City Sport Caps
City Sport CapsMore Info
The
City Sport
Story
WHEN VICTOR DECLERCQ,
a leading fabric trader, got the idea to set up a cap mill, he could never have foreseen the success his company was to experience 100 years later.
He founded his company, together with his wife Marie Olivier and seven craftworkers from Diksmuide.
At heart, Victor was a born trader who upheld the traditional principles of a well-groomed gentleman. He was renowned for his big pointed moustache that was manicured every day by a private barber.
Over the years, CITY SPORT became an established name for high quality caps as an exclusive fashionable accessory for the discerning gentleman. The company has always offered a wide variety of caps in exclusive styles and fabrics.
The fourth generation now reaps the rewards of the preceding generations and is now preparing the future, however without losing contact with the family traditions and creativity.
The City Sport cap is now exported to all European countries, and even to Canada and the USA. But the spirit and production still lies in Ardooie, a small village in the neighbourhood of Bruges.
CITY SPORT caps, quality caps since 1898.
More Info
About
After reading the book “The Emperor wears no clothes” by hemp advocate Jack Herer, Emilio De Baudringhien got inspired to start a company that would bring this amazing plant and all of its benefits, back to humanity.
Since hemp is a carbon negative crop we strongly believe it can be a key player in fighting global warming… think of it this way: we are growing a plant in 100 days that takes huge amounts of carbon from our atmosphere and stores it safely in the ground, actually increasing the fertility of the soil. After the plant is harvested we can use every single aspect of the plant for a different purpose, leaving no waste. All this with a minimum input of water and nutrients and no use of pesticides and herbicides.
1 acre of hemp takes in 10 times the amount of carbon compared to 1 acre of rainforest.
Emilio doesn’t consider The Ornament Hemp Co. a fashion company since we don’t follow fashion trends or seasons. Instead we see the company as a vehicle to support the hemp movement in all its forms.
Emilio never started this company for money gaining purposes. All of the money that comes in is directly re-invested in creating more products made from hemp to help increase global hemp crop production and help create a world with more durable products made from replenishable crops such as hemp.
At the end of 2017, Emilio set up a crowdfunding campaign to set up his label. Thanks to 110 lovely backers, Emilio got his project funded and was able to take off.
Florence Coenraets
Florence CoenraetsMore Info
Artiste plasticienne, Florence Coenraets propose, à partir de la matière, une expérience esthétique et émotionnelle pour repenser notre rapport au monde.
A partir des plumes, sa matière première, sa démarche artistique évolue pour englober une réflexion plus large sur notre manière d’habiter un territoire et de cohabiter avec d’autres espèces.
« From feathers to birds », est une série d’œuvres réalisées à partir de plumes récoltées sur un territoire défini. Cartographie sensible, chaque pièce témoigne de notre cohabitation avec d’autres êtres vivants.
Particulièrement sensible à la vibration qui émane de chaque matériaux, dans la série « Offrandes » Florence explore d’autres matières et, comme pour les plumes, les manipule avec attention et amour.
Guidée par les spécificités de chaque matière, elle coud, assemble, relie… Elle laisse libre cours à ses gestes pour faire parler les matériaux entre eux et demeurer dans ce nouvel espace de rencontre.
Pour ces collections de coiffes, Florence Coenraets s’inspire des coiffes et parures ethniques aux symbolismes puissants, des parures des Rois et des Dieux, du pouvoir des parades nuptiales et autres rituels.
La coiffe célèbre la beauté humaine, c’est cette célébration que Florence vous invite à explorer avec puissance et audace à travers son workshop créatif « Je Suis Mon Roi ».
37, rue de Bordeaux Brussels 1060 Belgium
More Info
Ma première collection, je l’ai faite pour un marché de Noël à Jodoigne, le petit bourg où j’habite. Cette collection avait suscité de l’enthousiasme autour de moi, un vrai démarrage sur les chapeaux de roue !
Quand je repense à ces tout débuts, j’ai parfois la nostalgie d’une démarche très libre, instinctive, parfois bien téméraire face aux obstacles techniques.
