FLIGHT OF FANCY
Feathers are fluttering everywhere this season, alighting on Miuccia Prada coats and Alexander McQueen cocktail dresses, defining the bodices of Sari Gueron gowns and peeking out from under Marc Jacobs hemlines. New York accessories designer Colette Malouf is pulling inspiration from the sky too, fashioning headbands and barrettes with feathers for a chic 1920s feel.
“Feathers are like what hair is to a woman,” Malouf says. “They add softness, movement and shine.”
The attraction was a natural one for Malouf, whose family ran a fashion house in New York when she was growing up; she recalls a childhood marked by embroidered ribbons, French lace, silk flowers -- and feathers.
In 1987 she invented the “Malouf Pouf,” a silk-covered ponytail holder that looked like a rosette -- the stylish precursor to the scrunchie. Since then she’s built a loyal following for her jewelry and hair accessory lines, lately adorning the likes of Halle Berry, Kate Hudson and Gisele Bundchen.
Malouf’s headbands range from modest to extravagant -- a simple tuft of glossy black feathers that you could wear with jeans and a sweater, or a stunning headpiece made from layers of peacock feathers that’s festive enough for New Year’s Eve. Some are anchored with crystals to highlight the iridescent colors.
“There’s a natural vibration” to the feathers, Malouf says, “a depth, a combination of texture and light.”
Working at a table on the patio of a friend’s Hollywood Hills studio, she demonstrates how to make a simple, elegant, ribbon-covered headband with feathers that sit just above the ear. You can put it together in about 45 minutes, and it costs just a fraction of the price of one of Malouf’s pieces, which go for $110 to $165.
You’ll need some dyed rooster feathers, a metal headband, two pieces of felt, two lengths of ribbon, a glue gun -- and a bit of patience. As Malouf glues individual feathers to a tear-shaped piece of felt, she dips her fingers now and then into a glass of water to keep the down from flying. (You might not want to attempt this outside in the Santa Ana winds.)
She glues the feathered felt to the headband, covers the back of the teardrop with a felt liner, presses it together to set and models the finished piece. “It’s very Poiret, isn’t it?” she says. Indeed, she credits the early 20th century French designer Paul Poiret as one of her inspirations. “They’re universal; they suit everybody,” Malouf says. Simply tailor the look to suit your own palette and aesthetic. Dramatic gray chinchilla hackle feathers? Speckled, orange-tipped Lady Amherst pheasant plumes? Fluffy, pale ostrich feathers?
Let your imagination take flight.
