Reviving The Boudoir Cap

Bringing the Boudoir Cap Back, the House of Hats Way

At The House Of Hats, Antique fashion has never been something to admire from a distance.

For over two decades, our work has been guided by a love of timeworn beauty — lace softened by age, hand-finished details, silhouettes shaped by another era. These are the pieces that whisper rather than shout. The ones that carry history in their threads. The ones that feel alive.

It was only natural that the boudoir cap would find its way home here.

Once an essential part of a woman’s private wardrobe, the boudoir cap belonged to the intimate rituals of everyday life. Worn in bedrooms and dressing rooms, it was crafted from lace, silk, crochet, and chiffon — practical in purpose, poetic in presence. It existed beyond trends, created not to be seen, but to be felt.

Our love of antique fashion is what drew us back to this forgotten piece and our inspiration began the moment we found an original 1920s boudoir cap—so delicate and full of feminine charm.

That’s how our reimagined boudoir caps were born.

Antique Spirit, Modern Wearability

At The House of Hats, we reimagine the boudoir cap with a modern sensibility — preserving its romance while making it effortlessly wearable for today. Each cap is handcrafted using antique and vintage laces, ribbons and flowers chosen for their softness, irregularity, and quiet character. No two are ever the same.

The silhouettes are light, draped, and unstructured. Designed to sit comfortably on the head, they feel natural rather than precious — something you reach for instinctively, not something you save.

These boudoir caps are made to be lived in.

Wear one in the morning while the house is still quiet. Slip it on with a floaty dress, a silk slip, or unexpectedly with jeans and a knit. Let antique lace become part of your everyday wardrobe — not as costume, but as comfort.

Romance, Reclaimed

As dreamy, antique-inspired fashion returns — lace, softness, and slow beauty finding their way back into modern wardrobes — the boudoir cap becomes a quiet symbol of this shift. A reminder that femininity does not need an occasion, and beauty does not need permission.

By bringing back the boudoir cap in our own wearable way, The House of Hats invites antique fashion out of the past and into the present — where it belongs.

Because the most enduring kind of elegance is the kind you carry with you — softly, daily, and entirely your own.

Lace headwear trends are making waves in 2026, making the Edwardian and antique lace fashion revival more relevant and on-trend than ever

We invite you to explore our boudoir cap collection, thoughtfully handcrafted from antique lace and designed for modern wear.

Shop our collection of Boudoir caps now..

Our ‘ ROSEBUD ‘ Lace Boudoir Cap

Our ‘ LACE SERENITY ‘ Lace Cp

It's Our 18th Birthday....

The House Of Hats just celebrated it’s 18th Birthday,

Never in my wildest dreams would I believe that i would have a successful business that I created from dust, let alone the journey The House Of Hats has had in it's 18 years.
From fashion editorials, tv shows and celebrities wearing my creations and two shops and a Showroom later, it's been a ride.
Fast forward 18 years and in the most beautiful showroom of my dreams that I created I can truly say that i'm blessed.
I absolutely love what I do and they say if you love what you do , you never work a day in your life...
Thank you to everyone who has supported my dream along the way, you don't go unrecognised, to all my amazing clients past & present.
I'm so excited to what the future holds for The House Of Hats!!
Heres to the dreams that come reality and to the future that holds endless possibilities.✨

Your Milliner

ilana

BY THE SEASIDE - Our SS23/24 Collection

The House Of Hats Newest Collection….’ BY THE SEASIDE ‘ is here just in time for summer.. Step into a world of timeless charm and elegance.

Get ready to elevate your summer style with The House of Hats latest collection of stunning handcrafted hats!

Made from only the finest material and inspired by the timeless fashion of the 1930s our new collection is the perfect addition to your summer wardrobe.

Offering nine new original handcrafted styles exclusive to our brand each delicate piece has been expertly handcrafted in our Sydney Studio by renowned Milliner Ilana Meilak, ensuring that every hat is of the highest quality and designed to last.

We’ve added our signature style of adding vintage trims and buckles to this collection to keep it authentic to the era.

Whether you’ve looking for a stylist for a day at the beach, a chic addition to your summer outfit or simply want to make a statement at your next event, our new collection has something for everyone.

So why wait? head over to our shop to view tghe full collection or pop into our Sydney Showroom to try them all on in person.

