Store Profile – The Eternal Headonist

Every now and then, I wish we still lived in a world where ladies would don a nice hat “just because”. In the movies of my childhood, elegant women would dress up in gorgeous hats and put on lace gloves on a daily basis. But alas, we live in a modern world, and popping on a hat to walk down to the shops is a thing of the past.

 But then, once a year the Spring Racing Carnival comes along and gives women the chance to go all out and decorate their heads with some impressive headwear.

 The process of finding a stylish, tasteful and wearable headpiece can often be an arduous one, with millinery really becoming less prevalent in the fashion scene. But The Eternal Headonist is here to change all that!

 Established earlier this year The Eternal Headonist aims to bring beautiful headwear back to the forefront of fashion and create accessible, quality, fashion-forward headwear and millinery that you can wear well after Stakes Day is over.

 Representing some of Australia’s finest milliners including Richard Nylon, Reny Kestel and Lisa Tan (who is now London based), the new pop up store specialises in ofcourse, all your fashionable and designer needs for spring racing, but also bridal hairpieces, as well as more casual hats, turbans and beanies.

 So if you’re on the hunt for a beautiful designer hairpiece or hat that will complete (and I’m sure totally make) your spring racing outfit, you need look no further than these guys.

 The Eternal Headonist pop up shop is open until Friday 7th November at 37/220 Commercial Road Prahran.

 See my interview with owner, Annabel Allen below:

Tell us a little bit about yourself and how The Eternal Headonist came about?

The Eternal Headonist came about as because being a shopper of hats, I could see that there was a gap in the market for fashion-forward, accessible headwear for the 25 – 45 year old. Currently the main options people have are generally constrained to what the large department stores have to offer during the Spring Racing periods or the cheap mass-produced product stocked in chain stores, or of course visiting a milliner and getting something custom made, which is a delightful experience, but not for everyone. I wanted to make excellent headwear available all year round, and easy for everyone to purchase.

Also as a maker of hats I know how hard it is for milliners to build their brands and manage the operational side of running a business amongst the highly time consuming practice of making hats, and hence felt there was an opportunity to provide another outlet for milliners to stock their headwear and take the hassle out of managing operations.

Before I started The Eternal Headonist I was a chartered accountant, and worked in fairly senior management positions for large listed companies and government organisations, so felt I could bring those corporate skills into managing the business.  (I also studied millinery on the side, hence the knowledge of the industry!)

Can you tell us about some of the Milliners that you represent/stock?

If you could design a hat for anyone in the world (dead or alive), who would it be?

Ok, will it would be a triple-headed tie between Grace Jones, Erykah Badu and Audrey Hepburn, all inspirational women and true Headonistic heroes of ours. And if Gaga called and said “get me some crazy headwear now Headonist”, well, we’d be pretty pleased with that too!

What do you think makes a great Spring Racing Carnival outfit?

Well obviously a fabulous hat, it can totally make or break an outfit, but it needs to be teamed with a smart and individual dress choice, and some super fabulous accessories.  Keep it classy, but that doesn’t mean boring by any stretch of the imagination, (and imagination is the key word here), be creative, make something yourself, add gloves, maybe a cape, why not go for accessories in a completely modern material like plastic or leather? Make it edgy and refined!

What are your top 5 Spring Racing essentials?

i) An awesome hat ii) Comfortable shoes iii) Sunscreen/Emergency Umbrella (you need to be prepared for all scenarios!) iv) Plenty of money so you can back all the winners v) A Berocca for the hangover the next day 🙂

What is the best place to shop in Melbourne in terms of getting Spring Racing Carnival ready?

So I’m guessing I can’t say The Eternal Headonist right?! Well in that case we love Melbourne boutiques like Lady Petrova, Limedrop and Kuwaii for individual and unique dresses and accessories, we love all the fabulous talent this city has to offer, so many neat treats in these stores for Spring Racing.