lab lab lab

I love that we are finally sewing in class!!!
This week in lab we got to focus on constructing the prayer shawls for the men. There were so many new things that I learned, and though they were simple techniques, I was so grateful for the opportunity to practice them! I've never used bias tape before, and was amazed and how easy it is use and transform the look of a piece! Also, I normally am a person that loves to iron everything. I hate crooked seams and I hate when things don't look crisp and well made. But I recognize that ironing takes time, and with a little practice, it is possible to double fold an edge and hem something that looks clean. So I got to practice that on the edges of the prayer shawl and again was amazed at how easy that was. I don't think I would be as successful using that technique on a fabric that wasn't as structed as cotton or linen, but in terms of the prayer shawls, everything looked great. I have really loved seeing everything come together with the costumes and beginning to see this show come to life.

Costume Critique: The Duchess

As a film based on an influential political operator and fashion icon, the costumes were bound to be epic. The Duchess follows the life of Georgeina Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, and woman
Georgeina marries the Duke for status and social climbing, however she soon realizes that there is more to life and marriage than status. She becomes aware that her husband is involved in multiple affairs, one of which includes her best friend. In coping with her heartbreak she becomes more involved in political campaigns and also an affair with an ambitious man who dreams of becoming prime minister. Not only was Georgeina extremely fashionable for her time, but she was also a very charasmatic individual. Naturally, the public gravitated towards her and adored everything she embodied.
For being a freelance costume designer and predominantly working on minor British films, Michael O'Connor is incredibly talented. While the film itself received only somewhat positive reviews, the Duchess won an Academy Award in 2008 for best costume design.
As always, I love this era and style of clothing, but I really appreciated O'Connor's own style shine through Georgeina's character. I can't even count how many times I've seen this movie, but never before had I realized just how extensive Georgeina's closet was. I love that O'Connor wasn't afraid to work with various textures and styles, yet he was able to create a wardrobe that was fluid and true to character. I think my favorite dress was at the end of the movie when Georgeina had given birth to a child that wasn't of her husband, and she was forced to turn the child over to distant family of Charles Grey. Her dress has a much softer feel to it, the pattern being a subtle floral and not adorned with her usual accessories. It is such a feminine dress and I think in a lot of ways it embodies motherhood. The focus is shifted from her beauty and clothing and instead highlights her transition of being a woman that doesn't necessarily live for love, but finds happiness in her children.

Tradition

For lab, I helped Kierah make tassels for the prayer shawls. We used that fabric that you can just tear, which I think is just so fun to do. You just cut a little and pull apart and it's straight. We made strips and braided them. The really long frayed strings kept tangling and getting in the way of braiding them. I was still feeling a little sick that week so I just sat and did that the entire time, aside from writing down the measurements Kierah took for an actress. I am excited to see all the finished shawls.

MIRROR | ЯOЯЯIM

Eiko Ishioka was the costume designer for Mirror Mirror, but she died a couple months before it was released. She was a Japanese art director, costume and graphic designer. The costumes in this movie are big and colorful. They really support the characters. To start, the queen.
She has so many dresses. She has three different dresses of the same yellow-gold color. They almost all have the wide flowing-out-the-side look. Her red dress is my favorite. It has the peacock fan in the back, which she can take off, but the rest of the dress still has the peacock look. I think it's interesting that the queen and Snow White at the ball are both dressed up like birds. Snow White is an elegant swan that's white, symbolizing pure and innocent, and the queen is a proud peacock, with a striking powerful red. Her evening dress is flowy and has intricate details.
It has the more closed neckline that her gold dresses have, while her other dresses have a more open neckline.




Her wedding dress is the widest. It has a long veil and flowing sleeves. The skirt has vines on it with leaves and the bodice is like a flower.


Snow White only has four costumes. They represent different stages that she is in. Her first dress has more pastel colors. They look like spring, with flowers and butterflies popping out of it. It shows youthfulness. She looks like the original Disney Snow White, who is carefree and childlike. Her dress is the same style, with the puffy sleeves. Her second dress is her white ballgown, with the swan headpiece and wings. She is defying the queen by going to the ball and is wearing white, symbolic of purity. She is trying to do good.
The prince is wearing bunny ears and a magician's hat. He is dressed up like the queen's puppet. A rabbit can symbolize prey, the queen's, but like a magician, he eludes her. When he is out in the woods with Snow, he wears a vest or long coat and knee high boots.


