Wednesday 1 January 2014

Happy New Year...


As we all set New Years resolutions and make plans for the year ahead, the thoughts and memories of the previous year often get overlooked...

It's important to take the time to reflect on all the good (& bad) things we encounter each and every year.

Thinking about the year 2013; for me personally I achieved quite  a lot and had some amazing experiences; far too many to list or recall, but I will share with you some of my highlights...

Starting with college, education & work experiences...

I gained a work placement at a local fashion boutique

I was part of the main team for Newcastle Fashion Week

Hosted an end of year college fashion show with classmates

Graduated with a Foundation Degree in Fashion

& began studying BA (hons) Creative Enterprise.


Other highlights include...

Trip to Paris

Family holiday to Lanzarote

Random trips to Durham, Edinburgh & Manchester

Many music concerts & gigs:

Olly Murs, Rihanna & David Guetta, The Big Reunion, Durham Summer Nights, Metro Radio Live, 5ive...


I'm sure there is so many more but I'll leave it at that!

Many thanks to all of those who helped to make 2013 a good year!

Let's hope 2014 will be even better...

Good Luck to you all & Happy New Year!  =) xx








Monday 11 November 2013

Love Niche Blogger Event...

Thursday 7th November 2013 saw Love Niche host their first ever Blogger Event!

The event was designed to create interest in the company but more importantly to get people to actually get into the studio to experience the wonder of the Love Niche Studio.

Being part of the Love Niche team I'm may be a little bias; but i'm sure all of those who attended will agree the event was amazing! 

Upon arrival guests were greeted to a candle lit studio and welcomed with a lovely glass of sparkling rose garnished with fresh raspberries. 
There was also a lovely arrangement of savory snacks and sweet treats displayed ready for guests to tuck in to.


There were many lovely treats available - I'll begin with the savory selection which included:

Cheese Board featuring a variety of cheeses 
(garnished with red & green grapes of course!)
Fresh French Baguette and Balsamic Vinegar for dipping!
Rough Scottish Oat Cakes
Salt & Pepper Cracker Thins 
Spiced Plum Chutney
Tomato & Nigella Seed Chutney
Selection of nuts and nibbles 
(including Bombay Mix and a personal favorite Pistachio nuts.)


Savory Selection


The cheese board was a definite winner with the guests; I think this is partly because of the carefully considered selection, and quite simply because we chose some less obvious varieties...

So we chose to buy locally and bought all of the cheeses from the Cheese shop in the Grainger Market
This shop is quite simply the best thing I have come across in a while! I can't believe I've never been before! The shop stocks and sells a massive amount of cheese in many varieties. The woman who served us was extremely helpful and along with advising on what cheese were most popular and what to buy she also offered us samples.
The samples and advice led us to buying some strange sounding cheese but the flavours were incredible.

The final cheese selection included: French Brie, Strong Welsh Cheddar, Northumberbland Nettle, Garlic Cheese, Red Devil Chilli Cheese, Wensleydale & Cranberry, Strawberry & Champagne Stilton, and the strangest of all - Sticky Toffee Cheese! 

Ok so it doesn't sound great but honestly its worth a try! The woman suggested it and I was a bit hesitant to try but after being told it tasted more like fudge than cheese, I thought well i'll give it a try...
I'm not going to lie it was a bit weird that a cheese tasted like fudge but after encouraging others to try it at the event everyone was pleasantly surprised by its unique taste.

So overall Cheese may be strange but I am now open to trying the many flavours and varieties available; and all because we have an amazing local cheese shop! 

Another favourite of mine was the Spice Plum Chutney; again from a shop in the Grainger Market. The smell of the store is a delight itself, but the huge variety of chutneys and relishes among other great products is what makes the store so great. Again the customer service was brilliant! Lots of helpful advice and pleasant conversation.

Seriously though we (those of us living in Newcastle) are truly lucky to have such an amazing Market in the heart of the city centre; anyone who doesn't usually shop in the Grainger Market - I urge you to try it and give it a go! 


