A look at Elmira Exclusive Hats

Elmira's designs are characteristic for their extravagant style. Elmira likes unique headwear, combining sophisticated modern techniques with classic old fashion millinery methods and bringing it into style.

Milliner Elmira de Raaf is the founder and designer at Elmira Exclusive Hats. Elmira started her artistic fashion career in Russia. She was always drawn to fashion, always wanted to know what is fashionable for the season, and what was new, and participated in various fashion shows and fashion events.

In 1996 Elmira moved to Holland where she continued her love for fashion. Elmira studied at the Fashion Academy in Rotterdam as a stylist and designer for apparel, followed classes at Wilt Holthuis (Crea 2000) where she learned all patterns, sewing, and couture techniques.

Passion for fashion and hats resorted Elmira to study the art of millinery so she decided to become a milliner-designer. After following various courses by different Dutch and English milliners such as Marianne Jongkind, Berry Rutjes, and Sussi Hopkins she realized she was ready to start her own millinery company.

In August 2003 Elmira opened her millinery design studio in Diemen (close to Amsterdam), The Netherlands where she designed hats for many Dutch celebrities, weddings, and also for the Dutch Queen.

From elegant hand-blocked hats to adventurous sculptural headpieces, Elmira's designs are characteristic of their extravagant style. Elmira likes unique headwear, combining sophisticated modern techniques with classic old fashion millinery methods and bringing it into style.

Elmira likes to work with all different types of fabrics and materials like wool, felts, straw, silk, satin, beads, stones, flowers, leather, feathers, veiling, tulle, trims, and much more where most of the materials are from France, Italy and the United Kingdom.