Snow White's third costume is her woodland, adventurous one. Black and very deep blue. It is a big contrast, but still feminine. It comes off her shoulders, like her last dress does. She has black pants, but they are flowing, as is her shirt. Her bodice is fitted and has a leaf pattern.
Her last dress is a brighter blue and has an even brighter orange bow in the back.  It's very bold, unlike her first dress. It is more like summer, and the lace around the neckline reminds me of a sunflower.
The dwarfs have pretty much the same clothes, but all have different hats. Wolf has a wolf head and Napoleon has a hat like Bonaparte. Grub, in the front left, is in love with Snow White. He has on a French cap and a blue scarf. The blue is like Snow White's blue (more like in her adventure costume) but more dull. It could symbolize caring.
In the end, the prince wears a red and yellow suit. The king wears a ruffly collar with a red and yellow/gold cape and suit.
The maid servant still has the same style of bodice. It's a dark green, while her skirt is very summery. The man servant is still wearing a brown coat with a big bow and frilly sleeves.


The queen's cape is very detailed, but marks how old and faded she is. It has an autumn sort of look to it. It could symbolize dying, changing, coming to an end. She has pretty much lost all her power, and it shows in the colors she is wearing, and how she hides under the cloak.

Penny Dreadful Costume Critique #5

From the haunting pages of old newspaper stories, comes a series that is beautifully haunting. Showtime's new drama series has been using  Gabriella Pescucci as the costume designer and she is no stranger to using vintage clothes to bring up the look that the characters deserve.

Penny Dreadful is set in the Victorian England era, which is the timeline where many famous horror stories and novels are supposed to have existed. From mediums and vampires to Dorian Grey and Dr. Frankenstein , Pescucci has to dress them all. Because of the dark stories that the series is based upon, the costumes have to follow suit in order to really portray the dark tone the time and themes the series touches upon. Because of the time the series is set, Pescucci has been able to use some vintage in the wardrobe. For an interview with Vanity magazine she says,

"where possible I used vintage clothes. In other cases, I used pieces of authentic embroidery, lace, or buttons that I found in the London vintage market, applying them on corsets or dresses made with new fabric. I also used vintage men’s jackets, waistcoats, scarves, and hats when the actors measurements and characters would permit".

In the interview, Pescucci also mentions what are some things that influenced her color choices and design for some of the main characters, she says,

"The elegant physicality and the pale color of Eva’s skin led to me to choose dark colors for her. Josh Hartnett was dressed in bright colors in the Wild West Show [in the pilot], but that was the only situation I choose a bright color for him – that scene was meant to be a little bit vulgar, but funny".

Vanessa Ives, is a woman tormented by her past and the decisions her possessed self made her take. She is mysterious, but maintains the part of a woman in such an era very well. Some of her costumes have ridiculous amount of detail into them like the dress (above). It has so many layers and lace intricacies, which really lets you get a taste of the kind of woman Vanessa is.

Somthing that I particularly love of the costume designing as a whole, is that even though it is sometimes very restricted to dark tones and colors, the clothes still look very different from each other. They look cohesive without making you feel that every piece of it was made out of the same thing.

Lab

This week for lab hours I helped with fittings and making headscarves. I cut fabric and surged the edges. On Saturday we went to the give n take and got suit coats and men's shirts. We couldn't find any boots for girls. All the suits looked roughly the same, kinda dirty. Perfect for poor Anatevka.

Padme Amidala. Princess, Ambassador and Woman in love

With the upcoming Star Wars premier right around the corner, I found it fitting to dedicate a post to my love for this far, far away galaxy. Every weekend a group of friends and I all get together and watch in order, one of the films in the series. This past week we were privileged to watch Episode II Attack of the Clones, and my heart just burst. While this episode does have epic battle scenes involving the clones, it is also the episode in which Anakin and Padme fall in love. And so many  of Padme's costumes are so elegant and girly and the perfect embodiment of a woman in love.
Trisha Biggar was the costume designer and I can'y imagine carrying the weight of designing the wardrobe for an entire galaxy. She only worked on the Episodes I, II, and III in the series, but her work truly is incredible. I really love the way in which she layers fabrics and materials. Each of the three gowns represented in the pictures have such a dreamy and flowing silhouette while still having a lot of fulness. I think my favorite of Padme's gowns would have to be her wedding dress. The scene was less than a minute, but there is so much detail in the lace, her bodice and also her veil. I love that many of Padme's gowns have trains to them. While it isn't practical for when she is fighting in battle, I love the ability her clothing has to show her softer and feminine side. As a Princess and also an Ambassador her wardrobe is extensive, but I love seeing Padme in her natural element when she is able to set aside the responsibilities and burdens that she bears.

Lab time!

I finally got around to finishing the skirt I started for Yenti the Matchmaker! All that was left was sewing a casing for the elastic, installing the elastic and hemming the skirt to the appropriate length. I have never been one to have much success with elastic waistbands because I always measure too small, and the finished product never fits up over my hips. BUT! I found success in this skirt! And! I even got to learn to operate a new machine. Kierrah taught me how to use the blind hem stitch machine, and I was blown away. From the outside, you can't even see the seam. It's incredible. However using the machine took a lot of practice. I was surprised that the machine only has one speed, and that is super mega fast. So I probably spent a solid 20 minutes learning how to control and navigate the machine while still yielding the desired reults.

