Revving Up...kinda

I'm officially off and running! The semester has started up and is slowing starting to build, so I figured I'd get a post in before it gets crazy in the next week. I've figured out and settled all my classes which is usually the first big change each semester. I'm taking Material Culture of the Victorian Era, American Lit, Musical Theater Jazz, a lecture series on Disabilities, and a self-designed special studies which will look at the change in women's clothing from 1915-1920ish (second season of Downton Abbey anyone?). It certainly looks to be a good semester.

I'm also working on a number of internship applications and I'm hoping to land one of them for this summer. I'm also working on an application for studying away from campus this fall, so all of these will keep me busy over the next couple weeks while I complete them and also deal with homework, social events, and auditions for Leading Ladies spring show Godspell. 

End to a long day

So I had my first real day of classes today (as in multiple classes that I am actually intending on taking).  I started my material culture class today, which seems somewhat promising, except that it will be taught like a lecture in art history and very little of it will be about historic dress. Neither of which I am totally thrilled about, but will deal with. I also had my musical theater jazz class today which was excellent, except now I am very tired and a bit sore. We are starting with a Fosse style piece choreographed to "Two Lost Souls" from Damn Yankees (which I know little about). The grad student who is teaching it also announced that we would be working mainly in character shoes, so I'll have to go on an adventure to find a pair this weekend. I have never owned a pair of character shoes that actually fit me well, so this will be a fun adventure.

Tomorrow, I'm planning to go back and talk to my advisor about the special studies and hopefully solidify things before online registration ends. Good night!

Changing Plans

Ok, so maybe my schedule will be changing after all. I attended my first class on Thursday and it turned out to be a bit of a flop. Not the actual subject matter, but the class itself. There were over 60 people registered, with discussion groups that would be half that size. No thanks. I don't do well in large classes or discussions, so I'm not taking that course. Instead, it looks like I will be doing a special studies about something related to historical dress or clothing. I have a bunch of options, so I'll need to make a decision and report back.

My biggest news is that I was accepted into the museums concentration!! Yay! I'm even more excited because my advisor is the professor who taught my costume design class and will be my supervisor for my special studies! How cool is that?!?

Now I'm back to getting some work done for my American Lit. class, as well as maybe ordering some new makeup.

Prepping for the Semester

Like most breaks, I didn't totally get done everything I had wanted to (like part of my corded petticoat). Nope, I've been busy getting my life in order to pass the museums class on collecting I took this J-term. But hey, plans change right?

Tomorrow marks the first day of classes and I don't totally feel ready. It's very strange. Perhaps it is that I only have 2 classes between today and Saturday, or that I have to be up earlier than my only class tomorrow to meet with an advisor at the Career Development office about resumes and such. Either way, I am determined to make this semester much more controlled than the last - and to start, I have organized all my notebooks and binder (as well as photocopied some readings for my American Lit. class) for tomorrow and next week. Aren't I good?

Potential Progress

So I've headed back home for the weekend so I can celebrate my upcoming birthday with my family and friends (after spending over three hours on busses and in terminals today). I'm planning to visit with friends, pick up my birthday freebies at the mall (little indulgences here and there never hurt anyone), email a couple professors, and knock out a sewing project. All before I get out of my teenage years.

A while ago my mom and I visited the New York garment district in search of a green coating wool for my regency pelisse. We did succeed in finding the wool, but also came across other treasures, particularly a soft cotton print with a pink background and desserts all over. We discovered it was a print by Nick and Nora (high end pajama company) and bought six yards of it. Now, this yardage has been sitting in the closet for a while and I've been dying to make a nice nightgown or pajama shorts with it. So I bought a pattern a couple months ago, looked at it this evening, and discovered I had bought the wrong size. Ooops. There's no chance the size large will come close to fitting me properly. It looks like I'll be off to JoAnn's sometime tomorrow to switch out the sizes.

Now on to finishing this museums studies paper. Tally ho!

New Year, New Goals

I realize I've been neglecting this blog, which is entirely because of large amounts of schoolwork, as well as stress and health issues. Lots of fun.

Anyway, with the incoming arrival of my American Duchess "Pemberley" shoes, my brain has been cranking around the clock ways that I can wear them. If you've been reading this blog for a while, you'll know that my very first sewing project was a regency dress made from light blue linen out of the Sense and Sensibility "Elegant Ladies Closet" pattern, sewn entirely by machine. Of course, since then, my sewing has improved by leaps and bounds and naturally I'm aching for another gown...or maybe another 5 or 6 gowns (of all different eras).

Like most costumers at one time or another, I'm currently suffering from costume ADD, with piles of goals I want to achieve. As of this second, I really want to make a new regency gown, but that would require a fresh new shift, a set of short stays, as well as a new pattern (I like the S&S patterns, but I feel like I'm ready to graduate to a better pattern, like the La Mode Bagatelle set). I'm also really yearning to make a pair of 18th century stays and a beautiful petticoat and short gown to wear on top. I'd also love to vamp up my wardrobe with 30's and 50's style clothing (which is extremely difficult in the middle of New England weather without tights and such). I can't make up my mind.

So yes, I have a bunch of goals for this year - here are the most reasonable ones (in no particular order):
- sew up the 30's circle skirt with the green cotton sateen I bought this summer
- finish the corded petticoat I started months ago
- sew a new regency shift
- make a nightgown from the Nick and Nora fabric I got in NYC a couple years ago
- fit the cover for my dress form (it's about time - I've had it nearly two years!)
- hem up the dotted 30's skirt so it's more wearable
- finish the christmas gifts I started
- sew up a wrap style vintage dress (using a pattern purchased on Etsy)

Of course all of these would be a dozen times easier with my own machine, but that can wait until I get a real job.

Oh and on top of all these, I need to apply to all of the internships in costuming/museums (especially those with a living history component) before early March.

Happy Holidays!

Wishing you all a very wonderful holiday season - whether or not you celebrate Christmas. I'm very much enjoying my holiday. Earlier this morning I received several sewing and costuming books (including Lauren Rennells' Retro Makeup book) from my family, along with a note for a pre-ordered pair of Pemberley regency shoes from American Duchess. I also received a few sweaters and tights which will keep me warm at school this coming year. The best gift I have received is the snow outside my window - it's a White Christmas!

Happy Holidays to you and yours!

Counting the days

I have exactly one week, six classes, one test, one composition, one showcase performance, and two essays left until I can go home. It will be so good to be home.

Caught in a Whirlwind

I realize it has been more than 2 months since I have last posted and. Basically this semester has not been a cup of tea - I'm not totally thrilled with my classes, plus I'm taking more credits than my brain can handle so I will be very glad to be done with this fall (exactly 2 weeks to be precise!).

So much has happened over the last couple months, that it would be hard to go into detail about everything that has happened. Instead I will post some photos highlighting what I've done.

I made sushi at an event hosted by one of the student groups and was taught how to wear and tie a traditional kimono (see the rest below the cut)

Seasons of Cities and Mountains

It is an absolutely gorgeous day outside today and there is no Mountain Day. Very disappointing (for all you non Smithie readers, Mountain Day is an unannounced holiday in which classes are cancelled on a nice fall day. I think originally Smithies did climb mountains, but now we go apple picking, sunbathe or just catch up on homework). Hopefully it will not be next week, as fall break starts on the 8th.

Here we go again!

Yep, school has started back up again, which means lots of work and little time to blog. I currently have no recent costuming or sewing news as I don't have any projects with me (or I can't find them). I swear I packed my embroidery kit (complete with strands and strands of colorful floss and my pink scissors), but have yet to find it. I am currently working on a couple bibs for my little cousins, but I can't do that because I don't think I packed my kit. Hopefully I can get it soon and then my hankering to sew something will stop.

In other news, Reefer Madness auditions are next Thursday and next weekend. I'm definitely excited about the show, but need to get through auditions first (and figure out something to sing!). I'm not really going for any specific part. I'd love to be Mary Lane, but 1) I'm an alto and 2) I don't know if I would be comfortable with her crazy bondage scene at the end. I think if I actually acted and put all my insecurities out of the way, I could handle it.

