Whittall & Shon

In the forefront of this rediscovery is Whittall & Shon, known for their extravagant creations and the old-world quality of their millinery.

"It was just a summer project to use up all our left over art materials from school and make a little money on the side," says Eliot Whittall, a Rhode Island School of Design Graduate.

Although their first hats were constructed from bits of fabric, stones and other "leftovers", buyers from such stores as Saks Fifth Avenue and Bergdorf Goodman immediately recognized the imaginative fantasies and workmanship that they incorporated.

Today, with every possible ingredient for making hats available to them, Whittall and Shon's hats now sprout from themes with emphasis still on quality.