There were also several people who came in to be measured and fitted with costumes, and I was shocked that options are a tad more limited. There are only a few more cast members who need costumes, and with the decision to have many of the wives wear black skirts, we may need to make more! Many of the skirts we have are smaller sizes, and despite being elastic, won't fit several of the women.

I still really love lab. I love the opportunity to learn and improve basic sewing skills!

How to Steal a Million

I am in love with Audrey Hepburn. How to Steal a Million was released in 1966. It's about a heist pulled by Audrey Hepburn's character Nicole, and a burglar she just met, to steal back her father's sculpture from a museum before experts discover its in-authenticity. The story takes place in Paris, France. The costume designer was Hubert de Givenchy.
Link to more of Audrey's costume pictures:
http://classiq.me/style-in-film-audrey-hepburn-in-how-to-steal-a-million

Audrey always looks elegant, and I loved most of the outfits she wore in this show. To start off, the first outfit we see her in is a weird helmet hat and funky sunglasses, but if you look at it all together, it looks kinda nice. In another outfit she wears similar oversized sunglasses, although they are more square.

To the left, she's wearing a pillbox hat with a white-lapel nautical navy suit. She wears white gloves and belts a lot, which I love, and the 3/4 sleeves. You can't tell in the picture to the right, but her earrings when she wears the green outfit (while she's on her date) are gorgeous. She wears a similar outfit that's yellow, with a white belt and more of a collar. It looks more expensive and a little more professional.

Then there's her black lace dress with a sort of jacket and a lace eye mask. It goes well with the scene because she is about to propose the heist and is trying to be secretive. She tells him not to use her real name.








 I love how on her left hand you can still see her wearing a little white glove. She is also wearing big round diamond earrings and silver glittery eye-shadow.

The men all wear suits and ties. Nicole's father, when he first appears, is in a red suit coat. I think it shows how daring he is to paint and sell forged artwork.
He is addicted to it, whether it's for the excitement or adventure or whatever reason, he is bold enough to keep selling his own forged van Gogh's. Nicole's family also has a butler, who always appears in a yellow vest uniform.



Nicole also has a beautiful navy coat. Throughout the movie she wears three different scarfs three different ways.

A fun outfit she gets to wear is the cleaning lady disguise. A red hat with a baggy button-up shirt and blue skirt. You can really see the different of class with this outfit.


Simon: "Yes that's fine, that does it."

Nicole: "Does what?"

Simon: "Well for one thing it gives Givenchy a night off."
Givenchy came up with every outfit in the movie, except the cleaning lady one.
                                                                     And to end..

Once Upon a Time in Wonderland Costume Critique #4

Not known to many in 2013-2014 ABC's hit series "Once Upon a Time" spawned a spin off that was mainly focused in the characters from Alice in Wonderland and Aladdin. This new series titled "Once Upon a Time in Wonderland" started and finished with a solid fan base, but did not reach much glory or appraisal. However for this critique I would like to examine one of the strongest elements of this series, that being its costume design.

Costume designer Eduardo Castro has been nominated for an Emmy in the costume design for a series category and has won in the past the Costume Designer Guilds Award in the same category. In the interview ahead Eduardo talks about what a designer needs to be aware of and how he adapted different styles into the show to really get the look the creators of the series wanted.

https://youtu.be/4w6Png7SqAM

Some of my favorite outfits in the show were deigned for the character of the Red Queen. In this case, the character still has her inherent anger and control issues, but she is presented in a way to make it noticeable that she uses her sexuality to extend her control and grasp more power.

 The plunging neck lines in these dresses along with the fitting shape of the outfits make this Red Queen not only look dangerous, but sexy as well. The fabric selection also seems to go wonderfully. In both outfits we can see the drop off the fabric accentuating the actress body, giving her more presence and power over the scene.

However, I do believe that sometimes this character suffers, from over accessorizing. In the last outfit shown here, the crown, high feather neck, the necklace and the black feather brooch are definitely too much. It was obvious from the beginning that the series was not one with a great budget, so the crown and necklaces never look too real, but when you add more and more next to them they start looking more and more like trinkets.

Alice also receives a complete makeover in this spin off. This time around, she spends a much longer period of time in Wonderland and fully transforms into a woman while being there. She also learns how to sword fight and survive from incredible dangers. Both of these situations, translate mainly into one thing for her wardrobe, no dresses.

Alice this time around is always ready to defend herself and her true love and that is quickly discerned by looking at her clothes. Using leather like materials for her jacket, vest and other accessories, give this Alice an adventurous edge.However, small details like the open jacket, the lace on the sleeves and fitting of the clothes still maintain a feminine look.

Neither of the actresses even though they are presented as powerful independent women are shown as tomboys in any way. This is a detail I very much appreciate, because it helps maintain an element of beauty that I particularly believe any fairy tail or magical adventure should have.