Il s’agissait alors de chapeaux pour tous les jours, en polar, en velours, en lainages, même en tissu d’ameublement…
J’ai pu me sensibiliser aux formes et aux volumes et ainsi découvrir leur effet plus ou moins harmonieux
Très vite j’ai eu envie de créer un autre type de chapeau… Des chapeaux d’été et des chapeaux plus sophistiqués et originaux pour les mariages.
J’ai pu dénicher çà et là quelques moules à chapeau dans des brocantes… Utilisant « à défaut » seaux en plastique d’un diamètre correspondant à celui d’un tour de tête, plats en bois… Jusqu’au jour où j’ai eu l’opportunité d’acheter un lot entier de formes à chapeaux dans une maison de mode qui fermait…
Au fil des années, j’ai élargi la gamme de mes ressources… Passer du travail du para sisal, au tissu sisal, au visca, rami, buntal et bien sûr aussi découvrir le plaisir de « tirer des feutres » en hiver… De challenge en challenge, j’ai reculé mes limites techniques, consultant au besoin des modistes confirmées pour recevoir aide et conseil. C’est ainsi que j’ai appris la teinture, le travail du crin, de la toile élastique et de la sparterie, la maitrise des apprêts aussi…
Quand on me demande quel est mon style, j’ai souvent du mal à répondre… Oui j’ai mes goûts personnels et aussi ma patte, ma sensibilité. Néanmoins plus que mon style à mettre en avant, je me sens au service du style de ma cliente… C’est très moteur pour développer ma créativité de rencontrer les femmes qui porteront mes chapeaux… Tant de personnalités avec chacune, bien sûr, leurs palettes de couleur, morphologies de tête, de visage, de silhouettes. Créer chaque fois pour quelqu’un d’unique est un exercice permanent et donne un supplément d’âme à mon travail.
Dès mes débuts, j’ai travaillé avec un statut « d’indépendante complémentaire » compatible avec mon travail d’infirmière. Grâce à quelques expositions, j’ai eu mes premières clientes ensuite le bouche à oreille a fonctionné….
Ce dont je suis fière :
De la couverture du vogue américain, d’avoir été dans les coulisses par mes créations de certains grands mariages belges, de quelques expos-ventes à Paris (Carré rive gauche), mais par-dessus tout, ce dont je suis la plus fière ce sont tous les retours positifs de mes clientes qui me partagent par une photo, un petit mot, un coup de téléphone leur bonheur d’avoir porté une de mes créations…. C’est vraiment cette reconnaissance là qui dynamise mon travail !
Ce que je pense de l’avenir de ce métier.
Malgré la crise économique, je crois en l’avenir de notre métier. L’histoire de la mode témoigne qu’en temps de crise plus que n’importe quand, les créateurs sortent leur génie !
J’aime le slogan de la Grande Bretagne d’après guerre: « Go ahead, get a hat !». S’habiller avec recherche et fantaisie comme un acte de résistance aux difficultés et à la morosité ambiante !
Notre époque est intéressante dans la mutation qu’elle traverse… Nous sommes en occident inondés de textiles de fabrication asiatique….Une production qui n’est pas que « bas de gamme » mais qui est néanmoins marquée par la mondialisation et la production de masse. Dans ce contexte, l’article personnalisé, le « supplément d’âme » d’une pièce artisanale a de l’avenir ! J’ose croire que la crise économique va nous pousser à consommer moins et mieux…
En habillement, les accessoires ont de beaux jours devants eux….
De nouvelles attitudes se développent : telle la démarche de recyclage …et dans cette mouvance un concept qui m’est cher, le concept du « réchauffé ». Ce concept n’a rien à voir avec celui du « seconde main »….Dans le «seconde main », l’objet en passant de main à main perd de sa valeur… Le concept du réchauffé est tout autre chose… Il s’agit d’une réappropriation d’un vêtement pour en faire un autre … Ce processus donne une plus value créative à l’objet qui est revisité et réinvesti dans un cycle de vie…J’aimerais pouvoir développer ce concept plus particulièrement pour mes chapeaux d’hivers, une ligne « streetwear » poétique…
Rue de la Grande Montagne 5 Jodoigne 1370 Belgium
Acie’s Cabinet
Acie’s CabinetMore Info
Handmade. Unique. Belgian.
