We’re looking forward to introducing you to Sylvia Stanley. Check out our conversation below.
Sylvia, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: What makes you lose track of time—and find yourself again?
I lose track of time when I’m working on a new hat creation. Unlike most designers, I don’t sketch or preplan my hats. The design comes directly from my imagination…I design as I go. So, consequently. I forget everything around me. I imagine a beautiful woman wearing my chapeau in a picturesque garden setting or in a sophisticated mise-en-sine. When the hat is completed, I feel a profound satisfaction knowing that it is truly designed by me.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hello, everyone.
My name is Sylvia Stanley and I’m a self-taught milliner. Aside from one class I took at JUDITH M MILLINERY SUPPLY to learn how to work with sinnamay which is a fine sheer straw, I taught myself how to.make beautiful Easter, Kentucky Derby and lovely fascinators. It has been an interesting journey full of surprises and joy to say the least.
I started making hats just for myself because I couldn’t find anything unusual and different from what was in the department stores. But, truthfully. I just wanted to win some of the hat contests that were happening at the KENTUCKY DERBY parties.
My first hat DID win! So, I made another one, a red rose.fascinator and that one won, too. Someone.saw it on FACEBOOK and wanted to purchase it. So, I made another red rose hat and sent it to California.
That’s how it all started. I made little fascinators just for fun. Then I created a label. HATS BY GIGI XOXO, for my creations and sold some on FACEBOOK and Ebay.
In the late summer of 2023, I was approached by the St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts to do a showcase of my creations in the spring of 2024. What an honor and pleasure that was! And what an honor to be asked again for Spring, 2026! Now, my hats have been in numerous fashion shows and boutiques.
In 2012, prior to all this, I started a hat club…GIGIS CHAPEAU CLUB to meet ladies who loved hats as much as I do. It has been a great success and I now have 40 members. We have monthly themed luncheons at various restaurants throughout the city and beyond. We just love to show off our hats!
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
This is such an interesting question that I felt I had to answer it. I think my maternal grandparents, Inez and Eusebio, saw me clearly before I was able to see myself, especially my grandmother . When I was as young as 10 years old, my grandparents had such faith in me! They asked me to do things for them that they couldn’t because they did not speak English clearly. My grandmother would ask me to order things for her in the catalogs they received…a television, undergarments, home accessories…whatever it was, I ordered it. She also asked me to take her downtown shopping which involved buses and bus transfers when I was a young girl with no experience in such things. When I was 13, she asked me to take her to visit her relatives in Chicago. We lived in Fort Wayne, IN and it wasn’t terribly far so we went and I was her guide! At 15, Lita, as we called her, asked me to take her to see her doctor who was located downtown but we lived in the country, so I got in our family car and drove her to the doctor’s office! I didn’t have a drivers license yet I drove with perfect clarity and ease. I just did these things and more with nary a thought of saying no and with perfect confidence! And the best part, was that they both had complete confidence in me and my capabilities. And by the way, so did my parents.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
What I would say to my younger self is to not worry! It’ll all work out and God’s got your back!
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
The project that is nearest and dearest to me is my GIGIS CHAPEAU CLUB. I started my hat club in June of 2012 with only 5 ladies attending my first luncheon. Originally started to meet and make new friends, it has become a place where my members meet for comradery, stimulating conversations and a place to show off our fashion savviness. Some of my “GIGIS”, as the members are known, have been with me since 2012. We have shared many milestones and many heartaches together. That is the beauty of my club…a deep sense of belonging, a refuge, if you will. We have, in the past, done some philanthropic work which brought much joy to our hearts. We donated Easter bonnets and knitted caps for the children at JOHN HOPKINS ALL CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL for several years until the hospital no longer needed them. Since then, we have not found a new project to work on but are always looking.
My club gives these beautiful, accomplished women a place to go where they can just relax and have fun…a respite from their many social responsibilities. I think I have accomplished what Emily Dickinson wrote in her poem; “IF I CAN STOP ONE HEART FROM BREAKING, I SHALL NOT LIVE IN VAIN. IF I CAN EASE ONE LIFE THE ACHING, OR COOL ONE PAIN OR HELP ONE FAINTING ROBIN UNTO HIS NEST AGAIN, I SHALL NOT LIVE IN VAIN.”
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. What will you regret not doing?
I wish I had traveled more! Theres a beautiful world out there and I would have loved to have experienced all that is has to offer. My dream is to to live in Paris and absorb it’s beauty and it’s bohemian artistry especially in the fashion world! Ooh la la!
Contact Info:
- Linkedin: SYLVIA STANLEY
- Facebook: Sylvia Gigi Cuellar Stanley and GIGIS CHAPEAU CLUB
Image Credits
Louis Stanley
