THE ROYAL TREATMENT
Milliner rushes hat to Sophie
Kelly Dunlap had already popped into bed on Thursday night when the phone rang. It was Jessica Mulroney, stylist for Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, and she needed a hat ASAP for the prime minister’s wife to greet the royals.
“I had already gotten home from the shop in the Distillery District and was in bed. Jessica had come across an article written on me in the Citizen. She asked if I could send her pictures of what I had in the shop.”
Known as the Saucy Milliner, Dunlap, who lives near her Toronto boutique, sprang into action, making a quick stop at a car rental to see if there was a vehicle available for the next day in case she had to deliver the hats to 24 Sussex Drive, the prime minister’s residence. She hurried back to work and began texting images of hats in colours that would complement Grégoire Trudeau’s dress, a purple design made by Montreal’s Julie Pesant of Éditions de Robes.
Since Justin Trudeau’s swearing-in ceremony in November 2015, his wife has garnered a lot of media interest — at home and abroad — for her sense of fashion and wearing clothes by designers who fly under the radar. She has also been referred to as Kate Middleton’s “style sister” by numerous media outlets, including People magazine.
Mulroney, Grégoire Trudeau’s friend and wife of media personality Ben Mulroney, was informed by Kensington Palace only a day or so before about the colours the duchess would be wearing on the trip.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are in Canada with their children for a royal visit until Saturday. They landed in Victoria, B.C., last Saturday afternoon.
Dunlap, who doesn’t own a vehicle, got up at 5 a.m. Friday to brush and “perk up” the felt hats prior to boxing them up for travel. Her friends at an Enterprise car rental location came through with a vehicle and she hit the road.
“I could not have delivered the hats on time if they weren’t so awesome. I drove like Jason Bourne and got to 24 Sussex Drive on Friday afternoon. I handed over my hats to a lovely lady named Sandra at the gate.”
The Ingrid hat, made on an authentic 1940s hat block, which retails for $328, is a personal favourite of Dunlap’s and is her best-selling silhouette. Grégoire Trudeau wore the flattering bordeaux-coloured hat while greeting the royals at the airport in Victoria on Saturday.
“The nice thing about the Ingrid is the asymmetrical brim. It has a real allure and panache that lends itself well to being worn dressy or casual. I love the angle she wore it at, too. She has a great sense of style and I could not have asked for a better brand ambassador.”
While this particular hat was untrimmed, Dunlap often adds embellishments, including felt or leather feathers, felt maple leaves and porcupine quill trim.
The busy milliner, who grew up in the Ottawa Valley near Plantagenet and moved to Ottawa at age 17, allowed herself a day to bask in well wishes from friends and family, and positive press, including Britain’s Telegraph newspaper.
Dunlap has since returned to her workbench to prepare for upcoming Christmas shows, including the Signatures Show in Ottawa, Nov. 9 to 13.
“I am so grateful that Jessica reached out to me, and very lucky that I had some suitable options on hand. What a thrill to be able to participate in the royal visit. Hopefully this helps bring more local ladies to the shop and encourages them to try some hats on.”