Hi!
Welcome to Acie’s Cabinet.
First of all, I would like to thank you for taking your time to visit my website. I really appreciate it.
My name is Amber. I’m a bookworm, cat lover and potterhead; I’m a creative soul and am a fan of nordic noir (or ‘noir’ in general, really 😉).
In 2017 I started my small company Acie.
In this digital cabinet, you can find all manner of accessories for yourself, your house or your family and friends.
After having received multiple trainings (fashion design, historical costume, leather works and bookbinding), I combine different trades in unique items.
View
There are certain choices I make for ecological reasons. In my personal life, this means I never travel by aeroplane (or, indeed, seldom travel at all), and in my professional life as well, I strive to have a low impact on the environment.
The number of items I produce out of one particular fabric is limited, and never will two accessories look 100% alike. Because I create items in small amounts, it is perfectly possible to create different kinds of accessories with one fabric. I design and make everything in my atelier in Belgium.
Most items are packed in upcycled boxes, and are shipped with pre-used packaging as much as possible.
Materials
The fabrics I use are purchased or designed in small amounts. Not only does this intensify the uniqueness of the accessories, it also means I have very little “waste”. I save all the scraps of fabric that are left from projects, to create new pieces with later on.
Furthermore, I buy from local shops and fairs and often go to factory sales, to rescue fabric that would otherwise be thrown away.
Linen is one of my favourite materials to work with. Linen is made from the fibres of the flax plant. This plant does not attract a lot of harmful insects, which means farmers don’t have to use pesticides to protect their harvest.
Flax needs very little water and produces a lot of fibres. Isn’t that just great?!
Leather is a material that is often not considered environmentally friendly. There are a lot of chemicals involved in the tanning process. However, there are a few steps we can take to make it a bit less harmful:
The leather I use to create bow ties with, are scraps from a shoemaking factory. The leftover pieces are too small to cut into shoe panels, but are perfect for the creation of bow ties! Zero waste fashion: check!
If I need bigger pieces of leather, I go to local shops to purchase leather that is already on hand. This means leather is never ordered or designed especially for me. Sometimes I even get the chance to find some second hand rescue leather, which always makes me very happy! The scraps from these hides are also saved to produce small items with, for example The Book Manager.
If leather is cared for properly, it will last many, many years. By buying less but better, we can all help a little in our ‘Save the planet’-mission!
Schooling
As mentioned above, I received multiple trainings:
Fashion design
Bookbinding
Leatherworks
Furthermore, I did courses in millinery, historical costume, and I learnt how to mend clothes.
I always continue to learn. I think it is important to keep improving your skills, and thanks to the combination of courses, I’ve learnt a few tricks of the trade. Or, rather, trades 😉.
Please roam freely! The pictures on this website show the kind of items I usually make. You can place an order in my webshop.
If you see an item you like, but would prefer a different colour or material, don’t hesitate to contact me for a custom order.
See you soon!
Amber
Herman
HermanMore Info
About
Since 1874, Herman Headwear has been a Belgian and international benchmark in terms of variety of hats and accessories. Our products cover a wide range of styles and models: caps, beanies, berets, chapkas, straw, felt or leather hats etc. Each year, we offer summer and winter collections for the whole family.
We launched our online sales site to give everyone access to our products. Building on a tradition passed down from father to son for over a hundred years, our main ambition is to share with you the love of a world we know well: that of the hat.
A world with varied atmospheres in which we invite you to stroll. Whatever your style – elegant, classic or fashion – and whatever the weather – rain, snow or sun – you will find the product that suits you on our site.
Rue Jean Meunier 6 Wellin 6922 Belgium
Anke Tacq
Anke TacqSint-Hadrianusstraat 29 Wijgmaal 3018 Belgium
More Info
Ria’s hand-made hats
As a trained sculptor, Ria searches out different and surprising shapes, creating unique hats in her own style.
