If you’ve ever watched the Kentucky Derby, you’ve seen the gorgeous hats. What you may not realize is the level of thought, storytelling, and emotion that goes into each one.

In this episode, I sit down with Christine Moore and Blake Seidel, the couple behind CAM Hats, the brand that has become part of the Derby tradition. From their beginnings in theater to building a thriving business together, their story is full of creativity, resilience, and honest insight into what it takes to grow something meaningful.

We talk about how Christine designs with intention, how they navigate working together as a couple, and one of the biggest lessons no one tells you about leadership in the arts.

What You’ll Hear:

1. Christine’s early inspiration in theater design (00:16)
2. The meaning behind Derby fashion traditions (13:50)
3. The realities of running a business together (20:00)
4. Why criticism in creative work is so delicate (22:27)
5. Lessons learned from years in the fashion industry (25:26)

This conversation is about more than fashion. It’s about how we show up, how we communicate, and how we help others feel seen.

If you enjoyed this conversation, be sure to subscribe, rate, and share it with someone who would love it, too.

You can watch this interview on YouTube: https://youtu.be/QY85N1sq09U

For a full transcript and more, check out our blog post: https://www.lindsaycz.com/show-notes/blake-seidel-and-christine-a-moore-44

Check out more from Christine A. Moore:

Check out Christine’s website and her Spring 2026 collection: https://www.camhats.com/

Follow Christine on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/camhatsnyc/

Mentioned in the Episode:

https://www.lindsaycz.com/show-notes/christina-stembel-34

Support this podcast:

Follow Things No One Tells You on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thingsnoonetellsyoupod/

Stay connected with Lindsay https://www.lindsaycz.com/ and follow her on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/lindsaycz/

Subscribe to my YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@lindsaycz

[00:00:17] Lindsay: Hey, guys. Welcome to the Things No One Tells You Podcast.

[00:00:39] Anyway, alright. This episode is about a couple that should have a reality show. It is my friend Christine Moore, who is the officiant and the featured Milliner. The Triple Crown, meaning the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, the Belmont, and her husband, Blake Seidel. Alright, Christine, when I say official and featuredMilliner, she's a hat maker.

[00:01:27] And she's definitely expanded into other events as well. So, when I first started covering horse racing. This sport is so special to me. There's a lot of nostalgia in it for me because my father covered horse racing for a really long time for USA Today. And so when I was asked to first get involved really in a specific way, it was after my time at ESPN, it was working with America's Best Racing, which is a digital platform of the Jockey Club, which is the overseeing body of horse racing.

[00:02:15] I knew what my role was, they were gonna follow me around, and I was just gonna experience the whole thing and kind of tell the story through my own personal experience, which is like a dream if you're a journalist, because you don't get that kind of access. And to be able to do that, it's really this awesome sweet spot of like journalism and, you know, influencer-type work.

[00:02:52] My mom was there too, I think, because we made this like a family affair. And we go, and we walk into this tent that is obviously a hat tent because there are hats outside. And I remember when we walk inside, it's like, oh my God. It was like an explosion of Skittles, like if Skittles were different hats, like just this rainbow.

[00:03:29] What do you need to be wearing? She shoves this fascinator into my head, like really firmly. But it looked awesome. I loved it. We got my daughter outfitted with one that sort of matched her husband, Blake. The whole time, I remember it was just kinda like tooling around doing business, and they were this well-oiled machine, but they had so much personality.

[00:04:06] And when it comes to their experience in the art world, it is really cool because in this conversation, Blake shared. A thing no one tells you is that I did not expect that it had to do with leadership, as it comes to the arts and business. So I love this conversation. I hope you learn a lot from it. And here they are, Blake and Christine.

[00:04:50] To me, it feels like Alice in Wonderland. Like, it's this magic just blast of color and whimsy and all the things that speak to me. I honestly get chills thinking about it now. So is that where you are? Why are you taking your hat off?

[00:05:09] Christine: I thought this was like a little Alice in Wonderland, Lindsay.

[00:05:16] Blake: We are in the, we are in the office space. There's a, when you walk in, it's a showroom office space, and the production space is behind us. So we're singing here with stuff that, you know, all kinds of stuff around us.

[00:05:30] Lindsay: So Christine's just gonna keep doing the hat dance as we talk. That's what they do in motor sports when you win races. They put on the hats of their sponsors. All right. So tell me. Tell me about where it is that, you know, that you guys are a little bit about the studio, about what your current situation is.

[00:05:57] Christine: Yeah. Yes. So we have a, we do the production in the next room. So there's a bunch of artists making hats behind me.

[00:06:11] Lindsay: They're not allowed.

[00:06:14] Christine: Yeah. They're so focused. They're, yeah.

