The Fascination for Ostrich Feathers

The two-legged flightless bird with the big eyes and puffy feathers once caused a sensation in the fashion industry and today continuous to appeal to designers who create and incorporate feathers into their works.
The feather boom in the late eighteen hundreds and early nineteen hundreds was driven by a craze for feathered hats that were in demand and enjoyed by many throughout Europe. At the time ostrich feathers were so valuable that only diamonds were worth more by weight than feathers. Ostrich feathers were amongst cases of feathers that were on the manifest of the Titanic.

Societal changes like the introduction of the ford motor car impacted the demand for ostrich feathers. The tall hats that could reach two to three feet in height could not fit in the car and became impractical.
Ostrich feathers are still a fascination in the fashion industry and many well-known designers use the feathers for dresses, bags, and accessories. The feathers are sourced mainly from South Africa and can be dyed into vibrant colors and are then skillfully arranged. 

The art and craft of feather work is done by a 'plumassier' and a fascinating and in-depth article in The New Yorker Magazine written in September describes the history of feathers in fashion and the works of Eric Charles-Donatien (a plumassier in Paris). His work for many years is with different kinds of feathers in the fashion industry creating items for the likes of Vera Wang, Dior, and Armani.
The ostrich maybe flightless but its feathers take flight and are admired by many.

A great site to look at some featherd works is 
The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute