South Lanarkshire hat maker wins Fashion Textile Maker of the Year Award 2025

South Lanarkshire hat maker Rachel Frost has won the second annual Fashion Textile Maker of the Year Award, supported by the Costume Society, including a £2,000 prize and trophy awarded at a special presentation at Wentworth Woodhouse on Monday 17 November 2025.

The award, supported by the Costume Society, celebrates a heritage craftsperson who has made an outstanding contribution to fashion textiles over the past year. It recognises a contribution that is far beyond the ordinary, based on a proven dedication to a particular fashion textiles skill.

Rachel Frost is a self-taught multidisciplinary craftsperson and historian, making headwear and accessories for the fashion, film, theatre, television and museum industries. Driven by a passion for British heritage crafts and early fashion, she creates both historical and contemporary headwear and bags using a wide range of techniques.

The Fashion Textiles Maker of the Year trophy was made by milliner Giulia Mio, and is crafted from exquisite black floral lace with black vintage glass long beads that provide a subtle shimmer. Two delicate black quills at each end balance the design, giving the headpiece an ethereal Gothic appearance.

The two other finalists for the award were Claire Hunter, a distinguished Scottish textile designer, handweaver and founder of Taffled Threads, dedicated to preserving Scotland’s textile heritage through both weaving and kilt making, and Chloe Savage, an embroiderer trained at the Royal School of Needlework and École Lesage who uses her craft to support community initiatives, including developing skills training for vulnerable women.

The Costume Society is a UK membership organisation formed in 1964 to promote the study and preservation of historic and contemporary dress. Its partnership with Heritage Crafts has also seen five training bursaries awarded to early-career practitioners in fashion textiles and costume.

Photo: Rachel Frost, winner of the 2025 Fashion Textile Maker of the Year Award, and Natascha Radclyffe-Thomas, Vice Chair of the Costume Society. Photo by Robert Wade.