I'm also taking a bunch of cool but difficult classes - Advertising and Visual Culture, Intermediate Spanish, Methods in American Studies, West African Dance and Intro to Theater History. Sadly non are costuming related, but we will get to watch Mad Men in my Visual Culture class!! I am thrilled beyond belief.

Out with the Old, In with…the Old?

After a nice vacation and a decidedly undecided hurricane (which luckily only left lots of branches and minor power outages in my hometown, but no internet and landlines for my house), I figured it was time to go through my bedroom and purge all of the unnecessary contents. Now at first glance, I don't look like someone who is messy - I try to be quite organized with important things. But, my room and sewing areas are typically disaster zones when I try to keep them clean. Which is why a yearly purge is usually good for me to keep things under control.

I Keep Movin'

So as my summer internship winds to a close, I am both relieved and saddened to be leaving the theater I worked at. Yes, it was a lot of work, but I actually really enjoyed it (despite a couple blips along the journey). I am definitely a lot more confident in both my costuming and people relation skills, as well as quick thinking and fast dressing (for both myself and others). Of course, with the close of this comes some great memories and experience I can use to move forward hopefully professionally and recreationally too.

Now that I am finished, it's time to finish up those remaining projects before I start school in three weeks. During my time off between the shows last week, I managed to make a lot of progress on my 30's blouse - I managed to line the front and back bodice pieces and stitch them to the sleeves and together at the side seams. I also hemmed the bottom edge. All I really have left is to attach the collar (which has proven very difficult for some bizarre reason - it must be the disintegrating instruction sheet that confuses me), hem the front edges, finish the sleeve cuffs, and work on the buttons and button holes. I don't estimate it to be more than a few hours. I am truly pumped to finish this so I can wear this fall!! I have also sketched out a couple of the designs for Reefer Madness which may or may not go up on here after reviewing them with the director.

My neighbor also asked me to make some curtains for her, which I am about halfway through (but am reluctant to finish because of the massive ironing and straight seams. hehe). I'll have to finish those in the next few days before I leave for vacation.

Watch for photos of the finished projects soon!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

It's been a very very long week as my supervisor and I have slogged through the immense process of organizing (but first washing, drying, dry cleaning, ironing and steaming everything to perfection) the costumes for shipment in the 28 cardboard wardrobe boxes we received them in. Gladly, all of the boxes were packed and sealed at 2 pm on Saturday and loaded into a giant truck yesterday morning at 8:00 along with the party lights and the surrey. Thank goodness - I am so glad they are gone.

I'm really ready to move on from Oklahoma! purely because of the massive cast and amount of costumes, even though I know that Sound of Music will probably not be any better (read: all the children and Maria have about 9 costumes EACH). This means lots and lots of costume changes, which will be both stressful and fun.

It's also very hard to believe that my summer is about 2/3rds over. I received an email a couple days ago that key pick-up is on Sept. 6th and 7th, with us starting on the 8th. Holy cow! I'll be glad to go back to school where I won't have to deal with massive rental orders and can make my own designs. Don't get me wrong, this has been a wonderful experience and it affirms that I love what I do, but I tend to like independence - a lot. 

Plaid Ruffles and Polka Dots

I realize I've taken quite a break from blogging recently (considering I was able to crank out a post almost everyday in may), but it is because I've been busy with lots of fun crafty things which you'll read about in the next few posts.

My biggest news is that we have finished a couple really important pieces for Oklahoma!. There are 6 dresses we had to make for female leads and we have about two thirds of them in working (ok, fittable) condition. One difficult thing about Oklahoma! is that there are several costume changes for the leads, all of which are very distinct and absolutely crucial for the story. Thus lots of work for the sewers.

Think of…the Tony!!

