[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":11},["ShallowReactive",2],{"blog-post-hats-of-christmas-2014":3},{"_type":4,"body":5,"bodyHtml":6,"excerpt":5,"featuredImage":5,"publishedAt":7,"slug":8,"tags":9,"title":10},"blogPost",null,"This has been a Christmas season of hats. If I wasn't drawing them, I was wearing them. Hats this time of year are fun, because you can bung any old shiny thing on your head and it sort of works. Here's Ms Claus, with what might be cherries, Christmas balls, holly berries, or the skewered noses of Rudolphs past. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/ms_claus_zpsc4498fa7-a79527fbae.gif\">\\r\n\\r\nI don't really 'make' hats, I sort of assemble them from slightly more sedate hats from secondhand shops and whatever bits and bobs I can rummage up. My friend \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/InklingPress\">Helen Boyle\u003C/a> (who edits WRD children's book magazine) was meeting up for fancy Afternoon Tea with \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/dubbiek\">Damian Kelleher\u003C/a> and me, and said she didn't have a good hat to wear, so I assembled her this mint-green one:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/sarah_helen_hats_zps7ccc3db7-f652c431e4.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nA little closer look; isn't that bird a cutie? I ordered a big lot of birds off the Internet, and they feature in most of this season's hats. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/green_hat_zps7dc1fc2f-fa35c83593.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003C!--more Click here for more under the cut!-->\\r\nDamian looked incredibly swish in it.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/damian_hat_zpsf37dd240-f6985983bf.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThis red one's a gift from my mother; she bought it at the Bellevue Arts & Crafts Fair, near Seattle. I wore it to the Camberwell art college MA illustration Christmas party, and it was great seeing my course leader from art school, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.arts.ac.uk/research/research-staff/a-z/janet-woolley/\">Janet Woolley\u003C/a>. She was a brilliant teacher, and while we were studying, we had a visiting lecture from \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/simoneliadraws\">Simone Lia\u003C/a>, here on the left. Simone makes amazing comics and hers were some of the first I saw that inspired me to make my own. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/simone_jan_sarah_zps6f4c7edb-e93cc1f228.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n\u003Ca href=\"http://thehackneyanimator.wordpress.com/\">Mark Oliver\u003C/a> (who studied with me), \u003Ca href=\"http://www.marklongillustration.co.uk/\">Mark Long\u003C/a>, who started just after I left, and Jan's daughter, Jasmine Woolley-Butler.\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/camberwell_xmas14_zps7ca99c7c-538ba1f773.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOkay, this hat was for visiting Scholastic. Actually, it was a hat I've worn before, but I added the bird and some pompoms. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/scholastic_hat_zps91742b46-21d87a7357.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n...And made videos. You can see \u003Ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL86ZQcsO5rnH-yTZZ_EiFMvvreExQeH9A\">all our videos here\u003C/a>, several Scholastic authors (including Julia Donaldson and Liz Pichon) answering questions on our favourite things about Christmas. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Clj-embed id=\"2953\"/>\\r\n\\r\nNow it was awfully nice of publisher Nosy Crow to invite me to their party, particularly considering they don't publish me. They do one of the most fun parties, it's very sparkly. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/nosy_crow_sparkles_zps2cb7bf60-c1105f6bcb.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThis started out as an all-white hat that looked very wedding-ish, but I redecorated it with some long feathers I found at Deptford market and a flashing giftbox from Poundland. (It's the first time my hat's had actual LIGHTS, which was rather exciting.) Here I am with \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/PhilipArdagh\">Philip Ardagh\u003C/a>:\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/sarah_ardagh_nosycrow_zps282dddf5-c30844da4f.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nActually, I think I like it better in black and white. (Stuart took this photo.)\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/sarah_mcintyre_hat_dec14_bw_zps17a083ab-5074d0ac1b.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nHa ha, people were even wearing giant rodents on their head (designed by Axel Sheffler, in the blue jumper). \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/axel_heads_zps7acc7ac6-aee40c8c7f.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nThis last hat was verging on ugly, but that was okay because...\\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/badsexawards_hat_zps79caed91-91b16394a4.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\n...I wore it to the Literary Review's \u003Ca href=\"http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/dec/03/ben-okri-wins-bad-sex-award-rocket-the-age-of-magic\">Bad Sex in Fiction Award\u003C/a> ceremony. I'd never been to that one before, but there were some familiar faces, including \u003Ca href=\"http://philipwomack.blogspot.co.uk/\">Philip Womack\u003C/a>, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.joriddell.net/\">Jo Riddell\u003C/a>, her husband \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/chrisriddell50\">Chris Riddell\u003C/a>, and \u003Ca href=\"https://twitter.com/megrosoff\">Meg Rosoff\u003C/a>. \\r\n\\r\n\u003Cimg src=\"https://images.jabberworks.co.uk/lj/badsexawards14_zps4229a96d-b9d99d1f53.jpg\">\\r\n\\r\nOh, I should mention, the Guardian did a great interview with Chris Riddell today, \u003Ca href=\"http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/dec/19/chris-riddell-illustrator-neil-gaiman-jk-rowling-russell-brand-books-interview\">go check it out\u003C/a>. \\r\n\\r\nAnd I'm trying to remember which hats I have by keeping track of them on a Pinterest page, so do feel free to go over and \u003Ca href=\"http://www.pinterest.com/mcintyre1000/my-hats/\">have a peek\u003C/a>.","2014-12-21T00:30:00.000Z","hats-of-christmas-2014",[],"hats of christmas 2014",1776628727083]