Trust us, you wont be disappointed…..

ilana is wearing our AHOY MINI BOATER in French Navy

Watch our ‘ BY THE SEASIDE Campaign Video to view the Collection

SEASONS IN TIME - New Women's Winter Hat Collection

BABY IT’S COLD OUTSIDE …. Winter is here and lucky for you we have you covered !! with our newest women’s hat collection.

The House Of Hats has some amazing new Winter Style Hats in our Online shop to keeps you warm and looking fabulous all winter long.

Our Newest collection of Vintage Inspired hats inspired by the season in times of different eras from the 1920s- 1960s

We have four new hat designs available in luxurious fur felt in Winter shades, such as Forest, Smoke, Caramel and Ebony.

Like our ‘ Velvet Royale ‘ Pill box hat inspired by the 1940s and the glamour, a perfect after 5 cocktail hat worn tilted on the side slight forward or can be worn on the back of the head for a more 60s feel, so versatile the choice is yours !

Our ‘ Baby it’s Cold Outside’ Fur Felt turban is a 60s dream hat, perfect for everyday to keep your head warm, this classic style will be your winter staple hat.

Our ‘ Season’s Fur Felt Beret for the beret lovers out there, the perfect side that sits elegantly on the side of the head for a true french parisenne style.

Our ‘ Time After Time’ Tilt hat will transform you back to the late 1930s , teamed with a felt art deco hat pin, you will defiantly turn heads with this hat.

And last but not least our ‘ Doves’ cloche hat , inspired by the 1920s in the perfect dove grey for all you cloche lovers out there.

These are all available Ready to ship now in our Online Hat Shop or can be custom made in any colour you choose,

Stay Warm and Fabulous….

Our ‘ VELVET ROYALE ‘ Tilt hat is a luxurious hat perfect for after five.

Hand made on a vintage hat blocked and covered in the most beautiful vintage gold flocked velvet , and lined in black satin and vintage gold petersham ribbon.

Attaches to the head with two comb and some millinery elastic.

Wear our ‘ VELVET ROYALE ‘ Tilted on the side or on the back of your head.

The perfect finishing touch to any cocktail outfit or any occasion.

Our ‘ BABY IT’S COLD OUTSIDE ‘ Turban is the perfect winter hat to wear everyday.

Hand blocked on an original 1960s wooden hat block into the most perfect turban hat

that sits snug onto your head for that cold winter days..add your favourite winter coat and your ready to go…

Available now in Forest but can be made to order in other colours.

Our ‘ TIME AFTER TIME ‘ Tilt Hat in the most beautiful soft caramel colour perfect for winter.

Hand blocked on a vintage wooden block into the perfect 40s style tilt hat that is worn on the side of the head,

Finished with a vintage tortoise shell buckle on the back and a handmade felt hat pin in caramel and brown.

This hat is one size and has a comb on the inside to attach to the head, and also the hat pin to secure.

Our ‘ SEASONS ‘ felt beret is a classic style that can be worn everyday to dress up any outfit.

Hand blocked on a vintage wooden block from the most luxurious fur felt in a smoke grey into the perfect beret that sits effortlessly on the side of the head.

Our DOVE Cloche is a Beautiful 1920s vintage style cloche made from the highest quality fur felt in a dove grey colour way and is hand blocked on an antique wooden hat block
using traditional millinery techniques and meticulously sculptured into the perfect everyday cloche hat.

Designed to fit snug and close fitting onto the head and coming down longer on the side.

Delicately finished with an original 1920s celluloid buckle in yellow & white with rhinestones with a matching dove grey grosgrain ribbon around the crown featuring matching hand stitched yellow thread

We hope you all enjoy our new hat collection all available in our online shop & Sydney Hat Shop/Showroom

All our hats are handmade in our Sydney hat studio and are 100% Australian made using the highest quality locally sourced materials.

Thank you for supporting our small business & don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter to keep up to date with our New Arrivals, sales and news.

Much Love…

Your Milliner

Ilana x

NEW ARRIVALS - Our Rhinestone Hair Barrett & Brooch

TWO HEARTS - Black Felt Two Hearts Rhinestone Hair Barrette

New to our shop is this super glamorous Black Felt hand cut double heart hair clip , featuring a rhinestone trim

Vintage inspired and oh so old Hollywood …perfect with a vintage hair style or just to bling up an outfit .