Now back to Love Niche!

Staying with the food though (because I do love food!) but moving onto the sweet things!
So the sweet treats selection included:

Selection of Chocolates
Marshmallows & Fresh Strawberries with warm melted chocolate for dipping!
Chocolate Covered Strawberries
Cheesecake Bites
Coffee Brownie Bites
Oreo Brownie Bites 
Snickers Brownie Bites


Sweet Treats!

Everybody loves a good sweet treat, so there was no surprise to the delighted response to the yummy selection supplied.

The display itself was quite impressive; with the use of cake stands, fondue kit, and various tired stands. The three tired glass stand was stunning with sliver decorative pieces and beautiful matching serving tongs. 

But more importantly the treats themselves were amazing! The Brownie Bites selection and Cheesecake bites were the definite winners here though...

Many thanks to Deli Delivered who kindly supplied us with the bite size beauties!
Quite possibly the best brownies I have ever had! (and anyone who knows me knows of my love for brownies!)

Once everyone had tried a bit of everything guests were treated to a short showcase of some of the new stock in the form of a mini catwalk presentation. 
The dimly lit studio teamed with the hauntingly beautiful sound of Florence and The Machine's Seven Devils created a stunningly dramatic atmosphere while six models slowly floated down the stairwell and through the studio, posing in places to show off the amazing detailing of the garment front and backs. 

After the intimate fashion show guests browsed through the well stocked studio and interacted nicely with staff and the other guests. The entire evening was beautifully executed and was pleasantly surprising to see and hear like minded people interacting. The event brought local bloggers together and I must say there was some lovely people who attended.



To top it all off and to end nicely all attendees were treated to an amazing Love Niche Goodie Bag!


The contents of the Blogger Event goody bag made this the very best Love Niche Goodie Bag to date!

Goodies included inside:

A lovely Bracelet from Love Niche
£25 off voucher for Love Niche
NorthburN Candle Melts
Neals Yard package (including skincare samples, booklet, and vouchers)
Chocolate Tash Lollipop from DeliDelivered
Haircare samples and £10 voucher for Sabai
Geo Bar
& some Leaflets and menus!





Goodie Bag contents!



The event was a great success and hopefully guests have blogged about the evening too! Love Niche host many events and they are all wonderful so keep an eye out for any future events and hopefully some of you can make it to one of the events in the future!





Check out the websites below:

http://love-niche.com/
http://www.delidelivered.com/
https://www.facebook.com/NorthburnHF








Friday 25 October 2013

Back from a Break from Blogging...

Apologies for the long absence from blogging!

After a long hard 2 years of study for my Foundation Degree I decided to have a well earned break! 

Due to a variety of reasons the break from blogging lasted longer than intended... But fear not i'm back to inform you of the work I undertake, the things I do and anything else I wish to share...

Just to recap over a few things...
 I studied at Newcastle College - School of Art & Design for 3 years: the 1st year I studied Foundation Diploma Studies in Art & Designs (Specialising in Fashion), I then went on to study FdA Fashion for 2 years which come to a spectacular end in June when we hosted an end of year fashion show to showcase all of our hard work and talent. I then graduated with my fellow fashion buddies (well a select few of them anyways) in July 2013.


The very quickly made poster for the event!


I am now currently enrolled on the BA Hons Creative Enterprise course at Newcastle College to top up my degree. Although there is much more academic work, including lots of writing and essays, I intend to continue to develop and express my creativity. I am looking forward to gaining a full degree by conducting basically any work I wish to do! 

I have written and submitted my first piece of work (my Project Proposal) and am ready to start the mission of entering the Creative Industries!

Soo basically look out for more of my personal work that I will embark on throughout the next year!



Graduation Day!






Saturday 25 May 2013

Newcastle Fashion Week 2013...


