Why Michael Jackson offered to pay $37,000 for one of these hats

There are simple inexpensive hats that keep your head warm in winter and shield you from the summer sun. But there are also hats designed by some of the world’s most illustrious designers such as Sir Stephen Jones and Philip Treacy, both based in London, that command serious dosh.

The Ship by Philip Treacy caught the eye of singer Michael Jackson.Credit: Kai Cam Narin

These artistic creations can reach several thousands of dollars, or in the case of these milliners, pounds. It was reported in Colleen Egan’s book on Treacy that the singer Michael Jackson was prepared to part with $US25,000 ($37,000) for The Ship in 1995, a sculptural hat crowned with a model of a period sailing vessel.

According to Treacy, “I only had one of these hats, and even though I loved Michael Jackson, I just didn’t want it to go off to Neverland.”

Christine Barro, owner of Christine on Collins at the top of Collins Street, sells Treacy’s hats exclusively in Australia. In her plush and richly endowed boutique, which extends over two levels, there’s an extensive array of hats, many by Treacy.

Some of them hover around the $5000 mark, such as one trilby in a reptilian fabric. Barro purchased a number of Treacy’s hats for the Georges department store, located just a couple of blocks away, then priced considerably less.

“From what I recall, they were priced in the hundreds rather than in the thousands,” says Barro. As the Georges buyer for jewellery, bags and scarves, her role extended to purchasing designer hats – including items by Paris-based designer Monsieur Auguste Michel, who also created hats for Chanel.

Michel’s hats are still represented at Christine’s boutique, with an extensive range of soft gelato hues in pink, orange and peppermint green in either felt or raffia, and priced from $995 through to $1250. Others by Australian designer Tamasine Dale, who established her name in millinery in the mid-1980s, were also purchased by Barro when she was at Georges.

Decades later, Dale is now making waves again with her distinctive raffia hats, slightly evocative of the early 1960s. Priced at $995 at Christine’s, they are attracting a younger audience wanting to step out with elegance.

Those not up to spending that type of money on a hat may find the Laulhere berets, produced in the Brittany region of France, more accessible with their price tag of about $300.

Barro cites the late Isabella Blow, muse to Alexander McQueen, as being instrumental to both the rise of interest in and value of millinery. “Isabella discovered Philip Treacy. She had an incredible eye for spotting talent,” says Barro, who also saw Treacy’s formative years as being a clue to his later success, “with the only boy in school permitted to study sewing”.

Sarah Jessica Parker in Richard Quinn and Philip Treacy hat.Credit: Getty Images

For Roger Leong, senior curator at Sydney’s Powerhouse Museum, the name Treacy also holds a special place in his career. “I was the first curator in Australia to purchase Treacy’s hats in 1993 when I was working at the National Gallery of Australia,” says Leong.

“You very rarely see a hat by Stephen Jones or Philip Treacy come up for auction, and when they do, the bidding is extremely spirited,” he adds. While there are a number of hats by Treacy represented at the Powerhouse Museum, there are also historic and less well-known designers such as Neil Grigg and Henriette Lamotte, the latter coming from Paris and making her mark from the 1950s through to the ’70s.

“We also have a rare cabbage tree hat made from the palm leaves of the tree and dating from the 19th century,” says Leong, who wouldn’t try to place a monetary value on this piece.

For Leong and his co-curators, hats go well beyond being accessories. “You’re not just buying fashion. They’re often a sculpture and an important source of social history that encompasses style, art and design.”

Expert tips on how to save, invest and make the most of your money delivered to your inbox every Sunday. Sign up for our Real Money newsletter.