Big Easter Bonnet Brunch

Spring feels like the perfect time to get people together and be creative. Everyone is eager to celebrate the end of winter, put some color and sparkle back in their lives, and gear up for nice weather. In early March, I threw out the idea of making big, wearable-art hats (in the spirit of Catherine's Hat Parade in NOLA, NYC Easter Bonnet Festival, or Processional Arts’s Mad Hatters Parade) and wearing them to an Easter brunch. And lucky me, I have whimsical friends who agreed! I made a brunch reservation and planned two build days beforehand in case people needed supplies or help creating their vision. 

I made a fried egg and cherry pie hat for my partner and myself. They're made entirely with cardboard, newspaper, paper mache, and hot glue. We essentially picked those items because we had cute themed outfits we could wear with them. I was hoping the weather would have warmed up enough that we could gather in the tiny park next to the brunch restaurant to get hat photos. Unfortunately, when the day came, it snowed. Instead we just met up inside and it was so fun seeing what people made! My sister made a fabulous hat festooned with paper mache monstera leaves, one of my friends from derby made an incredible tinfoil wrapped UFO with lights and an alien, two other friends made hats from natural materials, and yet another had a bulbous cat head with flowing tulle. Twelve people in total!

To be honest, this was the most stressful event I've planned so far and it ended up affecting my enjoyment a bit. I think it's just a fact of life that planning is hard these days. I had to invite and keep people in the loop over both texts and three different apps. It was also made more difficult by needing a headcount so I could have an accurate reservation for the morning. Trying to get yays or nays was more difficult than I would have thought possible. In the end, I'm not sure if I would run this again. I still love the idea of a wearable art gathering but it would have to be a little more informal or I'd like to just attend rather than organize!