From the time I was a wee Pontani, I’ve been obsessed with glamorous headwear. First it was the wide brimmed sun hats on the all-singing, all-dancing chorus girls in the famed dock scene of Yankee Doodle Dandy, where gaggles of young starlets swayed to and fro’ singing of their love for the jockey Johnny Jones (James Cagney). On their heads were an array of the most dazzling head pieces one could imagine, swirls of black and white material, piles of plumage draped with rhinestone broaches, heavy trims and swoops of lace. It was, and still is, nothing short of mesmerizing to me. Then it was Carmen Miranda, a vision of shimmying perfection with a fruit basket, tower of Butterflies, or harvest bounty cornucopia balanced upon her perfectly coiffed head. In no time I was hooked; a headdress addict by age six.

Unable to purchase such stylish items in the retail marketplace of 1979, I was relegated to donning excessive headwear only on Halloween and during select Roman Catholic celebrations like Easter, Communion, and the time I Crowned the Blessed Mother. I must confess, I have no memory of the religious context of "Crowning the Blessed Mother", (sorry mom) all I know is that my communion dress got a repeat performance as well as the crystallized orange blossom head piece adorned with rhinestones and attached veil. I walked the church isle during a Sunday morning mass and placed a halo of fresh blossoms upon the head of a life-sized statue of the Blessed Mother as the legions of faithful Italian-Americans (also wearing veils) sang Ave Maria. I also recall that when we got home from church my sister Tara quickly put on her communion dress, snagged one of our dolls tiaras and insisted we gather in the yard to watch her version of the crowning as she reenacted the ceremony on our own statue of Mary, who watched over our back yard.

Fortunately, when I was 18, I landed my first job dancing professionally in New York as part of Dutch Weismann’s, one of the pioneer burlesque reviews of the 90s. A true speakeasy, we would rehearse daily in the producer’s apartment, which also doubled as the venue. Four nights a week, the long railroad apartment would fill with martini-sipping gents sporting fedoras, celebrities under cover, tattooed rock-a-billy fillies, and fashionistas barking Italian and downing Cosmopolitans. The daily rehearsals were a juggling act for the dancers. We would often be fitted for new costumes in between running dance combinations, drinking bottomless cups of coffee and smoking cigarettes out the window of the second floor walk up.

Each afternoon, the intoxicating scent of the glue gun would waft from just a few feet away as costume guru Tony Mirando whipped up creations that I’m certain made Edith Head’s heart skip a beat. I finally had headwear that fulfilled my lifelong MGM dreams! One of my favorites was a feathered Vegas showgirl fantasy number mounted on a gold helmet-type base that burst with hundreds of hot pink and red rhea feathers, with miles of plumage running down the back, a traditional and miraculous fruit headdress piled so high with shimmering apples, bananas and grapes, it seemed to defy gravity completely. Perhaps even more pass-outable was a white headdress that I wore for our "Temptations" routine. It had a sparkling, rhinestone encrusted, three-foot cigarette mounted on a huge fan of matchsticks, backed by three or four white coquet feather boas. The cigarette’s tip smoldered red glitter… it was unreal. I still think of it now, almost ten years later, wishing I had it to wear around the house!

From my years working with Tony, a brief stint in millinery school, and the trial and error experience of having made at least 200 headdresses, I have mastered the art of headdress construction. All it takes is a lil’ imagination, a dash of architectural design and patience!

Through letters and often after shows people are always asking me, "How do you make those headdresses?" With the increasing popularity of Burlesque and other vintage glamorous styles in entertainment, now, more than ever people need headdresses and I am more than happy to share my secrets with the world! So, whether you’re interested in a conservative floral spray to go with that vintage frock or a full on costume topper, you can make it if you try!

Project 1: Headdress

Makin' It Home