[00:06:27] Christine: Actually, it's featured, and I'm the first. I picked the name featured, and I'll tell you why, because I'm an official for Breeders' Cup, Iroquois, and other things, America's best racing. But I picked it, featured because I was coming into it, it was 146 years of the Kentucky Derby. And it was 2018.

[00:07:23] Churchill had asked me in 2008 to be involved in the Derby, and as far as building and solidifying the brand, bringing it to another level, with my workmanship and design. So I had already been working with them for that for 10 years. So I felt like they all, I get a, I'm the featured, so that made sense to me rather than say I'm the official and all of you people who, are in Kentucky and, you know, built all this or just nothing, but I'm official, you know, I felt like it was, how, what do you say this?

[00:08:17] Christine: I felt like it was a gracious thing to do.

[00:08:20] Lindsay: You're basically, you're honoring those that

[00:08:24] Lindsay: Came before you and are still there, but have set the table for what you're trying to do. Yes. I think that's really awesome. And just, you know, to put it out there, like you, you work with one of my friends, Dylan Dryer.

[00:08:58] At different races during the course of the season. The hats are always like, " What is your outfit? What is based around, you know, and it is see or be seen, but there's also just, I don't know, what does that mean to you? What do you guys, both you, Christine, and Blake, what does a hat really mean?

[00:09:46] It's around their face. I always say, it's not a torso book, it's Facebook, you know, so it's like highlighting your face too.

[00:10:02] Christine: Yeah. And it brings people, it brings people into your world.

[00:10:21] Blake: So it's

[00:10:23] Blake: It's an attitude changer, too. You give an actor a ha, and oh my gosh, it changes their character right away. They're playing with it.

[00:10:30] Blake: You know, they're doing all kinds of stuff. Yeah. Same with anybody for the derby or whatever. You know, it automatically changes your appearance and your attitude, I think. Right.

[00:10:44] You know?

[00:10:51] Christine: You know, it's like fashion forensics. So it's finding out what my parameters are, forensics.

[00:10:59] Christine: What's that

[00:11:00] Christine: So it's like you like asking them questions, getting to know them, and sometimes, you know, I have to start knowing that I'm gonna, if people don't give a lot.

[00:11:28] So that's like, that helps me a lot, now. But say they don't give me a dress, and I have to kind of figure out who they are. And so it's like I give them, you know, I start showing them things like knowing that they're gonna be bloopers and, you know, they'll, you know, it's interesting with fashion too, people will say, I would never wear that.

[00:12:00] Lindsay: Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Is that what fashion forensics is?

[00:12:08] Christine: Yeah, that's what it is. It is. It's like sometimes I go onto people's Facebooks or Instagram to figure out if they're not giving me enough information. 'cause it starts to tell me like, things around them and, the way they dress normally, or, you know, or, and it's amazing 'cause it's like, you could have, I could be talking to someone on the phone or they could just send me a picture of dress and I, you know, have.

[00:12:57] And I'm like, okay. Then they're thinking, they're seeing thrace, race, they're seeing the Kentucky Derby from their northeastern eyes, which is like, we don't dress in colors and frilly and flouncy. Like, no, there's no southern, but this woman definitely will do it. Like, if I just say, okay, give him a little encouragement.

[00:13:38] Like no one that's

[00:13:39] Christine: Really, I can tell you.

[00:13:42] Christine: So no, no one really tells you together.

[00:13:50] Christine: Well, it's, it's, everything. It's the whole thing. Yeah. It's necessary, apparently, but it's really about the hat.

[00:14:03] Christine: Now

[00:14:05] Christine: Very good.

[00:14:22] I like. Six or seven, anyway. I do wanna say for anyone that hasn't had a hat for a horse race, it's such a cool feeling when you're traveling through the airport, and you've got the hat box. Especially if it's one like Christine. So I remember, and I shared this leading into our episode, but.

[00:15:03] And do you remember this? Was there? Yes. Yeah. And so, I remember we were in your tent outside of the, you know, Keland, which is where that Reader's Cup was, boss. And your tent was like, it was so amazing with all these amazing hats. But Blake, you cracked me up too, 'cause I'm like, who's Blake? And like, Blake was just kind of manning the whole thing.

[00:15:38] Christine: The comb goes in the back and then flip it down.

[00:15:46] Christine: You had it on, right? I'm sorry. It was,

[00:15:51] Christine: Pull it down.

[00:15:55] Christine: No, this other way. Turn it around.

[00:15:58] Christine: You have it on backwards now.

[00:15:59] Christine: I was wrong.

[00:16:19] Blake: So, we both met in Philadelphia.

[00:16:23] Blake: W, both met in Philadelphia at the Walnut Street Theater, and I was working in, this was in the eighties, and she was, I was just outta college, and she was, taking classes. And, she was working in the costume shop, and I was working in management.

