Printed fabrics arrive!

Here you can see the different files that I sent for printing at Standfast. I'm really excited to have the final fabric puzzle piece in place for my project- now all parts of the costume can be finished! I got it printed in two different sizes, to see which works best. I really like the bold circles in the larger images- but overall less images would be included if I cut a shape from that piece.

So here I am cutting out the cape pattern in the fabric with the smaller print. I'm sure I shall find a use for the larger images too...

Ruffles!

One of my favourite inventions is the pleating/ruffler foot for sewing machines- this magical device scoops the fabric into a nice even pleat with every stitch (or every six or twelve stitches depending on the setting). It's a massive time saver, and much more regular than pleating by hand. Though it still took hours to make this many metres, as preparing the strip for ruffling still involves much cutting, pressing and edging first.

I re cut the 'bertha', as this piece of neck decoration is called. The previous way I had cut it had the fabric going in to the armhole, and after a bit more checking of historical references I felt it was more correct for the front and back to meet at the shoulder seam and sit slightly over the sleeve seam. I am yet to affix it properly- just pinned in this photo.

I have affixed the ruffles on the skirt and the sleeve to give a stronger contrast between the fabrics.

And finally today I have begun hand stitching the white diamonds to the purple ones- I want them to sit flat on top of one another, but don't want a visible stitching line, so hand stitching is the way forward!

Alterations and detail

I've made some decorative diamonds, following in the style of a few skirts I've seen from the 1860's. I thought this butterflies print was very eye catching and unusual when I saw it in Standfast, so it's nice to find a place to fit it in!

The cartridge pleating is now officially stitched into place, and the waistband of the outer skirt finished except for a fastening (I shall do these for all the garments in one go!). Today I also took up the hem of the skirt and finished it off- after moving the turquoise layer of fabric up a few inches to avoid loosing too much of it. I hemmed the turquoise layer and the pink layer separately as I felt this would give a sense of more thickness at the bottom, and with more layers it should be harder for the outerskirt to get pulled under the lowest edge of the crinoline. 

I've started positioning the diamonds on the skirt- but more to do tomorrow! 

Second fitting

I was pleased with the progress of the costume for the second fitting. The box pleated hem sat at the correct height from the floor, which was a relief- I wouldn't like to do that again! The skirt waistband was the right length too, so all I need to do for that skirt is a fastening, and it's ready to be worn.

The chemise that I have made using plain fabric worked well too, as it sits off the shoulder and is therefore nice and easy to tuck underneath the outer bodice.

The outerskirt's waistband fits well- so the next job on this is to properly affix the cartridge pleats to the waistband. Each pleat will need individually hand stitching to hold it in place 

The hem is a bit too long around the front, as most of the turquoise level is on the floor and is getting swept under the crinoline- in order to shorten the skirt but not loose the turquoise I shall have to move the turquoise up a bit. This isn't too catastrophic an alteration to make though!

I have a few alterations to make to the bodice to make it fit correctly, as this is the most critical part to be exactly right. The shoulders need reshaping slightly, and some of the side seams altering before I sew in the hooks and eyes to fasten it down the front. Then of course the decorative pleats can be sewn on properly, and maybe a few more details added!

Pleats, cape and underwear

I've made a waistband for the outerskirt, and have started to attach it, ready for another fitting tomorrow. All the skirts from the mid 1860s that I can find appear to have cartridge pleating at the back- so there was nothing for it but to dive in and do them properly. They are a more complicated form of pleating, made by running two strong threads through at regular intervals, so that it pulls tightly into a regular concertinaed pleat. This enables you to get more fabric gathered into a short space.

This photo shows how they sit at the back of the bodice

I've also cut out a shape to try on for the cape. I think at the moment it is longer than I want it to be when finished, but it's good to cut longer to begin with and then shorten if required. I think this fabric will end up being the lining.

Here are some very simple undergarments I have cut out. The Victorian ones were usually more delicate and covered in lace- but I want these to represent the plain base cloth in the printing process, so I'm not sure it it is suitable to make them overly frilly! I shall see how they look in the fitting, and this may inform how much detail to add or not.

