My mentor was Rose Cory, a Royal Warrant Holder to the late Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother. As a Royal milliner and tutor for almost 50 years, Rose taught me the traditional techniques of millinery and imparted her knowledge and experience gained from a lifelong dedication to the craft.

I developed my process for creating hat blocks by exchanging sculpting techniques with a puppet maker. You might think there is no relation between millinery and puppets, but it is amazing to discover the cross-over you can find between crafts.

To me, well made means a certain pride has been taken in the work. Each detail has been carefully considered. The design looks balanced and the construction is strong. I find the simplest designs are often the gauge – there is no ‘fluff’ to hide bad workmanship.

Millinery itself is not in danger. But hat block making is a critically endangered craft. Without hat blocks, most milliners will find it difficult to make most of their hats. To futureproof my business, I therefore developed a way to sculpt my own hat blocks.