[00:17:02] And we had a long-distance relationship for a long time. And she came to New York five years later and started working for Rodney Gordon. And I was in grad school. And, we continued to date. And then, when I finished grad school, we got married. And then, we both stayed in New York the whole time.

[00:17:25] Christine: 87. No, you,

[00:17:26] Christine: I moved in 90, the January of 90. Yeah. So nice, clean beginning of the year.

[00:17:37] Christine: Rodney, just to say, Rodney is one of the top Milliner in the theater, for the Millinery

[00:17:49] Lindsay: at making for a theater. Wow.

[00:17:59] Blake: She's gonna grab one, but at that time, he was making all the top hats for every tour of fans of the opera.

[00:18:09] Christine: Yeah.

[00:18:11] Christine: Yeah.

[00:18:17] Christine: Yeah, it's, well, no, it's pane velvet. So, or that there, yeah. There or that, yeah. So, what is it? I think it was King Edward who changed it from Beaver to Beaver.

[00:18:37] Lindsay: so

[00:18:39] Lindsay: Very so, wait, so were you drawn to hat making? Was that specifically me? What did you want? Yeah.

[00:18:58] And I met a Milliner and I fell in love with what she was doing, I just couldn't get my eyes off of what she was doing. Like, and I, so I asked her for a job, and she hired me. And that was, and then we, yeah, she worked for. Mostly for McCarter, Princeton. And then, but she, and then she introduced me to Rodney, and so I ended up doing some regional theater, and then, as he had said, while he was in graduate school, and then.

[00:19:33] Blake: I didn't say that

[00:19:34] Lindsay: Look at you.

[00:19:37] Lindsay: You laid it down.

[00:19:42] Blake: Well, we did that for five years and, you know, we weren't like on our phones, we were like writing letters, you know, to each other.

[00:19:48] Blake: And he writes an email talking on a landline.

[00:19:52] Blake: Yeah, it was very difficult. It was difficult.

[00:20:00] Lindsay: Yeah. That was a much harder time for that. Wait, so, so Blake, how well? Wait, Christine, how would you describe Blake as an artist?

[00:20:17] Lindsay: Wait,

[00:20:28] But then also I, yeah, I do. So I did my own accounting for years, and then that, then, now I have a bookkeeper and an accountant, but the thing is, that's the thing, they both know that I can do it, so they push back on me a lot. Like, I can't just like a sign, I'm like, oh, I trust you guys. I'll just sign.

[00:21:08] He's the, you know, he does the marketing plan with Carol. I mean, Carol, you. It's awesome.

[00:21:17] Christine: Yeah, Carol is a,

[00:21:21] Christine: Director

[00:21:25] Blake: Yeah.

[00:21:27] We are just, we're

[00:21:31] Christine: Okay.

[00:21:32] Christine: but, he, really is more of an, I mean, he,

[00:21:54] Christine: That's why I don't like theater

[00:21:58] So all these artists, you have to really kind of keep on track from point A to point B to get this production up. So you have to be able to deal with a wide range of people, and well, and ittakes a lot. I mean, to be able to do that, I mean, to,

[00:22:18] The criticism in the arts is like, one of the things no one tells you is the, what would you say is how challenging that can be? Is that right? And

[00:22:36] Hundreds. You know, hundreds. And they're all young artists that come,

[00:22:41] Blake: Well, that comes to New York, they're all usually young. And point, my point though is that, anytime that you're giving criticism to someone, especially with the sensibility of the arts, you have to sort of remember that what you're saying to them cuts really deep because it's a passion.

[00:23:13] Lindsay: They're also very empathetic people. Right. Probably mostly I would think, like, they, like if you're an artist, you are, you're a deep-feeler oftentimes, right?

[00:23:26] Christine: That's what I'm saying. He's

[00:23:27] Christine: Than I'm,

[00:23:31] Christine: Well, you know, I, one of the things I realized just in criticism. I realize that you can, it's easy to, when you're criticizing someone to make them coil and recoil back, and then you've actually caused that's why I think mean bosses are actually like, shooting themselves in the foot.

[00:24:22] You know? Now I, you know, I have my sea legs for sure, and, you know, you know the people I, the stores that I sell to. know me or they, you know, it's, 'cause it's now it's word of mouth that you should carry this collection sort of thing. Yeah. But, when I first started, you know, these stores would call, and they'd yell at you, you know, all for the most ridiculous thing, whatever they, whatever, they would just beat up young designers.

[00:24:49] Lindsay: Like what, kind of thing would they be just so for context?

