EQUALITY, DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

“Diversity of all kinds enriches creative practice and we recognise the moral, economic and social reasons to make diversity, inclusion and equality central to our work.” Crafts Council

​

We are committed to:

To developing, maintaining and supporting a culture of equality, diversity and inclusion, which promotes equality of fairness, dignity and respect for everyone we work with.

We want to eliminate all discrimination, to everyone we work with, and are committed to making sure there is no unjustified discrimination in our processes and actions.

We seek to enable all workshop participants to achieve their full potential in an environment characterised by equality of respect and opportunity.

We seek to remove barriers and provide access to our works and workshops as easily as possible. Online access to our workshops, products and services - is being built upon with a new range of online courses being offered soon and strengthening of the presentation of products in a more inclusive manner. We ship worldwide.

​

STAFF

Sally works mostly on her own, or with assistance from other Scottish-based highly skilled freelance makers and sewers when needed and all are paid well for their work. All of her hats are hand-made preserving and mastering traditional skills handed down through the generations.

By ordering from Sally - you are helping to support a small independent business, and by working with other freelancers Sally is helping to support other independent makers, their skills and their life choices.

​

FABRICS & MATERIALS

We source as many of the materials we use locally if we can, to support other local businesses and lessen the environmental impact of shipping, but so many materials used in millinery simply aren’t manufactured in the UK.

​

FABRICS – many of the fabrics and haberdashery we use are sourced locally, supporting other local and UK-based businesses. We are currently working on a new collection incorporating Scottish heritage fabrics such as Harris Tweed and waxed cotton, using zero-waste and low waste cutting methods.

​

SILKS - these are sourced from suppliers within the UK.

​

LINEN - this is sourced from suppliers within the UK.

​

WOOLFELT - a smooth quality felt which is hard-wearing and suitable for everyday wear. It is made from sheep's wool which is shorn from the sheep without harm to the animals, this material is mostly made in the USA, Europe and Australia (we do not manufacture millinery felt in the UK). Wool is a natural, breathable and biodegradable fibre. We offer this as alternative to peachbloom velour for all of our felt hats - please ask for further details.

​

PEACHBLOOM VELOUR FELT - is a luxuriously soft premium felt with a velvety surface which is made from rabbit hair, this material is mostly made in Europe. The rabbit hair is a by-product of the food industry.

​

SINAMAY - a natural straw (plant fibre) fabric made from a plant similar to the banana plant, most sinamay is made by small producers in the Philippines - we buy Fairtrade sinamay wherever possible (according to availability).

​

PANAMA STRAW - a natural straw (plant fibre), our supplier works closely with the weavers in Ecuador to ensure they are paid a fair price for their products.

​

FEATHERS - we use only feathers from game birds, water birds or birds farmed for food, and do not use 'exotic' feathers unless it can be proved that these have been naturally molted. We are currently working with a partner to process and use naturally molted feathers - please watch this space for updates.

​

To learn more about the materials we use - please look at the MATERIALS section.

​

​ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY

We make every effort to exercise sustainability as much as we can.

​

STOCK - we do not produce huge quantities of stock or overstock, we have a good selection of hats and headpieces in the studio available to buy, but most of what we do is making pieces to order which minimizes waste.

​

DYES - we use water based dyes, and use the minimum amount of dye and water possible. We do not do commercial dyeing - we simply dye fabrics and feathers as needed in small quantities for orders.

​

HATBOXES – our hatboxes are made in the UK from acid-free paper/card fibre produced in the UK, these are re-useable, recyclable and biodegradable.

​

PACKAGING – the new packing boxes we used are made from 75% recycled material, and are manufactured in the UK, these are re-useable, recyclable and biodegradable, we also re-use packing boxes where we can. 

We use acid-free, chlorine-free tissue to pack our hats, this is re-useable, recyclable and biodegradable. 

Packing ‘peanuts/quavers’ – we use packing peanuts made from biodegradable starch, they are reusable, and if not needed can be dissolved in water with low impact on the environment.

​

WASTE – We practice zero-waste and low waste cutting methods wherever possible. Large 'offcuts' are used for making trimmings, and we donate all unusable fabric and materials left-overs to local community craft projects, and primary and/or secondary schools for children and young people to use in art and craft projects.

​

REPAIRS & RE-TRIMS - our hats are made from high quality materials that will last you for years. Most are made from natural fibres which are biodegradable. If you'd like your hat refreshed, please see the RE-TRIM & REPAIR section for more information.

​

All other materials, including paper, tissue are donated to our studio neighbours to be re-used for packing ceramics, or are recycled locally wherever possible.

​

CHARITABLE GIVING

15% of the profits from the sales of every design in the 'SOLIS' CASUAL STRAW HATS (sunwear) collection is being donated by us to THE BRITISH SKIN FOUNDATION who fund research into skin cancer and other skin conditions. One collated donation is being made each year.

 

If you have any queries - please don't hesitate to ask.