Last years Newcastle Fashion Week left me wanting more; so much more that I decided to apply to be a team member for Newcastle Fashion Week 2013!

After a successful interview I was welcomed onto the main team and as soon as the programmes and call sheets were sent out I began to get very excited for the actual week.

Newcastle Fashion Week 2013 took place between May 10th - May 18th.

Day 1
The first event of the week was a VIP invite only event - Mercedes Benz Car Bootique.
The event was held at the Mercedes Benz of Newcastle Showroom, where car boots were opened and filled with products from a range of luxury brands. The highlight of the night was a Cruise Fashion Show which showcased key looks and trends to celebrate the arrival of the Spring Summer 2013 season.
Guests were treated to drinks and canapes by luxury bar Livello and music by Metro Radio.







I was lucky enough to start my week with Newcastle Fashion Week 2013 at this event; I was given various tasks throughout the day, such as organizing and arranging the layout and arrangement of the different stalls or 'Bootiques', I was also responsible for greeting stall holders and showing them there 'Bootique' space and issuing them their stall holder passes. I also helped with the unloading of products and clothing for some of the brands. 
After all the stall holders were happy and no longer needed any assistance; I moved onto packing goody bags. Before I could start though I had to go around all of the brands and gather anything extra they had brought with them which they wanted to be put in the bags, I also collected any raffle prices at the same time.  I started packing the bags with another team member, we quickly worked out a system that made the process simple and quicker. 
 With the goody bags nearly all filled; I was quickly pulled away and asked if I would be a dresser for the Cruise catwalk show. I was then introduced to the model I would be dressing for the event and given a brief run through of the garments and running order.

Doors opened 7pm... Officially marking the start of Newcastle Fashion Week 2013!
The atmosphere seemed great and the fashion show went really well; it wasn't until the very end of the night when we were tidying up and packing things away that I realised how expensive the clothes I had been handling were! 

The guests were then chauffeur driven to Livello where the after party was being held. Although I was invited; I decided it would be best to go straight home and get as much sleep as possible for the very busy week ahead.

Day 2 & 3
Newcastle Fashion Weekend...
The 2 day event was held at Northumbria Student Union and was a fusion of catwalk shows, clothes, stalls, talks, demonstrations, celebrities, and so much more!

It was an early 7am start for team in the morning; we all met in the main event space before being delegated  
jobs for the day. I was taken outside with a small group and given the task of greeting and guiding brands, stores, stalls holders, etc. to the loading bay and explaining the process they would have to follow to unload efficiently. With different methods of how to go about doing so being told to us being thrown about, we had to make a decision and do it the way we thought was most efficient. I must say as a small team we did quite well at this task, out in the cold, wet weather for many hours! 
After everyone had arrived and all the loading was done, I made my way up to the 'backstage' area where all the clothing for the catwalk shows were kept, it was also where the models got their hair and make up done; and just a general space for organizing the day. I walked in to find that MY Little Black Dress that I made at college was being tried on! I then asked if it would be possible to dress the model who would be wearing my outfit and was pleased to be given the task of dressing the lovely model for the rest of the day. 

The first catwalk show was the Newcastle College Fashion show and it of course featured the work of fashion students from the college - my classmates!  =) It was exciting to think that all our work would be the first show of the weekend but when we went downstairs, backstage ready to start the catwalk show; it got a bit hectic, the lights went off and we had to dress the models in the dark and do so very quickly! After the catwalk show, I went out front to see what my classmates thought of it and they all said it looked really good, If it looked good on the catwalk thats all that matters!

The rest of the weekend ran smoothly and although backstage was chaotic at times, the event was successful and the crowds loved it!


Poppy Dinsey 

Caryn Franklin

Lauren Pop & Ollie Locke

Nikki Lissoi





Day 4
Martini Manicure Monday...