[00:25:06] Right. My whole thing is like, you tell me I'm gonna get better, I'm gonna get better. But it would be like things like, you'll never succeed. You know? Like they, like, you know, you, you know, they would, and they would always bring up another designer that was bigger, more well known than me. You know, they'd be like, well, you know, so and so, you know, they're, and sometimes I wonder if this comes from the other designers, you know what I mean?

[00:25:41] And, it's just like, you just kind of, and those things, I mean, I've always been timely, you know, but it was just like, I'm gonna cancel. 'cause I love to cancel orders, really? People. Really? Yeah. Like,n ot, I don't know. Not now, but they did now people would never do that. 'cause then that would, Carol would be like, you're not getting it then, ever.

[00:26:01] Blake: But that's when you still, when you made the switch from theater to fashion, though, because you were dealing with a different sensibility of people in the theater world, and then all of a sudden you're in the fashion world dealing with all these different stores, you know?

[00:26:14] Christine: Yeah, we talked about this because

[00:26:27] Lindsay: Well, like I was looking at the top of my box, which, Oh, is right here.

[00:26:39] Blake: Yeah,

[00:26:42] Blake: And that box has changed now, too. She'll show you what the new one looks like, too. So,

[00:26:56] 'Cause I think that's something people can take away. What is this? That's the top of your hat box.

[00:27:12] Lindsay: I love it.

[00:27:14] Blake: And if you buy directly from Christina, New York, you'd definitely get one of these.

[00:27:23] Christine: Yeah. but,

[00:27:35] And it's like a week. And I know that this is what's crazy, like you're heading into the month of May, which is when the Triple Crown begins. The first Saturday in May is always the derby, and then you've got the Preakness in the Belmont, and that leads into Saratoga, and it's, so you're in the thick of it.

[00:28:07] Blake: For me

[00:28:13] Blake: Yeah. So, I studied management in the arts, specifically theater. And you learn very quickly that there are all kinds of different bosses, and some are very short and current, and some really wanna get to know you. Some want to talk, but I think you, part of it is getting to know the person and making sure that they understand that they're a valued person in the company, a valued customer or whatever their, do whatever their position is.

[00:28:59] Change or correct or whatever. You have to keep all of that in mind when you're talking. So, so that, you know, they continue to feel that way and then want to continue to be that kind of person and the best, you know, person that they could be.

[00:29:12] Blake: And with your employees, I, you're, you.

[00:29:18] Christine: Oh.

[00:29:32] So, like they'll sit down and sell.

[00:29:35] Blake: Yeah. They sit down and use the machine, and so to see that they have those chops and understand the fabrics and all that kind of stuff.

[00:29:51] Lindsay: That's a great way to say it.

[00:29:55] Christine: But I always,

[00:29:55] Christine: Yeah.

[00:29:58] Christine: And yeah. And they and other than the over hire, mean well. That's actually how I sometimes build my staff, and they stay longer.

[00:30:06] all hearing this right back.

[00:30:18] So that's why the turnover is faster, but still, people stay with me for like three to six years. And then usually when it comes to like, when you get up to si, people. Tend to wanna go on, what art they came to the city to do in the first place, if that makes sense.

[00:30:48] Blake: They all have those sewing skills.

[00:30:50] Blake: And somebody rarely comes in with a millinery background. She has one person now.

[00:30:54] Blake: That came to the job that has a millinery background. Usually, Chris, you always say that as long as they can sew, understand,

[00:31:01] Blake: Exactly.

[00:31:15] It's New York real estate, so it's a fishbowl in here, you know, so it's like, really, you can do you, you know, I don't really usually do reviews because everything's out there in the open. Like, everything's like, I'll just say, Hey, can you,

[00:31:29] Christine: But I, also, Fine. Like, because I do, and this is what I'm saying, like you have a few debts, but most everybody I hire is very intelligent.

[00:31:56] And the reason they're going in the wrong direction is 'cause they see something. They're trying, they're all, in all honesty, trying to figure it out. And so, by asking that question, and usually the, then we get to what the root of the thinking that's making them. Go and, you know, make a mistake.

[00:32:39] Or just even like, oh, you know what, maybe we don't need that extra step. Like it's redundant, you know? And so I think that's the thing,

[00:32:53] Christine: Yeah. So that's why I think it's like the communication in the criticism is really important.

[00:33:18] Yeah. And I, and my, like, my core staff, it does the same like everything Carol, it's like there's no arbitrariness, that's why when something goes fluid, it's like, well, it wasn't 'cause we didn't think about it, you know, and analyze it. But, I like to tell my staff why I did it. Well, this is the basis of this design.

[00:33:52] Lindsay: I know, you always, no one puts a comb in your head, like, Christine feels so right.

[00:33:56] Lindsay: You'll remember. You're like, ugh.

[00:34:10] Lindsay: Oh, yeah.

