With time, care, and a love for the environment, Topi Time makes hats and accessories in small batches their our home studio in Naarm, Australia.
All fabrics are second-hand or deadstock and for every product purchased, 100kg of carbon is offset through Greenfleet Australia by planting native forests in Australia and New Zealand.
The mission is to create accessories that stand out while leaving a positive impact on the environment.
Hi Rhian! why did you choose hat designing?During the 2020 lockdowns in Melbourne, I spent a lot of time teaching myself how to sew garments which has been an ongoing journey of mine for the past few years.
After a brief stint selling masks to family and friends I just started playing around with some hat patterns to prepare for summer and was having so much fun I never stopped!
Through a lot of experimentation and a few oddly shaped hats, I ended up with the two signature Topi Time styles of the Round Bucket Hat and Sunhat that my friends loved and just decided to give this little brand a go.
What was your biggest fear when going out and starting your own line?I think putting something out into the world with your name attached to it is always a daunting feeling. As the name behind my brand, there’s a lot of pressure to create something people will love and relate to as much as I do and at the end of the day the business is what I make of it.
I’m having loads of fun watching Topi Time slowly grow though and learning so much along the way.
What inspires the fun and colourful aesthetics of your brand? Any designers or aesthetics in particular you’ve learnt from?All my inspiration comes from the fabrics and materials that I find because they’re all sourced second-hand, upcycled or deadstock. Almost every hat I make is a new experiment because the materials I find are so different and I can’t wait to see how they turn out each time.
How would you define your personal style?My style spectrum basically lies between comfy and retro. I’ve loved op-shopping since I was a teenager and a lot of my wardrobe is made up of pieces I’ve collected over time and loved for many years featuring fashion from the 60’s to the 90’s. I’m really one of those people who says ‘I love a bit of everything’ and I really do.
An element of my personal style that I carry into my brand is definitely colour, colour and more colour!
Every starting designer wants to know the best sustainability practices, and from the looks of your website, it seems like you’ve got them down pat! Tell me a bit about the made to order process and how you keep it ethical.As a slow fashion business, I hand make all my products either in small runs or made-to-order due to the limited volumes of fabric. Avoiding textile waste is a huge part of our purpose as a brand. Beginning with the way we source our fabrics, buying second-hand and deadstock makes use of materials that are already made and ensures they don’t end up in landfill. We don’t just make hats either, smaller fabric pieces get used for products like patchwork tote bags, headbands or whatever the fabric inspires me to do. And when the scraps from those projects get too small, I save them up to use as stuffing for pillows and homewares.
It was important to me to start a business that has a positive impact on the environment as well, so for every product sold, we donate to Greenfleet Australia to offset 100kg of carbon by planting native forests in Australia and New Zealand.
What is your favourite part of the design process?Definitely sourcing the materials. There’s so much to experience when searching for second-hand or less wanted treasures like feeling the textures and weights of once loved blankets or sorting through rolls of deadstock fabric that still have so much life in them.
Plus, I never know what I’m going to find so it’s really the foundation of all of our products. I always go on fabric runs with no expectations and that’s what makes Topi Time so fun and unique.
There’s so much pressure for designers to come out with their greatest collection season after season. What advice would you give to other young designers like yourself just starting out and hoping to make it?Don’t be too hard on yourself and don’t be afraid to take your time. Making something you love, are proud of, and ready to share with the world is a process so be kind to yourself when you’re creating.