This event  was hosted at Fat Buddha and featured a catwalk and sample sale from Van Mildert. There was also pampering, manicures and manicures - hence the event name! 
Unfortunately I was unable to attend this event as I was working all day with Love Niche who hosted a Fringe event on the same evening (i'll more than likely blog about this at some point).
 However I have seen photographs from the event and have heard it was a great event.

Day 5
Northumbria University: Fashion...

The annual fashion event showcasing Northumbria University Fashion students work was held at The Baltic Centre For Contemporary Art.
 The event didn't call for any work experience team and was a ticketed event; therefore I didn't attend the event but again seeing the photos and feedback proved the event was a success.

Day 6
Fashion Front Row...

This was the day and event I was most excited for! Hosted at As You Like It in Jesmond; the event showcases a wide selection of design talent from the North East of England. Again I was working all day for Love Niche so I was unable to work with the Newcastle Fashion Week team, however alongside Love Niche's intern, I was sent to represent the brand for the event throughout the day! 
I have to say it was rather strange being with a brand and not the NFW team that day; but it was a great experience and the responsibility was almost overwhelming. After we arrived and set up our area backstage we had a fitting with the available models to check the fit of garments, we only had one problem -  one of the dresses didn't fit a model but we just took it back to the Love Niche Studio and replaced it with a suitable alternative for the catwalk show.

Love Niche space before we had a rail!

 Once again we arrived back at As You Like It and prepared for the showcase to begin; we were all given a running order that featured all of the brands that were showcasing that night, we (Love Niche) were on after the interval and therefore were able to go upstairs and view the first half.
 Backstage again after the interval, and we were ready to begin the stressful role of being a dresser. Once the show was over, we packed up all our things and loaded them into the car; then went back to As You Like It for celebratory drinks to end a successful (but stressful) day!

Love Niche

Day 7
Eldon Square Spring/Summer Catwalk...

Eldon Square hosted various catwalk shows throughout the day featuring looks and outfits from some of the impressive list of over 150 retailers.
This was another day that the NFW work experience team wasn't needed which was good as I had two college modules to hand in this day!

Day 8
The Royal Wedding...

Hosted at the incredible venue Newcastle's Theatre Royal, the event was a showcase of beautiful wedding gowns, bridesmaid dresses and suits for groomsmen, all from North East designers and retailers. 

The first task of the day was to set up the areas where the models would get their hair and make up done and then the area where we would be dressing the models. We had to transport tables and chairs up stairs and set them up ready for the hair and make up artists to use. I then had to source jugs of water and glasses for everyone to drink throughout the day - its unreal how much water is needed during an event day! The next task was to sort the dresses that were arriving and place them on rails. I then met the model I would be dressing that day and took her to the lovely Leigh Hetherington who was showcasing three stunning wedding dresses that day; I was shown how to put the dress on the model correctly and what accessories went with the dress.

After all the brands eventually turned up and sorted their garments and outfits; it was time for the catwalk show. The models swept down the staircases and walked the 'catwalk' before rushing backstage to change into the next outfit. 
After the catwalk show most of the NFW team went home but a few of us stayed to help with the photoshoots. The photoshoots were to help promote the Theatre Royal as a wedding venue' various arrangements of outfits were taken at different locations in and around the venue. My favourite moment of the day was being on the stage looking out to the amazing seating area, the models were photographed from this viewpoint and the shots look incredible.











Day 9
Official Closing Party...

The official closing party was held at Tiger Tiger Newcastle this year and featured DJ sets by Lauren Pope - the face of Newcastle Fashion Week 2013 official sponsor Nikki Lissoni, and The X factors' Diana Vickers. 
 Unfortunately I decided to stay at home and rest after a very busy and stressful week.



Newcastle Fashion Week 2013 was simply amazing! Being part of the main NFW team was incredible and I am truly grateful for the opportunity to be a part of such an amazing fashion filled event. The amount of experience gained and the people I met really was phenomenal. I would recommend taken part to anyone who is interested in fashion, events, PR, Whatever really it is such an invaluable experience and I hope I get the same chance to take part next year! 

