BEADING inside a hat was an unusual feature of some of this year's millinery entrants at the Royal Melbourne Show.
But it's a trend millinery judge Paris Kyne hopes won't catch on.
"I'd never seen that before in my life," Paris says. "It must be uncomfortable on the head and, as a milliner, you always want to keep the hat's weight down."
Paris, a 20-year veteran of the trade who has a boutique at Melbourne's Toorak, says there was some outstanding workmanship in the 60 hats he scrutinised, with quality up on past years.
"It's the love that goes into the pieces that make them so amazing," Paris says.
He describes judging the winter, formal and racewear categories as "intense".
"It's completely different to fashion on the fields at the races, where you have a glass of champagne in your hand," he says. "Here you look at the construction underneath the headband, how much glue there is . . . you examine every piece. It's about absolute quality of workmanship."
Growing up in Sale, Victoria, Paris is no stranger to show competition.
"I used to enter the sculpture sections at the local shows and I've still got the ribbons somewhere," he says.