As some of you may know, the Tony Awards are tonight. This celebration of broadway is my absolute favorite award show of the year and I tend to plan my night around the ceremony so I can watch it live. Now in the age of Twitter, Facebook, and other online networking sites, information about the nominees is widely available, with lots of updates from sources like Playbill.com and Broadway World. While browsing the Playbill twitters, I found two gems that represent my favorite parts of theater: the spectacular costumes and the actors off stage.

First up is a video and interview of Elmo and Sutton Foster (nominated for Best Actress in a Musical) singing on Sesame Street. It's very fun and energetic (very Sutton).

Second is a sneak peek photo gallery of Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark which will be performing tonight  and opened May 12th at the Foxwoods theater. I saw a couple of the featured costumes up close while in New York in April and am excited to see them finally in use on stage. The show also features Jennifer Damiano of Spring Awakening and Next to Normal fame. I've never seen her live, but her voice is incredible.

Oh yeah, that project...

While I was at JoAnn’s on Thursday, I picked up a Butterick apron pattern since all Butterick patterns were $2.00 a piece. It is quite versatile and has multiple sizes and styles (plus it only requires less than 2 yards of fabric!), which will be great if I need to make other aprons in the future.

I personally really like View C (the one with the cherry fabric) because it reminds me of the fancy aprons I see around town near my school. It is also quite reminiscent of a 50’s apron. It will probably be made out of a fun novelty cotton (which my cousin and I will figure out somehow this summer) with her choice of apron style.

Just a list...

to figure out exactly how many projects I have started in the last couple days.

- Drafted [or maybe purchased pattern] Apron for my cousin (and maybe myself too)

- Dotted blouse (lined)

- Green Skirt to match

- Baby bibs (2) and burp clothes (a few) for my mom's coworker [These can't be that hard, and should be pretty quick] finished 5/14
- Dotted Skirt to match (lined) finished 6/10

Oh, and maybe any other things that decide to pop up.

Pretty Polka Dots and Silky Cottons

Finally home after a long and hot day of work. I'm a bit exhausted from today's travels, but I'll do my best to update you all about my crazy - but very productive day!

Yesterday I met the other three interns who will be working alongside the other crew members - two are college seniors (one of which goes to the same college as me and works in the theater department!) and a sophomore like me. We figured out that the costumes will be rented from UNCSA…well, about half of them. We have multiple actors (say, 20) who are larger than costumes that UNCSA can provide (including several of the leads), so we have to create alternative methods of acquiring costumes and it looks like it will be in the form of building lots and lots of fitted prairie blouses and ruffled skirts, as well as digging through jam-packed racks in an overcrowded basement for cowboy shirts, pants, and a pair of size 15 EEE cowboy boots. So we definitely have our work cut out for us. It looks like we'll be racing until the final bell. 

My biggest news is that today my supervisor and I went fabric shopping for suitable fabrics for the various costumes. As of present, our Ado Annie and Aunt Eller, will not fit the rental costumes, so we are building those from scratch, as well as a couple female ensemble members. The tricky thing is trying to find fabric that will fit in with the costumes that are being shipped to us - ones that are bright primaries and plaids. Surprisingly, our trip was very successful.

Stylin' at the Five 'n Dime - part 2

After much anticipation, I present final photos of my first set of 1930's blouses and skirts. Both are about 95% finished, but completely wearable. I need to readjust the back placket on the skirt, once I purchase a zipper and wash the white blouse to get out any remaining marks, but beyond that, they are beautiful.

TaDa! A nicely hemmed (and horsehaired) skirt and finished blouse. You can really see how the horsehair braid holds out the skirt hem.

The blouse alone. The top of the button holes and buttons are tacked down to create a mock collar. It looks nicer than just a flat front (which is my intent for a second blouse, but that will have a real collar).

The skirt alone. As you can see, it falls to about low calf, which is lower than I'm used to ever wearing, but I think it will prove nice. I plan to wear it out to dinner tonight.

My next set of plans (which I have been hinting at) is to create a short sleeved blouse out of the remaining dotted fabric, as well as a lime green skirt for extra options when costuming this fall. Now, to leave you all with an artsy photo - just me playing around in Iphoto with one of the better shots in my mock photo shoot.