Already looking forward to Newcastle Fashion Week 2014!



Check out the Facebook page for photos and comments...

https://www.facebook.com/nclfshnwk


And check out Nikki Lissoni official sponsor of Newcastle Fashion Week 2013...


http://www.nikkilissoni.com/

And Finally some of the participants from the week...

http://www.cruisefashion.co.uk/

http://www.leighhetherington.co.uk/

https://marketplace.asos.com/boutique/annie-and-the-mannequins

http://www.barlivello.co.uk/


http://www.newcastlene1ltd.com/

http://www.getintonewcastle.co.uk/










Sunday 5 May 2013

Material Remains...

By Diana Winkfield.


Diana Winkfield is an artist specialising in drawing and painting with mixed Media. In this exhibition she has explored the idea of memory evoked by concealed, worn and tattered clothing found whilst restoring a 17th Century farmhouse in rural France.

Diana Winkfield has carefully studied the items discovered and has focused on the analysis of the colour, fabric, shape, texture, condition and origins of the objects to reveal a concoction of both real and supposed memories and stories.

Her work, which considers the cultural ideal embedded in French society and expresses life and loss through depictions of found garments; was also inspired by items from The Bowes Museum; whose founder Joséphine was French.  Joséphine was a contemporary of the Empress Eugénie whose collection of costume in the museum inspired Diana Winkfield to create a magnificent painting for the exhibition; titled ‘EMPRESS  EUGENIE’S WARDROBE’ – painted on an old French linen sheet which was dyed in blue and brown and then bleached by the sun. The painting has been stored folded for the last 6 months to represent the clothes, some of which designed by Charles Worth, which were packed up hurriedly in trunks in 1870 and taken to exile in England, where they stayed until their auction in 1923. They lay for a further 30 years until they were donated to The Bowes Museum by Miss Edleston in 1953. Personally this is my favourite piece of the exhibition; not only is it steeped in history and detail but it beautifully depicts garments that can actually be seen around the museums own permanent collection. It such a stunningly evocative piece of artwork, even the way it hangs with the creases from folds still visible is enticing. The soft blur like detailing adds a whimsical dreamlike quality.

EMPRESS  EUGENIE’S WARDROBE – La garde robe de l’impératice Eugénie
Mixed media on linen sheet 2012



Close up.


Of course there are other pieces on display such as ragged children’s dresses, interpretations of half a corset found in the attic; which had such intricacy for a rural area that it suggest it may have been for bridal wear. The fragments of china found on the site also represent the ‘wedding list’ china which follows brides through their married life. These items were used together to create 3 pieces of artwork named ‘WEDDING LIST I, II, & III’. 

Diana Winkfield also drew inspiration from 18th Century underwear from The Bowes collection to create two painting; ‘WORN, DARNED, PATCHED & MENDED I & II’. These paintings signify the class divide of the time – one depicts a fine patterned, embroidered silk corset, and the other is made of coarse brown twilled cotton, with desperate mending visible. The two items were viewed by Diana Winkfield as one for fantasy for ‘ornamental women’ and the other for practicality for keeping peasant women wrapped up in layers to keep warm. Again I found these paintings very evocative and a sense of history is invoked; the difference in the two items is evidently reflected in the artwork.
c.1750
This decorative example has its original wooden busk in place down the centre front to give a straight rigid line to the fashionable cone-shape.

‘WORN, DARNED, PATCHED & MENDED I & II’ - Usé, rapiécé, reprise et réparé
Mixed media on canvas 2012


c.1750
Discovered in an old property in Whitby, this is a very worn example of a homemade corset. Fully boned, it has a heavier curved piece of whalebone around the top front, which has had a section added. The worn areas reveal the canvas interlining, the whalebone and wool padding.



The exhibition as a whole conjures an emotional reaction as you find yourself delving into the garments past; creating your own personal thoughts and supposed stories and memories from which they could reside. I would definitely recommend the exhibition to anyone with an interest in fashion history and the decompositions of fabrics and materials.