Available now to purchase in our online boutique

ARROW - Black Felt Rhinestone Arrow Brooch

Our ‘ ARROW ‘ Brooch is a unisex brooch handmade from luxurious velour felt

and hand cut into the perfect arrows shape with Sparkling Rhinestones.

Silver Metal pin in the back to attach it to your hat or jacket.

Perfect for a groom or a special event.

RODNEY MODELLING OUR ‘ ARROW ‘ RHINESTONE BROOCH

MERRY CHRISTMAS From The House Of Hats

Just wanted to wish you all a very Merry Christmas , Wow can you believe how fast has this year gone.
We've had a super busy year creating our new Sydney showroom and meeting some amazing new clients and existing ones.
We have some new arrivals just in time for the party season and lots more coming early next year so stay turned.
We are also now offering hat repairs and restorations so if you have a hat that needs so love you can send it our way to bring it back to life.
Thank you to every one of you who supports our small business it means the world to us, we are so proud to be Australian made & owned.
We are so looking forward to you all visiting our new showroom in 2023 , we have so many ideas in the works for the year ahead so it's going to be a fantastic year..

Wishing you all a very Safe  Merry Christmas & a Happy new year !!! 
Love your Milliner ..

See you all in 2023 !!

ilana x

One of my favourite Christmas Songs - Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Gift Cards are now available to purchase

ONCE BITTEN...The House Of Hats New Halloween Collection 2022

October is finally here and you know what that means, yes you guessed it...HALLOWEEN.
If your anything like me, you count down the month's till Halloween and prepare a costume just to get your spook on.
Well i've been super prepared this year and have made an entire collection dedicated to the dark side.
I'm so excited to introduce to you our latest collection for halloween
' ONCE BITTEN ' inspired by all things Victorian gothic.

This collection is going to knock your socks off, I'm very proud of it and i hope you love it as much as I do.

Ever since I was a child i've always been fascinated with the Victorian era, the fashion , the Victorian houses ,the jewellery and everything else.
I always dreamed of owning an victorian bustle dress and hat of course hoping I could wear it and somehow  time travel back to that time, so i've conjured up some of that time in this collection along with my love of all things vampires , witches , New Orleans & all the old haunted Mansions.
 So here it is and you all get the honour of previewing it first. 

We have seven new designs in this collection.
Introducing , our ' LA BELLE ' Hat which screams the Victorian Bustle era with her striped sash bow and face veiling.

 Our ' GRACE ' hood hats made of the most luxurious velvet and detailed with vintage rare clasps .

Our ' SPELLBOUND ' Velvet turbans with Rhinestone Spider brooches  and our ' ROSES OF RED  silk flower headpieces.

Our ' ONCE BITTEN ' Collection is perfect to bring out the dark goddess in you just in time for Halloween.

I hope you all enjoy this collection as much as I did creating it.
Head over to our online boutique to view the full collection.

Wishing you a very spooky season & happy Shopping 

Love Ilana

Your Milliner x

ilana wears our ‘ GRACE VELVET HOOD ‘ In Raven

ilana wears our ‘ROSES ARE RED ; Silk flower Headpiece

ilana wears our ‘ROSES ARE BLACK ‘ Silk Flower Headpiece

ilana wear our ‘GRACE ‘ Velvet Hood in Crimson

ilana wears our ‘SPELLBOUND ‘ Velvet Turban in Raven

ilana wears our ‘ SPELLBOUND ‘ Velvet Turban in Crimson

Now Introducing AFTERPAY

We are so excited to now be offering you 'AFTERPAY' as a payment option in our Online Store.
You can now make a purchase and Pay Later...Afterpay lets you buy something and pay for it in instalments
Just select the 'AFTERPAY ' Option in our checkout.

AFTERPAY ... HOW DOES IT WORK? 

AfterPay is the online payment method that allows you to pay for your online purchases after receiving them. You only pay for what you want to keep, and you will never have to pay in advance again.
you'll need to commit to making four fortnightly payments over eight weeks.
These payments are of equal value for each order and are interest-free. Convenient and secure!
Head over to our online store to purchase using Afterpay now !!

Head over to our Online Store to make a purchase using AFTERPAY now..