modern vision of the architect Renzo Piano.


“It’s such a perfect sunny day. The place is perfect. Choreography is nice, beautiful crafted hats, beautiful girls, good food and nice champagne,” says Samson Soboye, 54, fashion designer based in London. “Just on point.”


Credit: Luminita Roman


Through the dual ‘future’ and ‘retro’ theme of the exhibition, independent milliners from all over the world presented their creations on the catwalk.

Art pieces like ‘Dragonfly’ inspired by the arts and craft movement, ‘Cosmopolitan’ influenced by 1960’s Audrey Hepburn style and ‘We made a grave mistake’, a floral concept of the colours representing the European Union, were just a few of the works that fascinated the audience.

While 2020 has always seemed imaginary when the futurists predicted it, artists from all over the world showed their perception of the future in their hat designs.


Credit: Luminita Roman


The ‘Future’ theme was inspired by a fictional world and made of environmentally friendly, non-traditional materials.

Monique Lee Hylands-White, 36, the founder of X Terrace (a fashion platform based in London that aims to connect artists in Europe with fashion companies in Asia), says: “I was inspired by The Shard, and within it, a mystical utopia Shangri-La where people will leave isolated from the world happily in the future.”

Her futuristic hat was created from materials such as Swarovski crystals, glass, silk fabric, and sinamay - a natural straw fabric made from abaca fibres.


The “Retro” theme was a time travel to the past, presenting a vintage era that disappeared from the fashion and millinery scene since 1920s-1960s.


“I love making hats as I can use my imagination and design to its fullest,” says Jennifer Hughes, 48, an Irish milliner who showed her beautiful hats at The Shard.


“I use vintage fabrics, lace and embellishments, and I love finding pieces I can turn into a hat in the thrift store.”

With feathers, beads, flowers and leaves, with or without a veil, the hats were a real spectacle.

The press, influencers and hat lovers enjoyed the show with a stunning panoramic view of the Thames as a backdrop to The Shard.


“A unique, dynamic and creative event showcasing some of the world’s leading designers, the setting was breathtaking, the models and their hats, exquisite,” said Deborah Jay Kelly, fashion presenter and red-carpet host.

“You would never just be wearing a hat, you’d be wearing a piece of creative history.”


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