The exhibition is currently on display within The Fashion & Textile Gallery at The Bowes Museum until 8th September 2013.


Wednesday 1 May 2013

The Bowes Museum


The Bowes Museum is located in the historic market town of Barnard Castle, Co. Durham. It was purpose built in the 19th Century by John and Joséphine Bowes; as a way of introducing the wider world of art to the local people. John met his wife Joséphine whilst exploring his interest in the arts on a trip to Paris; they had the idea of creating the museum and started plans for the building and collecting treasures to been held within it. With various galleries over three floors and frequently changing exhibitions of both nationally and internationally renowned works of art; there is sure to be something for everyone to enjoy. 


I was particularly interested in what the First Floor of the museum had to offer: European Decorative Art, John and Joséphine Story Galleries and of course the award winning Fashion & Textile Gallery. The John and Joséphine Story Galleries hosts memorabilia from the couples personal lives as well as video presentations; all of which tell the story of how the remarkable couple met, their lives whilst in Paris and what led them to embark upon their amazing museum project.

The part I found most interesting – probably because of its fashion connection – was the re-creation of the dress Joséphine Bowes is wearing in her portrait (above the mantle mirror).  

 Overmantel mirror with portrait of Joséphine Bowes; 1882-1887



The ball gown was re-created by an internationally celebrated theatrical and historical costumier, Luca Costigliolo. Having dedicated his life to the study of historical clothing and the original techniques used in their cut and construction; he made Joséphine’s dress in the museum in front of the visitors, between 25th June and 6th July 2012. This process was also filmed and can be viewed on a television within the room. 

The re-created ball gown by Luca Costigliolo. 


I found this really interesting and thought it was such a lovely idea; not only have they managed to re-create the outfit but you can actually watch the process in which it was made.




Moving on the best part of the museum (well in my opinion at least!) The Fashion & Textile Gallery.




The gallery houses a permanent collection of garments arranged in chronological order. This arrangement works well as it enable you to ‘walk through’ the centuries and decades and easily see the changes in silhouettes and styles.
The garments are displayed on invisible mannequins in glass boxes, giving the audience a 360° view of each and every garment.
Highlights of the include bodices, jackets and shoes that once belonged to the Empress  Eugenie, consort of Napoleon III; who was also known as ‘The Countess of Crinoline’, she was a leader of fashion and was dressed by leading couturier Charles Worth.



Below are a few of my favourite finds:



 Matching Day & Evening Bodices
C. 1855 


 Wedding Dress
 C.1880 


 Evening Coat
 1919-1925

There were so many items of interest at the museum that quite simply I can’t write about them all. It was the first time that I had visited The Bowes Museum and I would definitely recommend it to any with an interest in historical treasures; particularly those interested in historical costume.



Visit their website for more information and to plan a visit:
http://www.thebowesmuseum.org.uk/



Monday 29 April 2013

Introduction to Making Period Costume


  Although I’m not primarily interesting in costume design, my love for all things fashion led me to the discovery of a masterclass – Introduction to Making Period Costume – at Northern Stage in Newcastle Upon Tyne.  The course was led by professional costumier Gayle Playford and the head of Northern Stage wardrobe department Alison Stringer.


Gayle Marie Playford is a designer, supervisor and maker of costume for professional theatre and film productions. She has worked in the costume interpretation industry for over 15 years and embraces collaborations with experts in multidisciplinary arts. She also developed the degree programme Costume Design and Construction at Cleveland Collage of Art & Design. She is currently making the costumes on the BBC1 Drama The Paradise.

The places on the course are very limited – only 10 people per class, but the small numbered group makes the course more intimate and enjoyable. The day began by meeting in the reception of Northern Stage before being greeted and a register was taken – just like in school days! The group was then took to a small conference room, in which we were introduced to everyone as well as being introduced to the schedule of the day. To start the day we were given a presentation on the ‘’Introduction to Making Period Costume’. Along with the PowerPoint slideshow, Gayle and Alison explained various topics found within costume making; such as the different roles within the process of completing a costume project; for example: costume designers, costume makers, costume finishers.

 They explained that a costume designer would have to decide at the very beginning of a project whether or not to create a historically correct aesthetic or a historical interpreted design, the designer would also be in charge of the financial decisions as well as the visual and aesthetic.
 The costume maker would then interpret the designers’ ideas into reality by creating samples, advising on fabrics, timescales, toiles, fittings, etc. The role of finishing a costume could be given its own job title; there are specialists trained in finishing costumes, they would take the newly made garment and use various techniques to ‘age’ the garment to create a historically accurate look, for example make them look dirty, ragged, frayed, worn, etc.



An example of a costume created for a Northern Stage Production

 Gayle Playford then explained the importance of the underpinnings of period costume; the underwear. Historically woman wore a lot of under garments including corsets, chemises, petticoats, caged crinolines, bustles, bum-pads, etc. The combination of the under garments all contributed to creating the overall silhouette of the final garment and outfit worn.  

Gayle then went on to talk about fabric sourcing for period costumes; she said that because of the nature of period costume design heavyweight fabrics are most often used; she said that upholstery fabric can work really well with costume making projects. She also said that it is often cheaper to travel to Europe to buy fabric and bring them back than it is to buy them in this country. Both Gayle and Northern Stage often use a German company – Fukotex, when sourcing period fabrics. Gayle proceeded to show us some of her designs and costumes for The Paradise; displayed in the form of moodboards they showed photographs of finished costumes alongside notes and fabric samples.  To my surprise one of the boards showed a costume made entirely from fabrics sourced from a local fabric shop, First for Fabrics – my personal go-to shop for fabrics! Gayle then went on to say that if not from Europe the fabric she sources are almost always from northern England. She also praised various northern resources for costume enthusiasts such as Manchester Gallery of Costume, Macclesfield Silk Museum, and The Bowes Museum, to name a few. 


 Blue dress made from fabrics sourced from First for Fabrics seen on BBC1’s The Paradise. 

  After discussing fabrics and fabric sourcing, Gayle then explained different methods of pattern cutting for period costumes; cut/drape on the stand, create pattern from scratch using measurements or use an existing pattern from a book.; she suggested the Patterns of Fashions series by Janet Arnold. There are also some good books to help with creating patterning from scratch using measurements, such as books by author Ron Davis. She explained that the method chosen should reflect the design, for example a Tudor period costume would need to be made using a flat pattern due to its straight shape, in comparison to a curved silhouette which would be best cut on the stand.


 Janet Arnold - Patterns of Fashion

  After the informative presentation we then headed down to the wardrobe department where we would spend the rest of the day. We were then shown various demonstrations of techniques that would be used in the making of a costume; such as tailor tacks, attaching padding/interlining, pleating, pressing, etc. Using some of the techniques we were then giving the task of constructing half (one side) of a ¼ scale 18th Century coat. We were given pattern pieces and two weights of calico – one for the coat and one for the lining, we started making the coat but unfortunately didn’t have time to complete it on the day but hopefully I will finish it at home soon. It was really different working 1/4 scale but it was definitely a good experience, would consider working that way in the future for appropriate projects.


  As a whole the experience was very insightful and enjoyable, the day seemed to go so fast. I would also like to take part in the ‘Pattern Cutting for Theatrical Corsetry’ masterclass but unfortunately the previous classes have always sold out and the next one I can’t make it to! Hopefully there will be the chance to go to one and it would be great to see even more masterclasses on offer – particularly interested in the underwear construction so it would be perfect if a class based on that is created!



 If you’re interested and want to know more; why not book up and experience it for yourself:

http://www.northernstage.co.uk/whats-on/introduction-to-making-period-costume