Two days at the blocking bench, taught by a working milliner in her Chipping Sodbury studio.
A felt hat making workshop in the Cotswolds is not a craft afternoon with a kit you assemble at a table. It is two days at a blocking bench, learning a trade that has barely changed in a hundred years, taught by a milliner who trained in the UK and in France and still works to commission every week.
Heather Norman runs her felt hat courses from her studio at 25 High Street, Chipping Sodbury, an easy trip from Bristol, Bath, Cheltenham and Swindon, and close enough to the Cotswolds itself to make a day or weekend of it.
What You Actually Learn
Felt hat making is a two-day process, and the course is built around exactly that rhythm.
You will look at the types of felt used in traditional millinery, prepare it, then soak and stiffen it before blocking it over a wooden hat block, sometimes two blocks if your design has a separate crown and brim. Once blocked into shape, the felt needs time to dry fully, usually overnight.
This is where the hat becomes a hat: trimming the shape once it comes off the block, wiring and finishing the brim edge, inserting an inner headband for fit, adding a crown band, and choosing whatever final touches make the piece yours.
"You're not just decorating a shape someone else made. You're taking a flat piece of felt and building the shape yourself, over a block I've used for years. That's the part people don't expect, how physical it actually is."
Heather Norman, Milliner
Two Ways to Learn
Not everyone learns the same way, so the felt courses come in two formats.
One-to-One Tuition
A private, two-day course built entirely around your design and your schedule. The most direct route to a finished felt hat or headpiece, worked entirely with Heather at the bench. Contact Heather to discuss your design and fees.
Evening Course
Spreads the same traditional techniques over several weeks for anyone fitting millinery around a working week. A weekly booklet, all materials and specialist equipment are provided, paced around what home and work life can accommodate.
If a full felt hat feels like a bigger first step than you want, Heather also runs a one-day fascinator course (£60pp, 10am to 3pm) using pre-blocked bases, feathers, crin and ribbon, a good taster of millinery for a hen party or a one-off treat, without the two-day commitment.
Full details of all three formats, including how to book, are on the Workshops page.
Why Learn With Heather Norman
Millinery is a trade you learn from someone who still does it for a living. Heather's own training took place in the UK and in France, including a week spent working alongside milliner and designer Tracy Chaplin refining free-form sculptural techniques, and she is a member of the British Millinery Association. Her commissioned work has been worn at Royal Ascot and Cheltenham Races, and on screen in the television drama Sanditon.
That is the standard the workshops are taught to. You are not learning a simplified version of millinery for beginners, you are learning the same blocking, wiring and finishing techniques used on every couture commission that leaves the studio. If you want the fuller story of that training, it is worth a read: Time in France with Milliner & Designer Tracy Chaplin and Inside the Craft: A Visit to the Guy Morse Brown Hat Block Workshop, which covers the hand-turned wooden blocks used on every felt course.
A Cotswolds Studio Worth the Trip
The studio sits on the high street of Chipping Sodbury, a Cotswold market town with independent shops, places to eat and free parking, making a workshop day easy to combine with a proper day out. Students regularly travel in from across the region, and if you are weighing up the distance, Heather's studio also serves clients across several nearby areas for bespoke commissions:
If you already know Heather's work from a commission or a hat hire visit, the workshop is a chance to see the process from the other side of the bench.
What's Included
All felt, sinamay, trims and specialist equipment for your course
Use of Heather's wooden hat blocks
A booklet to record techniques as you learn them
Refreshments and snacks throughout day courses
A finished, wearable piece that is entirely your own design
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does it take to learn to make a felt hat?
A felt hat is taught as a two-day process. Day one covers preparing and blocking the felt, which then needs to dry into shape overnight. Day two covers trimming, wiring and finishing. The one-to-one course runs over two days, while the evening course spreads the same stages across several weekly sessions.
Do I need experience to join a felt hat making workshop?
No. The courses are designed for complete beginners as well as anyone with some sewing or craft experience. You are guided through every stage, from preparing the felt to the final trim, and all techniques are explained as you go.
What's included in the price?
All felt, sinamay, trims and specialist equipment are included, along with use of Heather's wooden hat blocks and a booklet to record techniques for future reference. Refreshments are provided on day courses.
Can I do a one-to-one lesson instead of a group or evening course?
Yes. One-to-one tuition is available and is built entirely around your chosen design and your availability. Contact Heather directly to discuss dates, your design, and fees.
How far is the workshop from Bristol, Bath or Cheltenham?
The studio is in Chipping Sodbury, a Cotswolds market town within easy reach of Bristol, Bath, Cheltenham and Swindon, and many students combine a workshop day with time exploring the town itself.
Book Your Felt Hat Making Workshop
Whether you want a private two-day course built around your own design or a gentler evening course spread across the weeks that suit you, Heather will talk you through the options, dates and what to expect before you commit.
Heather Norman is a bespoke milliner and British Millinery Association member based in the heart of the Cotswolds, trained in the UK and France, with over ten years of experience creating handmade hats and teaching traditional millinery techniques. Her work has been worn at Royal Ascot, Cheltenham Races, and on screen in television drama.