Women do not wear hats on a regular basis anymore, so they are not use to the feel of a hat. Look for a hat designer who will custom design your hat, and Louisville has the best of them. The hat on the cover of this magazine was designed by local hat designer Georgie Guttman. The baby's breath, flowers, and bows are finished off with 20 yards of ribbon in the back. Guttman's hats vary from year to year, and after designing Derby hats for the past 15 years, she knows what Derby hat wearers want.
All hats are hand sewn, so the process is rather labor intensive.
Guttman does not try to forecast colors in her work - but she does have some tried and true favorites. Black and white are the biggest sellers by far. Bright colors are also popular. Even though she works on her hats year-around, the hats are available only during the Derby season. She also limits the sale of her hats to three weeks prior to Derby.