Since its creation in 1936, Maison Michel has established itself as an essential reference in the world of Parisian millinery, collaborating with the greatest names in fashion.
Our workshops
Le 19M
Since March 2021, our craftsmen have been at work in Le 19M, a space dedicated to Métiers d'art. This space brings together milliners, hat makers and milliners, who perpetuate a unique know-how handed down from generation to generation.
Atelier Formier
Milliners carve hat shapes from wood, imagining new structures or reworking existing models to give birth to timeless, innovative creations.
Atelier Chapelier
Hatters master the art of molding and shaping materials such as felt and straw. Thanks to precise gestures and ancestral know-how, they transform raw materials into iconic pieces for the House.
Atelier Modiste
Modistes add the finishing touch to creations, working on decoration, finishing touches and hat ornamentation. Using traditional techniques and an acute sense of detail, they sublimate each piece to make it unique.
Savoir-Faire
Chapter 1 - The Felt
Chapter 1 - The Felt
Step into this exceptional atelier, where expert hands move busily to the sounds of the steam bell, primping brushes and tapping hammers. Step by step, the hatmaker sculpts the felt to create the Virginie. Signature piece of Maison Michel’s assertive style, the Virginie design is instantly recognizable thanks to its comma placed at the center of the crown and its pure and sophisticated lines.
Chapter 2 – The Sewn Straw
Chapter 2 – The Sewn Straw
Thanks to the expert hands of the milliners and the Weismann sewing machine, the reels of four tones hemp straw are spiral sewn and alternated to create the most audacious hat shapes. A combination of highly precise gestures made in the purest tradition of hat making, carefully handed down from generation to generation.
Chapter 3 – The Woven Straw
Chapter 3 – The Woven Straw
The natural woven straw is soaked, prepared, dried and then fixed onto a wooden block. It is manipulated many times by the expert hands of the hatter to give it its final shape, a hat with pure and timeless lines. Thanks to the delicate gestures of the milliners and the attention to detail, the straw hat is rendered sublime, revealing all the originality of this must-have piece.
Chapter 4 – The Turban
Chapter 4 – The Turban
Fabric stretching, drapery or even embellishment… So many delicate techniques mastered by our artisans throughout the decades. With their everlasting passion and attention to detail, milliners are able to craft refined yet ambitious pieces, starting from a simple piece of fabric.
Chapter 5 – Bridal Collection
Chapter 5 – Bridal Collection
Discover the poetic details and meticulous handiwork of the milliners on the Jackie creation, one of the 15 exceptional pieces of the bridal collection. With their everlasting passion and meticulousness, milliners reinterpret and embellish Maison Michel’s most iconic pieces to create magical memories. An invitation to enter the ateliers and discover the craftmanship secrets of a white felt pillbox, adorned with a diaphanous bow in tulle and a gold Maison Michel medallion. Jackie will stay by your side for a lifetime.
Chapter 6 - Fabric stretching
Chapter 6 - Fabric stretching
Like a protective and decorative second skin on a hat, fabric stretching is one of the House's emblematic skills. Whether it's tweed, leather or any other material such as silk or cotton, the art of stretching fabric lies in the meticulous gestures of our milliners to create a 3-dimensional volume with a flat fabric, perfectly matching the material to the structure of the hat already formed, limiting stitches to the point of making them invisible.
