Fashion's current love affair with hats can be traced back, ostensibly, to Stephen Jones - the man who has reshaped the art of hat-making for a new generation of milliners and, importantly, hat wearers.

Jones' creations - wild, wacky, big, dainty, dramatic, witty, wonderful, and always original -
have graced the catwalks of designers as far-reaching as Thierry Mugler, Jean Paul Gaultier, John Galliano, Marc Jacobs, Giles Deacon and Vivienne Westwood. He has created head-toppers for everyone from Kylie Minogue and Take That, to Princess Diana and Mick Jagger.

In 2009 the V&A staged a major retrospective of his work, to which over 100,000 visitors flocked. And it was perhaps this show that triggered the current resurgence of hats being worn "in real life" (as opposed to just on the catwalk, in editorials, or on the heads of pop stars on MTV). For the last few seasons women have been wearing felt trilbies and floppy '70s hats as comfortably as they would a scarf. Not avant-garde, no, but still progress.

And then there are Lady Gaga and Anna Dello Russo, whose commitment to hat-wearing (tea cup or giant cherry, anyone?), has given mere mortals the confidence to be a bit more flamboyant from the neck up. At the other end of the spectrum is Kate Middleton who, while not exactly at the point of strapping a telephone to her head (like Gaga did with a Fred Butler creation), is definitely helping to bring millinery to the masses.

The glow of Jones' success has shone over the new guard of milliners - including Piers Atkinson, Noel Stewart and Justin Smith - who all regard him as an icon and mentor.

But for all his success, Jones never planned on a career in millinery. What he loved then, and still does now, is a good party. Born in Cheshire, he moved to London in the '70s to study fashion at Central Saint Martins and quickly fell in with the "Blitz" crowd - a group of young new-wave party animals including Boy George, Grayson Perry and Duran Duran, who all frequented their namesake nightclub in Covent Garden. Jean Paul Gaultier spotted him in a homemade fez in Boy George's video for Do You Really Want to Hurt Me and asked him to model in his next catwalk show. "I had broken my ankle so I couldn't… so he asked me 'would I like to make hats for his women's show?' and that was my entrée into Paris!". And the rest is history.

Jordan Askill is a name you need to know. One of those fashion names that, when dropped, earn you instant cool kudos. The young jewellery designer has been in London for two years, quietly cutting a swathe through the fashion scene and winning the hearts and minds of discerning jewellery aficionados.

The designer, who was nominated for the British Fashion Award for Best Emerging Talent last year, is best known for his sweetly sentimental heart and star rings from his diffusion line Jordy by Jordan Askill, but also for his beautifully sculpted, creations realised through a 3D scanning technique more conventionally used for model making .

For his latest collection, he used a taxidermy swallow as a prototype to craft pieces that convey the charm and romantic allure of the birds themselves. "I love that birds can be majestic and fragile at the same time. And I used the swallow because it is so iconic in literature and poetry, in Oscar Wilde's Happy Prince. It's interesting that they have such big wings that if they land on the ground, they can't take off again -
I find that so poetic."

So taken is he with the beauty and freedom of avian creatures that if he were to be any creature in the world, it would be "a swallow or a macaw; the power of flight would be amazing."

Sydney-born Askill learned his trade at the East Sydney Technical College (one of Australia's best fashion schools), then went on to work with off-beat denim label Ksubi, before a three-year stint in Paris at the Dior Homme atelier under Hedi Slimane, where he "learned what a beautiful and luxurious product should be."

In 2008, he launched his eponymous label, making the move from ready-to-wear to jewellery. "I realised that my natural instinct was to create objects that are my way of translating what I see in the world," says Askill in his Australian tones. "I love sculpture but jewellery is more portable. It's more timeless and has more longevity than fashion."

"I really want to imbue my work with perfect historical references and give it a life. The way Victorian jewellery was so sentimental. So a taxidermy bird becomes a necklace, then becomes an heirloom," he explains, "I'm really interested in the mythology of a brand. That whole thing of how a stone might have once been owned by Spanish princes, but then become a gift for Elizabeth Taylor."

After two years as a resident of Stoke Newington in London, he still misses the water and coastal living of Sydney, but heads to the London Fields lido for regular aquatic fixes. He also enjoys strolling around Green Park, near Dover Street Market - one of the first places to stock his collections.

Next up, Askill's new birthstone rings that feature cabochon-cut stones that hang on the inside of the ring will launch exclusively at Liberty, and he is returning to Rock Vault - the British Fashion Council's jewellery initiative - during London Fashion Week.

"I want to make things that make people happy," he says. To this end, he has been working on a collaboration with Topshop that will land in stores towards the end of the year, bringing his creations to a wider audience. And while he is tight-lipped on what it will look like, he says that "you will be able to tell that it's mine."

Jordan Askill is available at Liberty and Harvey Nichols askillprojects.com

SCAN to watch Askill's wild horses

There are a hundred reasons why an individual decides to start designing. Often it is because they are either frustrated by the lack of current options available or they see a ripe business opportunity. For Melissa Del Bono, the founder and designer of meli melo, it appears to have been a bit of both. She was working in fashion PR at the time and, among other clients, was looking after Tanner Krolle (the bespoke leather goods company). It was this proximity to the world of handbags that caused Del Bono to spot a niche in the market she was keen to fill herself. Meli melo is characterised by simple design in the finest leather. Del Bono's desire to create elegant bags that are quietly but clearly luxurious is evident in the nude tones of her glamourous seventies-inspired spring/summer 2012 collection - certain to be a hit with her many celebrity fans as well as her faithful customers.