Photo fabric printing

My sister has helped compile some photographs from my first trip to the factory into a file that shall be printed (as long as we come across no compatibility issues) on to fabric at standfast.i shall turn it into a cape to go with the dress!

Underskirt almost finished!

I finished attaching the pleats today, and also sewed on a waistband to the underskirt. I may need to adjust the height of the pleat if it is too far from the floor on my model- but I'll check this on her!-pleased to see a garment looking finished!

Box pleated hem

This is box pleating...it takes a very long time as each pleat is measured and ironed individually. Three times the length of the hem is needed in the pleat, I feel I shall be doing this for some time, as the crinoline shall also have one!

More colours!

Bringing in some turquoise to the hem today. I also shortened the underskirt as it was much too long!

Bodice alterations

I took the bodice apart and altered the panels according to yesterday's fitting- this meant re-cutting the pieces as some needed to be longer in places, or the seams needed shifting to make it look a bit more in keeping with the design I'm following. 

I cut the pieces in two fabrics- a backing and an outer fabric. To the backing I attached some boning, before tacking the outer fabric on. This means the boning channels won't be visible on the outer fabric. I have used plastic boning for this garment, as it only requires some light structure- the steel bones in the corset do more of the work.

After tacking the backing and outer fabrics together by hand, I then overlocked around each panel to hold them firmly together, and to seal all the loose threads in and prevent fraying. It's important to tack them first for two reasons- firstly the fabrics tend to move around too much for this to be effective without tacking- and pins never do the job quite as well. Secondly, if you did try using pins they can also damage the machine's needles, or worse the cutting blade. The cutting blade trims the fabric as you overlock, so that there are no loose threads sticking out- but it also means you have to be controlled or you might just cut a big hole in the fabric by accident (yes I've done this before!).

Finally today I sewed the bodice back together and remade the sleeves in some colourful fabrics! I'm beginning to introduce more fun colours- pink and white are not enough for one of my creations- and this is a dress that wants to appear bold and outrageous in a factory environment! 

First fitting

Here is the first fitting with my model, Chris. She is wearing a corset and undergarments of her own in this fitting. These are things that I shall remake in fabrics of my choice (using hers as a pattern!)- but for this stage it was a good shortcut to check how the fitting of the other garments is going.

There is still work to do on the crinoline- a pleated frill needs adding to the bottom to make sure the skirts that are worn over it don't cave in at the bottom and break up the shape.

The green underskirt is quite a thick fabric, which helps to disguise the hoops in the crinoline. I have chosen blotchy and misprinted fabrics for this skirt to introduce colour- but not show the highest quality of printing on the level of the costume.

I failed to get a photo of the bodice toile being tried on, so here is a photo after the fitting. It needed pinning down most of the seams to reshape it closely to Chris. I will now take it apart, reshape the panels and cut them out using the final fabric.

Below is the crinoline after the fitting! I like how it concertinas on the floor

Crinoline detail

More time again today hand sewing all the joints together- but at last they are done! I also added some extra half steel hoops, a bum pad and some tapes going from one side to the other.all these help to keep that elliptical shape. Now this is done it is ready for a fitting-and for the skirts to be fitted over it correctly!

Skirt assembly and bodice pattern

Today I sewed the pink skirt together, as well as a green underskirt. Then I went on to cut out a pattern in a plain fabric for the bodice. This is based on an 1864 dress in one of Janet Arnold's Patterns of Fashion books. She details how period dresses are constructed, so it seemed like a good place to start! This bodice will be fitted to the model before I cut it from the outer fabric, so as not to waste any. There will be more decorative detail added once it is cut in the final fabric too.

Skirt panels

This morning I've cut out some skirt panels! Itching to assemble them, but alas work commitments take me elsewhere this afternoon. At least I'm set up ready for tomorrow! I have been consulting many costume books to keep in the right era. This skirt has 8 panels and will trail at the back!

Hoop shuffling

It may not look much different to yesterday, but this represents many hours of measuring, pinning and adding new vertical tapes- all to get the tension just right to get the hoops to sit further to the back.Harder than it looks! There will also eventually be a pad of fabric on the bum to help support the crinoline under the weight of the skirts. 

