Fashion Trends in Couture Headwear with International Maven of Millinery Jennifer Kofler, Owner of Vivian Blooms

Angela A
4 min readFeb 1, 2022

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Jennifer Kofler, Owner of Vivian Blooms, enables clients to celebrate life’s moments with fanciful headwear. Vivian Blooms helps clients, stylists and fellow designers find headwear for special events with an enchanting collection of handmade millinery filled with fun and whimsy for all ages. Explore the intricate detail, elements and seasonal trends that are captivating the attention of the world’s elite designers and stylists.

Blooming Trends in Event Headwear

Looking beyond the bare trees and winter beanies is a fantastical season celebrating flower blossoms, festive floral décor, and more importantly, the height of head-to-toe fashion for celebrated events around the country.

With the White House Easter Egg Roll in D.C., the Easter Parade in NYC on April 17th, the Central Park Conservatory Hat Luncheon, Hattitude for the Denver Center’s Women’s Voice Fund, Mothers’ Day, The Kentucky Derby Parties, garden parties, and 5-star hotel afternoon teas, Springtime wastes no time in fashion-forward events and attire. Millinery for special occasions helps to create an elevated atmosphere with style and whimsy.

Origins of Millinery

Throughout the fashion and entertainment industries, hats have been prevalent in demonstrating character, class, image, and setting the tone for the rest of the outfit.

According to HatTalk.com, “Hats have been worn for thousands of years. Initially, they were primarily used for military, religious or survival purposes. It wasn’t until the development of the fashion industry in the 18th century that millinery became a profession. The word milliner comes from the word Milan. In the Middle Ages, the Italian city was the hub of the world’s textile and fashion trade. Those making fashionable lady’s hats became associated with the city because of the materials they used.”

Kofler comments that “A hat is magical the moment someone puts it on their head, it changes how a person acts and feels. The hats are decorated with crystals, feathers and bows. Hats are a wonderful outward expression of a person’s inner truth and personality. They have the power to both enhance and transform the wearer. Amazingly versatile, hats can be a celebration of style, frivolity, and fun, conversely an acknowledgment of somber events. The millinery helps to create an elevated atmosphere for participants on many occasions. From weddings to funerals, headwear play’s role in the declaration of the event’s importance. Worn headpieces can be seen as a tangible reminder of life’s most momentous and significant events.”

Inspiration & Craftmanship

Vivian Blooms has taken center stage in the fashion world, from magazine covers to features in Fashion Avenue News, Voyage Denver, Urban Family, Race Day News, Hong Kong Press, and countless others. As an American ex-patriot herself, Kofler studied fashion trends worldwide throughout her various residencies overseas in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Guangzhou and Shanghai, China; and currently in the Middle East.

Kofler creates each flower using the finest natural fabrics of velvet, silk, and linen. With this process, the natural fiber is starched and then hung to dry. The flower petals are then cut out of the stiffened fabric. Each is then crafted by hand. The flowers are manipulated by heat, twisted and turned, then worked into arrangements and attached to the custom-made base.

If some of Vivian Blooms millinery looks good enough to eat, perhaps that is because Kofler didn’t start out as a milliner. Before she began designing and creating headpieces for Vivian Blooms, as a graduate of The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Kofler’s first creative job was in restaurants as a pastry chef in New York City for some years.

Vivian Blooms hand-made millinery has been heralded in London, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and the United States. The company has collaborated with Miss Victoria Regina to create the Mavens of Millinery, a Colorado-based collective of milliners creating outdoor Pop-Up Hat Shops in Denver 2020 and for the Kentucky Derby Parties of 2021. Vivian Blooms is currently planning for the Dubai World Cup in spring 2022, introducing the brand to new clients in the United Arab Emirates, and making a statement with creations that beguile and amuse.

“Be an original and be in Bloom.” — Kofler

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Angela A
Angela A

Written by Angela A

Author, TEDx Speaker, Independent Journalist

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