[00:34:17] So it's like things like that, like, like, so I like to say, 'cause I, Carol, and I especially, we're out there selling, selling. So we are hearing, we're hearing what customers are saying. And I also learned from them, like, actually, ly that's like things no one tells you if you listen enough. They did tell you.

[00:34:40] Lindsay: Wait, tell me more. Yeah. You're like, oh wait, maybe they did.

[00:35:04] And so it's like, that's why, like I've learned to like, make the habit for a bigger head, just a smidge bigger. So it doesn't, if it fits too tightly, their hair will shift it up.

[00:35:20] Christine: Yeah. Beautiful.

[00:35:25] Christine: Yeah. Yeah. And also, I realize that men have square heads, women's heads tend to slope in like this, and a lot of men's are like that.

[00:35:36] Christine: That's what you,

[00:35:38] Christine: So when they say, when men say their head is big, I realized it's not that their head's big. It said it's square.

[00:36:00] Blake: She wants,

[00:36:01] Christine: I digressed into,

[00:36:06] It was a piece that was like a skull cap kind of deal. She's like, so one.

[00:36:22] Christine: Yeah. That's a Mel, that's a Melvin hat.

[00:36:30] 'cause that was my foray to pull my husband into horse racing more. 'cause I do love it, that was fun. And he loved it. Yeah. And you guys nailed it. And those, and all the guys look great.

[00:36:39] Lindsay: They look great. And they're, that's the thing, like I do think, we're, you know, we're talking about, yes, it is a fun thing to do for horse racing.

[00:37:12] Like, so when you decided what?

[00:37:19] Lindsay: That's,

[00:37:20] Lindsay: Soo funny. I would not like to speak.

[00:37:24] Lindsay: Yeah, but

[00:37:26] Lindsay: So when you guys, when you decided that you really wanted to take on this endeavor of opening your own business, what was that like?

[00:37:37] Blake: Well, I was not in the business then, but she started it in 94. Is it when you really moved?

[00:37:45] Blake: Yeah.

[00:37:57] Yeah. And I, you know what, and it, the thing is that it was like, a burning desire to own my own business. I can't even explain.

[00:38:11] Christine: Oh, that's the collaborative art part. Yeah. So I don't like collaborative art.

[00:38:17] Christine: UUh-huh no, I had one and I, yeah, I've had. Okay, so when you are in the heater, it sounds like

[00:38:27] Christine: There's five stories, there's five, there's, you know, there's five artists at least that go and that go into making a product. And if one of those costumes always takes the hit because also the actor, if the actor doesn't like what they're wearing or they don't, we always say if the actor is a bad actor, they don't like what they're wearing, they pick on the clothes, and then, you know, and

[00:38:52] Christine: They blame the clothes for the bad acting or, you know, so, so I just was tired of like creating things and then, you know, the director and the actor saying that they're cutting that, that piece, or they're cutting, you know, and I'd be staying up all night, you know, doing these.

[00:39:32] Yeah. But now I, so, yes. So

[00:39:34] Christine: Have to, you mean I didn't have to use it because they sat on and I just was like, that's my artwork. I mean, you just sat on my artwork. So, so that, so go into fashion. I had nothing. I knew nothing about fashion, and so I got into fashion, got to be completely beaten up differently.

[00:40:16] And the first store in New York to actually buy from you was Henry Bendell. And that was a huge, beautiful store.

[00:40:23] Blake: That was the one in New York, though?

[00:40:24] Blake: Yeah.

[00:40:25] Blake: And then the first store in Philadelphia with Joan Shep,

[00:40:28] Blake: And there, she's still in business till this day.

[00:40:38] Christine: And

[00:40:39] Lindsay: Yeah. So tell me, so what do you do? Do you know that's the store?

[00:40:42] Lindsay: Wow. So you put the fabric, like, tell me about that.

[00:40:50] Christine: Oh, I just

[00:40:55] Christine: And you would just go, yeah. And later on, people would say I remember you, you were the one with the,

[00:41:02] Christine: Yeah. So I would just go and, yeah, I would just make an appointment with a store and then come in and just show 'em the work.

[00:41:24] So I would just, but I think that's the thing with, to flip it around. About the collaborative art part. That's the one thing I found out about fashion is that it's a nasty business for sure. And nobody really wants you to succeed. ‘Cause they're all, everybody's competition. Everyone's competition.

[00:42:01] LindsayWhyhy do you think it's so different? And Blake, do you agree?

[00:42:05] Christine: I think it's the

[00:42:18] Christine: Everybody's out for themselves.

