Australian milliner Wendy White is from Central Queensland . This page is where i am suppose to give you a little bit of my background. Well were does one start? Yes, i am a madhatter. Making hats is what i love to do. If you were to ask one of my four children ,where is Mum? they would tell you , Mum is in the studio making hats, in the blocking area making hats, or dying something for her next hat. So yes, I love hats .
I have been working with hats since 1998 and at the begining of 2004 i meet the wonderful Waultraud Reiner ,a milliner and textile artist from Melbourne who was up in Queensland with flying arts. After attending a two day workshop with Waultraud. Well ,we will blame Waultraud .She has lit a flame in me for millinery , that has turned into a fire. A thirst for millinery like no other . Waultraud inspired me to go beyond my fabric hats and the normal standard shape that i had been doing. She inspired me to explore other millinery materials and techinques. Believe me there a many different areas to millinery.
At the end of 2004 we went a little mad sold our property in Central Queensland our 540ac property and went on the road for 18 months. Travelling Queensland and the Northern Territory saleing? yes , you guest it- hats and more hats. Infact i had the whole family in it. We home schooled 3 of our four children and at each stop like a travelling circus we would set up our mobile shop at each country show . My Husband Alex became my head salesman and cheif truck driver and when the children were not in the classroom they were sales assistants too. I spent my days between classroom and making hats for stock. Yes, what an advanture.
Now we are back in Central Queensland and life is well a little more normal I have a Studio now. Which i opened at the end of 2006. We are open weekdays monday to friday to the public.
At the beginning of 2007 i attendend international millinery forum at Wagga Wagga in New South Wales A full week of hat making with local and international millinery teachers. Then i won a scholarship and went back to Wagga Wagga in july to study under the wonderful Neil Grigg one of Sydneys top Milliners. 2007 was a great year for growth with all the great milliners i was able to study under. Even though i am still at the start of my journary as a milliner(12yrs in) everyday i learn something new. This is the rule : learn a new thing everyday and in one year you would have learnt 365 new things.
2008 and 2009 I received the Hatty Award from the USA Hat Life for dedication and innovation to the headwear industury. I was also able take a group of local ladies away to international 2009 in Wagga Wagga to explore millinery with local and international millinery teachers, a great week had by all and yes everyone is looking forward to 2011.
Now in 2010 i am happy to say even though we no longer attend the ag shows we are still here trading from our shop at 134 East street. I have great news for all we have made the semi finals for Uk hat designer of the year 2010 and now we have a chance to take our work to Paris to be displayed in the Premiere Class at Fashion Week. A wonderful achievement.
Rememder, life is short, break the rules(our family all told us we were nuts for giving up a normal way of life to go on the road), forgive quickly,kiss slowly,love truly ,laugh uncontrollably ,always have a go and never regreat anything.
So i hope as you visit my pages, you like what you see and don,t forget to bookmark my site and drop back from time to time because as a piece sells or i make something new. I will update the site. As you know we only do one off 's and every piece is different from the next. Well, a work of Art - as millinery is an art form. And if your every in Rockhampton Central Queensland why not drop in and have a closer look.
Happy Hatting
Yours Wendy White
Bush Buddies Hats on Main , 134 East st, Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia
