Staircase House

Today I visited Staircase House in Stockport. I decided to visit this house since I have decided to set my costume design module which is starting in September in the medevial era around the middle of the 1400s. This house is thought to have been built in the 1460s though unfortunately it has been laid out like a 1600s/1700s house so there is more information about this era then the medieval, still it was interesting and I saw a variety of decorative features on the furniture that could be great inspirations for future projects.

The Hat Works

Today I visited the Hat Works Museum in Stockport. This was part of my research for the Millinery module I will be starting in September. This museum was really good and showed a large variety of hats starting in the Victorian Era to modern day. There was also a floor that showed all the machine and hat blocks used in order to make hats. I gained a knowledge about hats and the felt making process along with the conditions that hat makers and milliners had to work in.

Machine, Hat Works.

This image shows one of the machines used to make the cones of felt which are used to block hats. The door of the machine would closed and felt fibres would be released. The fibres would be drawn to the cone by suction and then solution and water would be spray to keep the fibres together.

Hat, Vivienne Westward, 2005.

The designer of this hat is Vivienne Westward and it is bonnet made from straw with cotton ribbon which is patterned.

Hat Display, Hat Works.

This is a display from the museum showing a variety of hats made from different materials such as feathers, fur, suede, straw, silk, ribbon and velvet.

Straw Toque, Hat Works, 1980

This is a Toque that is constructed from straw and it has decoration made from netting and feather.

Java, Hat Works.

This is a Javanese hat that is made from satin and has decoration in the colour gold. This would have been worn by a dancer. This is one of my favorite hats due to the amount of decoration used on it.

Visit their website at: www.stockport.gov.uk/services/leisureculture/museumsandgalleries/hatworks/ 

Update- 1890 Corset

The corset is finished, though they are some elements that I dislike. I ran into some problems in sewing the boning channels since the fabric was too bulky and the machine would not sew. If I did this again I would also add an additional layer of fabric between the boning and main fabric since the pattern of the spiral boning shows through the thin satin. On the inside of the corset I used bias binding to finish the corset, in the future I will add lining instead to get a neater finish.

In order to cord the corset I used tapestry needles to thread the cording through the channels and I also used wire as an alternative to the needles. This process was quite difficult and time consuming. I'm glad I used the colours black and purple since they stand out against each other and work well together. The lace on top of the corset is also a nice element.

Back View Corset

Full View Flat Corset

Close up View of 3D Corset

Close Up View of Flat Corset

Update- Creature Encounters Costume Completed

The puppet costume for Embellishment has been completed. I thought I was successful in creating a costume that looks like my design. The most challenging part was the PVC leather patches since they would move when being sewn and I also could not pin them in place. I used Faux suede to create this costume in the colour's red, green and aqua which I ordered from Fabric Online. Black PVC leather was used to create the patches and it was spray painted silver. I used TRG's leather spray paint since when I used all purpose spray paint it did not fix properly to the leather and was sticky. It also transferred easily. The fringing uses wool yarn.

Tips

-When I was sewing with the PVC I used spray mount to fix the patches in place before sewing them.

-To prevent the PVC from moving when sewing, use a Teflon foot.

Laali's Costume- Front

Laali's Costume- Back

New Project- 1890 Corset

Since I have handed in my final projects I have decided to improve my corsetry skills through making a 1890 corset which pattern I found in Jill Salen's book, Corsets: Historical Patterns and Techniques.

Khaki Corded Corset, Hereford Museum, 1890- 1900. SALEN, J. Corsets: Historical Patterns and Techniques p.62

Making this corset is really going to help in developing my corsetry skills, since I have never inserted cording to a corset before. I will also be able to improve my fitting and pattern sizing up skills.

Symington, Leicestershire County Council Museum, 1875.  SALEN, J. Corsets: Historical Patterns and Techniques p.2

I have decided on incorporating the quilt pattern from this corset also found in Jill Salen's book, Corsets: Historical Patterns and Techniques on to the corset I am making to reduce the amount of cording on the corset. This is due to this corset being my first attempt at cording.

I started with sizing up the pattern to fit my measurements and making a toile. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the toile fit at the waist and hips so only the bust needed adjusting. Since the back piece fit nicely I decided on not taking in the sides but the bust gussets instead, making them smaller to fit my bust size. I did this through adding darts.

1890 Corset Toile

After I adjusted my pattern I cut new bust gussets for one side of the toile so I could make sure my adjustments are correct. The alterations were successful.

1890 Corset Toile- Adjusted

So that I know how much cording and the length of the boning I need, I marked the channels for the cording, busk and boning on the toile using an ink pen. I also tried the toile on again to make sure that the channels I marked were sitting in the correct places.

Toile with marked channels

Resources
SALEN, J. (2008) Corsets: Historical Patterns and Techniques Batsford. London

Patchwork and Embroidery Exhibition

Today I visited the patchwork and embroidery exhibition that took place at Seaton Carew at the Marine Hotel. There was a wide range of amazing quilts on display as well as being sold. Cottons for quilting and patchwork were also being sold. This exhibit was really interesting since I was able to look closely at the stitch work on the quilts and how certain aspects have been attached to the work. It was also nice to see how different patterned fabric have been matched together.

Museum of Hartlepool

Today I visited the Museum of Hartlepool. This museum is great research into uniform since they have Police, Fireman, Nurse and various other uniform on display. They also have a large variety of original badges and medals for a range of occupations.

Victorian Mourning Dress                 Close-up Detail of Victorian            Late 1800s Sailors Uniform 

   Mourning Dress

Fire Brigade Badges- Tees Valley. 1900-1980

These badges would have been placed on their hard hats.

Visit their webside at:
www.hartlepoolsmaritimeexperience.com/home/museum-of-hartlepool/