[00:42:21] Christine: And it's expensive,

[00:42:23] Lindsay: By the nature of what you're doing, 'cause everyone's, you're trying to sell your thing, right? Yeah. So,

[00:42:29] Lindsay: You're not necessarily right. That's very interesting. So

[00:42:43] They were in Bryant Park and they'd be, you know, like 15,000 or 15, $150,000 to put on a show. And that was that. And

[00:42:53] Christine: Then they would group, they would do groups, like young designers would be doing groups, but I kept getting their press, so they would do. They're paying to do it, and then they wanna talk, like Women's World Daily wants to talk about the hats, you know?

[00:43:17] Blake: So you outdo the dress collection.

[00:43:30] But yeah, no, it's true. Like its hats. And that's the thing, like hats always bring attention. So even though they had nothing, they didn't wanna talk about anything. Like, people wanna talk about the hats, you know,

[00:43:46] Christine: Yeah. Now I have designers that I work with, though, you know, so that's different. Yeah. You know? So

[00:44:14] And I know you've shared that too. You weren't obsessed with hats, but you were consumed by the desire to have your own thing and to make your own thing and get it out. And that's what she saw, a real need in the space for flowers and delivery. And it's funny when you're describing the drum box, it took me back to our conversation where she was talking about burlap,, and she found, you know, the burlap and thought, well if we wrap it like this and make this one of our signature ways of presenting when it arrives, you know, that's something that can be memorable.

[00:44:49] Blake: Yeah. Packaging is hugely important.

.[00:45:02] Lindsay: Well, because you're creating, everyone. You're giving them a moment to literally, when I left that first Breeder's Cup and I owned my first hat, and I walked through the airport, I mean, I'm gonna post a video that I took because I was like, this is the most amazing thing.

[00:45:36] Blake: Yeah, exactly. That's exactly what we're at.

[00:45:39] Blake: Exactly. That's a good way to look at it. Like walking through an airport, walking down Fifth Avenue with a hatbox. I mean, it's like a great

[00:45:47] Blake: It's a great look and a great feeling.

[00:45:53] I think they get dazzled by the hat boxes unless they're this big.

[00:46:13] Christine: Well, I think one of the things is, well, there's a lot. As I said, I think people told me, and I just didn't, I don't listen.

[00:46:25] Christine: You know, I think, I think. How long would it take to really be successful? And I think the one thing I wanted to say, like, how did I get to the next level in fashion was when I met somebody who introduced me to horse racing, and then I had the theater in the fashion came together, and I have theater fashion.

[00:47:22] So that was when, and nobody was really. Because if you don't go to the Derby, you don't have any idea. And I just wrote it off as like, nobody wears fancy hats until I got there,e and I was like, oh my gosh, this is my people. And then I, and then that's where I could flourish. But I think it's.

[00:48:03] When you're young, you're, it's just like, you think you're rubber, you think you're, yo, know, you think you're gonna, you car, you're gonna, jump off the roof and bounce back up again. But I think that's the thing. I didn't, no one could have told me how long it would take to grow something, you know, like I, it's years to grow it.

[00:48:38] And, but, and it will, you know, if you have the passion and you are, and you're, you know, I was, I know I'm doing the right thing for my life. Like for what? And edifying other people, but it's like, it's just to really be established. It took Liu longer than that, and nobody could have told me that.

[00:49:22] That's like the business itself is what I want to succeed. Not, but a business owner is more like someone who has a great idea and wants to bring it to the market, but not necessarily have this, I have to succeed. It's like if it doesn't work, I'll just find something else to do with an entrepreneur.

[00:50:00] Lindsay: Are you an entrepreneur or a business owner?

[00:50:06] Lindsay: You are? Yes, absolutely.

[00:50:34] I don't even know why, but how is the connection now? But they wanted to do it. No, I guess a writer had come in contact with me and was like, oh, I'm gonna pitch this story. And I remember somebody else saying, well, if you are in Vanity Fair there, you're gonna have so many orders that you're gonna have to hire people right away.

[00:51:04] Lindsay: and you're about to be on again,

[00:51:15] Lindsay: his beautiful wife, Deborah.

[00:51:27] Blake: You've been making hats for a long time.

[00:51:35] Awesome. And I still say like, it took all those, it takes all those years and all the, all this press that you see around here, it takes that, all that, like you, I, this is my advice to anybody starting a business. Do not say no to the press. Don't ever be afraid to just do it. Just like, you know, because I was very timid.

[00:52:20] I'm shaking in my boots, but I'm gonna do this interview. You know? And

[00:52:26] Christine: Yeah.

[00:52:45] That was a huge,

[00:52:47] Blake: Interesting thing to say. That was really, it was great.

[00:52:50] Blake: And he looked, he always looks great in every hat he wears, you know, big hat.

[00:53:07] Or that you were like, just, oh my God, this is so cool.

[00:53:12] Lindsay: Oh, stop. Thank you. No,

[00:53:15] Blake: About Last year's?