Which hat to choose?
A hat will fit on any woman’s head, but not just any hat. For each hat, we talk through the design with you to find the perfect hat to make your personal beauty shine through. We also mold the edges to give it that perfect finish. A hat that makes you look beautiful, complements the wearer and not the other way around.
Materials
Hat-making is a profession, a true craft. Felt, Sisal, Wool, Yarn and other fabrics; each requiring a different kind of preparation process to be then crafted using different techniques. Ria’s fashion training together with many years experince give her a natural advantage.
The approach
A hat worn for a special occasion requires a rather different approach than one that would be worn on a daily basis. A common starting point is taking a piece of material from the dress to be worn, with which Ria can start to colour match. A colour can then be used in just a piece, or for the whole hat. The shape, colour and fabric should form one entity.
Accessories
For those who aren’t really looking for a hat, Ria also designs various kinds of headwear (Tiaras, Diadems etc.) which are of course a must at any wedding.
Winter-hats
Besides winter-hats, each year Ria designs a selection of matching hat and scarf sets. The shape of which is of significant importance.
Sluizeken 29 Gent 9000 Belgium
Delphine Quirin
Delphine QuirinMore Info
The trunks belonging to Delphine Quirin’s grandmother were veritable treasure chests when she was a child. The dresses, suits and costumes that they contained would later go on to provide the future designer with an important source of inspiration. And already as a child, hats stood out above everything else as a thing of wonder.
History of Art studies completed later in life at the University of Liège left Delphine with a real store of data and a clear preference for the talents of artists as diverse as Vermeer, De La Tour and Edward Hopper.
After training as a fashion designer, Delphine set up her own design business in 1996 and started creating her first hats – unique and tailor-made creations essentially to accompany formal dress. She then opened a shop in the historic centre of Liège and continued to create the framework for what would soon become not just a business but an expression of her personality. Being open to a wide range of influences, she soon discovered knitting and this then gradually become her preferred production technique. She really played a trump card in Paris in 1999 when she drew attention to a mini-collection of gloves and scarves – and of course hats – created out of mohair and boiled wool.
Delphine had found her niche! She was now creating regular collections, and presenting and selling them at large trade fairs in several European countries, as well as in the US and Japan.
By following her instincts and desires, Delphine has reached her goal. She has elevated the hat back to its rightful position of elegance, saving it from the stagnation of long-produced designs. She has made it a practical and light daily accessory that can be worn in all circumstances. Delphine’s hats are a subtle mix of colours and designs, reflecting our own contemporary mix of cultures and ideas. And although they do not follow ephemeral fashion trends, they are in tune with the world around them and each piece tells its own story
Delphine is proud of her Liège roots and refuses to use industrial production methods. Her hats are made using traditional techniques by a small team of knitters, embroiderers and seamstresses, enabling her to oversee all the production stages, and at the same time, to take meticulous care in order to ensure that all of her knits are perfectly finished.
26, rue Pierreuse Liège 4000 Belgium
More Info
Le Sanglier
Le Sanglier is a workshop devoted to the creation of leather products that are completely handcrafted and unique. These creations are mainly dedicated to vegetable tanned leather. This type of tanning gives some of the most robust leathers and the most conducive to patina by their simple use. Perfect combination between the durability of a product and its unique and lively side.
Our products.
By purchasing a Le Sanglier product, you are offering yourself a durable and personal object made in a unique way. Then you will be alone in control.
Le Sanglier products are generally guaranteed for life for normal use. Scratches, scrapes and general patina are not covered by this warranty.
Ordering your products
The aim of this workshop is to devote itself as much as possible to personalized creations. This is why, sometimes, I ask you to participate a little more than on other e-shops where all the products are directly sold as is. It is often possible via the choices offered to personalize your future goods (color, sizes, types of buckles, etc., type of leather, etc.) or even to contact me in order to offer things that are not on this site. That’s what’s exciting.
It is your idea that feeds my new creations. You can also participate in what you buy.