SWEET AND SAWA
SAWA NAKAZAWA’S NEW LINE OF WHIMSICALLY SURREAL HATS DRAWS ON EVERYTHING FROM THE ANIMAL WORLD TO AUDREY HEPBURN FOR INSPIRATION.
Byline: Lizzy Epstein
Six years ago, when Sawa Nakazawa was attending Bunka Fashion College in her native Tokyo, she had an experience that changed her life.
The design student came across the elaborate creations of Stephen Jones, the English milliner who counts Christian Dior, John Galliano and Boy George among his clients. “I was so impressed,” said Nakazawa, who attended the same prestigious school as Kenzo and Yohji Yamamoto. “It was like, ‘This is my life’s job.”‘
Nakazawa decided she had to work for Jones. She sent a package with photographs of her work. A few months later, Jones replied with an invitation to London. Nakazawa was ecstatic. But there was a hitch: Her english was more than a little rocky.
“I didn’t know how to say ‘scissors.’ But I really wanted the job, so I lied and said I speak fluent English, and they sent me over there and I started working.” Nakazawa managed to keep her secret as she quietly picked up the new language. “Everybody [there] asked me, ‘What happened?”‘ laughed Nakazawa. “They said, ‘At first you were so quiet and now you won’t stop talking.”‘
Nakazawa left Jones three years later, still mad for hats, but interested in learning about prosthetic makeup. “I really wanted to learn how to make a monster mask. I didn’t want to become a makeup artist; I just wanted to use the idea for making hats.”
Where better to learn the art (or artifice) of special effects than Hollywood? The fearless traveler again relocated, with plans to stay only for a few months. Instead, she fell in love, got married and set up shop.
In the three years since, she has become a well-kept secret among stylists here, with her creations appearing on the covers of hipster rags such as Paper and the now-defunct Glue, and on the famous noggins of Milla Jovovich and Steven Tyler. The line is available at the Echo Park boutique Show Pony.
Nakazawa produces two collections a year, chosing to concentrate on elaborate one-off designs instead of mass producing less-complicated “staples.” She generates about a dozen hats per collection, producing about one hat a week.
Her most recent collection, which wholesales from $50 to $900, showcases what she calls “a crazy sense of imagination.”
Each hat is given a whimsical name. “Animaling” is a red, blue and green plaid bucket hat with ears on the sides. “Booty Kitty” is a giraffe-printed, poofy beret with a skinny tail that sticks straight out of the top. “102nd Fish” resembles a miniature yarmulke and is festooned with a life-size, white-and-black polkadotted fish and black netting that partially covers the face.
Nakazawa’s zany repertoire extends beyond critters. “Hana” is a Holly Golightly-inspired, wide-brimmed black hat with enormous white-felt flowers. “797” is a light blue vinyl headband with sky blue vinyl and white feather “turbo jets” resting above each ear.
And the piece de resistance: “Go Goes,” a pink and purple replica of a Volkswagen bug, complete with headlights, hood ornament and side-view mirrors. Of course, the real thing doesn’t come with Nakazawa’s delicate black face netting.
“Everyone asks me about inspiration, but it’s everything. When I walk down the street, I just find something and it clicks in my mind.” Nakazawa extends her all-encompassing approach down to the materials. “You can use anything,” grinned Nakazawa. “Even macaroni.”