[00:53:19] Blake: That was great.

[00:53:31] So, that was really, 'cause it's so intricate and, you know, to get it to be perfect and all that. So I love that. and

[00:53:44] Lindsay: Oh, that's so cool.

[00:53:52] I love to make hats for, even like, my celebrity list is a lot of my repeat clients. Like I, they come back, and they let me do what I love, and they just, and that's, to, me like that is, that, so I feel like I get a thrill all the time when I like, oh, you know, like Anna Marin called you, you know, she needs a hat for Oaks and Derby.

[00:54:26] Lindsay: Oh, wow. Oh, that's beautiful.

[00:54:38] That probably, well, that was, I don't know if that was thrilling. At the time t, though, when I first heard the call,

[00:54:45] Lindsay: So you did a partnership with Wisconsin Cheese?

[00:54:53] Christine: yeah,

[00:55:01] Not a lot of real cheese.

[00:55:03] Blake: Here's the sketches. That's hard to tell from that, though.

[00:55:08] Blake: Yeah. That's hard to tell, though. It's so incredible. But they sent us all his cheese. They created these amazing pieces. She did 23, and they took him to the derby.

[00:55:31] Lindsay: And those sketches are so beautiful. Yes. And we need, I love it. And I remember seeing you guys there and, walking in and just being blown away by all the cheese and the charcuterie designs. I'll throw up a picture here on my social media so people can see it too. It was incredible. What's the hardest thing about your job?

[00:55:55] Christine: Working with him.

[00:56:04] Blake: It's actually, it's a great experience. I mean, we're with each other 224/7pretty much, except when she's traveling. So, one really cool thing, and I always tell people this, is if we have an idea that we come up with or she comes up with that she wants to put out there, we can do it instantly.

[00:56:43] Christine: True

[00:56:49] Christine: Yeah. I think one of the things that works really well is that he takes care of our personal life. And I wouldn't have one at all, really.

[00:57:18] Yeah. And so I think that, I mean, that's nice of him. But I also, to his point, like he's, he came from the university world, so he's really good with corporate people, where I'm just like, I got this idea. I make up, I just get up. So on the phone I'm like, and I'm like, I, you know, and then it's like, and then he, I give it to him and he corp.

[00:58:24] I was with Churchill and Mattel, and they wanted me to make 135 of these, and I would just like, okay, so it's like the beginning of March, and then it's March 15th, and nobody signed off on what it actually is. And it was just like, I would watch the, I was part of the, you know, it was copied in the email, and I just like go, it would be like, what do you think?

[00:58:47] Blake: So many people were making decisions. Even

[00:58:52] Christine: Yeah. I wrote to the person, I wrote to the person of Churchill, and I said, you know, I, we're gonna have to make these, can you get, can we get off this gerbil as a hamster wheel?

[00:59:24] Jump in. Yeah. He knew when to jump in. He knew exactly what to say, you know, instead of, you know, like just, he was just. But that was really one of the most helpful things. And even when I get Matt and he, every time he does something, he, okay, you know, a lot of marketing people do nothing for a long time.

[00:59:56] Blake: I think, and I think that's one, hold on Blake, of the things. I think that's one, one of the things that no one tells you really is when you're gonna work with them, when the arts and the corporate world come together to work together, just how long a project can really take.

[01:00:22] 'cause every time we've done a corporate one, it's always been a valuable, great experience. But it does take a pretty long time to have it go through the whole system.

[01:00:42] Blake: Yeah.

[01:01:00] But, and then the other thing I always think about is just the importance of the people. And you guys talked about it in the arts, and then certainly, having the employees that you've hired, Christine, and as I think though it's like. It's not rocket science. Those things are all the same things that keep coming up in conversations, and I think it's just, you know, being a good person.

[01:01:42] So, do, I would love to hear, just can you in a nutshell sum up what your lives are gonna be like for the next couple weeks heading towards this busy, amazing horse racing season, and just, I wanna know what the workload is, like, what it looks like for you, and also -h. Is there a trend that you see coming?

[01:02:04] Christine: I said, Carol's shaking your head.

[01:02:07] Christine: Like Carol. I said, Carol, do you wanna say it?

[01:02:27] Carol does that. And then, it's just one after another. And it's about being a great ambassador for racing, especially for Churchill Downs, for the Kentucky Derby, 'cause you'll get phone calls every day or emails, mostly emails every day saying, I'm going to the Derby for the first time.

[01:03:01] And it's really, it's that customer relationship that just really counts at this point. And being able to like, look at every custom order, 'cause everything's custom-made for all these events. Well, you know, we don't have a huge warehouse where all this stuff's in there. They choose the piece, and then they collaborate with the person on what they're gonna wear.