Crinoline

I've spent the morning covering the hoops in fabric. This will mean I can anchor everything firmly together- although I have quite a bit of fiddling around to do first to get all the hoops in exactly the right position- and a bit of research to understand exactly how to balance it to stick out more at the back. A circular 1850s crinoline would have been much more simple!

Introduction!

Hello! Welcome to my new blog, documenting my work on the project 'Behind The Wall'. This is an arts commission programmed by Mirador. They describe themselves on their website as 'a company which celebrates and is inspired by people discovering how magical it is when arts, heritage and culture merge. Based in Lancashire, we are a highly experienced team that blends its expertise and know how to originate, research, develop and deliver fascinating and rewarding heritage projects that matter to communities'

Below is how Mirador describe the Behind The Wall project:

We are exploring and revealing the fascinating history and everyday world of the Standfast & Barracks site in Lancaster.2015 marked the 150th anniversary since the building was constructed, originally as a wagon works making carriages for royalty both in the UK and overseas, then used as an internment camp during World War One and now home to Standfast & Barracks, one of the country’s leading fabric printers creating stunning materials for clients across the world including top designers like Ralph Lauren and prestigious stores including Liberty’s of London.The thing which particularly inspired us about the Standfast & Barracks site is that there’s more than 150 years of history hidden behind a long stone wall which thousands of people drive past every day but don’t have a clue what goes on behind it….hence the project title, Behind The Wall.We have lined up some of the country’s most inventive and creative minds to bring the site’s hidden heritage to life in a programme of events scheduled for 2016 and 2017 – from acclaimed textile artists to historians, photographers and experts in the world of Minecraft and beyond.

More can be read on their site www.miradorarts.co.uk

As for my own part in the project? Below is an overview of my ideas, and why!

Clothing can be mundane; something that we wear because it is practical, it is what is currently on sale, or society has deemed suitable for us to wear for our role in life. It is one of my aims as an artist to open people’s eyes to the endless range of colour, texture, pattern and creative design that can be applied to the human form, and to create pieces that are a world away from today’s high street fashions.

There are two key areas that my piece for ‘Behind the Wall’ will explore. The first is to examine the extraordinary lengths that women went to in order stay at the height of fashion 150 years ago, at the time the factory's premises were first built. Fashion in this country has undergone a startling transformation in the intervening time, and my piece for 'Behind the Wall' will be an insight into women's clothing at that time.

The other key aim of my piece is to open a window onto the process of printing at Standfast and Barracks. I’m extremely interested in the many stages of fabric preparation before it is ready to be sold, cut and sewn. Having visited the factory, I was surprised at just how complicated and fascinating the machinery is. With this factory running both traditional and modern printing techniques, it feels almost like a working museum that documents historical industry, and I hope to capture this in my piece.

The Piece Itself

My outfit will be the shape and style of women’s fashion in 1865. This will include various layers and undergarments necessary to create the correct silhouette for the period. Each of these items shall be made to represent a different stage in the printing process at Standfast and Barracks, from storing the base cloth, to mixing paint and printing. The choice of fabric and print of each garment will correspond with each part of the process. More on how each part relates to the stages of printing shall be revealed as we go along!

This collection of garments shall be fitted to a model, and she shall be filmed travelling through the factory as she puts on each item in the area that has inspired its design. This will provide the viewer with a look at the extremely structured garments worn by a fashionable Victorian lady, whilst giving an insight into the complex process of transforming a blank base cloth into high quality print.

Though the dress shall be historic in its construction, it shall show off the magnificent range of prints available, and be a celebration of colour and pattern.

The film would be edited to correctly represent the time taken by the actress to complete the journey through the factory- if the corset takes a long time to lace up for example, then I think it is important to show this. This un-rushed progression shall allow time for the viewer to absorb themselves in the sounds and sights of the factory too. 

That seems like plenty of reading for now! Here's a photo from my first day of working on the piece- the beginnings of a crinoline. It's the first one I've ever made properly (aside from a simple hooped skirt once), so it's really exciting to have a go at it!