[01:03:21] Christine: Yeah. Yeah. And well, yeah, we have a lot, a collection that we put up on, like I design a collection and then we do one of a kind from that collection, and then we do special orders. So, so yeah, so everything's built basically at this time.

[01:03:55] I don't even say what that phrase is?

[01:03:59] Christine: Yeah. But I mean, it's not chaos, but it's like, it's just, it's just trying to get to everybody and do the best job we can, and my staff, like, they really support and like to kick it into gear. This is, you know, when the game is on for sure now, and you just wanna see everybody come to Churchill Downs and have a huge smile and, you know, you did, you made them feel like a million dollars.

[01:04:50] So we've tried, so everybody from outside who's coming into church, into Derby, into Louisville for the Derby has planned out their outfit. They even, you know, they plan everything they've been told. You know, you have to get your reservations, you have to be all ready. Yeah. Have everything delivered.

[01:05:24] So you have two weeks of fashion scurry, and you just terrorize all the stores, and you terrorize all the males. And it is just, and they, and then get a fun, beautiful weapon. And you cannot get them to, generally, you cannot get any of them to think early or to order early. So it's like a really interesting, so it gets, it just kind of like snowballs, and 'cause then all the Louisville people, and it's like, I, some of these people, I, they, I, you know, worked with them for so many years, so I am not gonna let them down.

[01:06:11] Lindsay: Like, really? So what do you mean? You mean

[01:06:28] Lindsay: Like, you mean they're going with their husbands or their husbands?

[01:06:32] Christine: Yeah. They're their husbands. They're no, they're, yeah.

[01:06:36] Christine: Yeah. So they're sad. So

[01:06:41] Christine: Yeah. I called Christie, but then the other, and then this was amazing to me. So these kids are some of these tickets, and, you know, they could be, you could have like $10,000 a seat.

[01:06:58] Lindsay: Really?

[01:07:14] And they'll say, somebody just told me they're not coming. Do you wanna go to Derby? And then they'll, and they'll go,

[01:07:20] Christine: Exactly. I, just, I, if these people knew how much these, you know, these tickets are these, this, you know, I thought they would never pass it. Yeah. But it is not like they're telling you, oh, hey, I am giving you, I want you to come to my, be part of my derby party, you know, and we're going to Churchill, and it's, and, you know, my, the ticket's 10,000, so don't screw up.

[01:07:44] Blake: Well, the

[01:07:49] Blake: Yeah. Another thing that's like the thing that tells you just how amazingly cool and crazy and fun that Derby day is. It is just really o over the top that whole day, from early in the morning watching people just go there to watch people, then they watch the races.

[01:08:13] Lindsay: then I remember

[01:08:14] Lindsay: The craziest is how fast it's over at that marque race or even, you know, and then it's like, okay, here you go. Fast minutes, you know, and then

[01:08:24] Lindsay: wild.

[01:08:31] Blake: It's so fun. It is really fun.

[01:08:43] Christine: So, okay, so I would say the hat is leading the charge over fascinators. And I think it's 'cause it's American style.

[01:08:57] Lindsay: They're light.

[01:09:14] There's a lot of brown with brights, a lot of brown, you know, with pastels, like

[01:09:22] Blake: three here, Lee

[01:09:24] Blake: Here, this, just give an idea, like these are pieces that are finished now waiting to be shipped.

[01:09:32] Christine: These. But I think we shipped all the ones that are like,

[01:09:39] Yeah, those are beautiful

[01:09:47] Lindsay: I love that. I love that

[01:10:02] But I wanna know, are you gonna go?

[01:10:09] Lindsay: I will let you know. I will, I promise to give you a little, a little more of, you know, a heads up about my timing, during this Triple Crown season. So yes, our paths will absolutely cross, and I can't wait to see you guys.

[01:10:24] Lindsay: No, it's always fun to see you there. I love it because you're always in your element, and it's like, it's, I, my perception is like, it's just always busy, and you guys are always like, it's such great energy. So thank you so much. Well, thank you. You guys gave like five or six different things no one tells you.

[01:10:56] Blake: Great. Thank you so much. Thank you.

[01:11:25] And I just, you know, it's such a lesson and it seems so simple, but it is something that I think maybe people don't talk about enough. So, I can't wait to see them down the road at the racetrack because they're always there. And that's also a really cool thing about Christine and Blake. You know, if you're going to a big horse race, a meaningful horse race that is like the top of the top, they're gonna be there.

[01:12:06] Thanks so much. Please rate, review, like, subscribe, and share an episode with a friend, and we will see you right back here next week. Thanks so much for joining me. I can't wait to see you back here next week. Please don't forget, follow and subscribe to Things No One Tells You. And of course, if you're listening to Apple Podcasts, don't forget to leave a five-star review because that's really what helps people get more.