Re: [h-cost] Book review requested - Nineteenth Century Fashion indetail
Worth whatever they're charging for it. I live by my copy. For interior details, check out Costume in Detail: 1730-1930 (Paperback) by Nancy Bradfield ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] CC27 historical judge talks about workmanship andhistorical interpretation
You wrote: --The worst thing we judges saw, in Workmanship, was unfinished raw edges with loose threads fraying out of them. I think about half of what we saw had this problem, and it didn't gain anybody points. (That said, my own seam finish isn't always that great unless I think a workmanship judge, or one of my students, will ever see it.) Of course, there are periods where a raw edge is more authentic than finished edges. My 7th century Anglo-Saxon outfit is made that way deliberately. The cloth is a really hardy diamond twill, the seams are just laid over each other and stitched with the fabric's wool (which would have been left over from the fabrication), both inside and outside. A lot of 12-13th century garments were made without finished edges too. Glenda. ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] CC27 historical judge talks about workmanship andhistoric al interpretation
And this is a perfect example of how documentation can make or break a costume in judging. If you have this in your docs, then the judges know that you are deliberately doing this as a period practice and not as lazy/sloppy construction. I have judged a number of competitions ( including workmanship at World Con and Historic at CostumeCon) and one example of the need for documenation stands out in my mind. I was judging a fairly informal competition at an SF con when this guy showed up for judging wrapped in what was clearly a sheet off a hotel bed, looking kinda scruffy and, and not doing much. Two of the judges were like 'Um, yeah- whatever' and had pretty much dismissed the guy completely. He had no documentation of any kind. The thrid judge was a comic book geek and went nuts over how great the costume was. It turns out that this costume was a darn near perfect reproduction of a character in an obscure graphic novel who believed he was Jesus. The third judge managed to convince the rest of us that it was a great costume and later showed me the graphic novel and he was right, the costume was spot on. They guy got an award (novice level, if I remember correctly) but he almost got no recognition at all beca! use most of the judges weren't comic book geeks and had NO CLUE what he was trying to do. All he would have had to do was show us one of the graphic novels or even just a xeroxed copy and we would have gotten it. Much as it pains me to admit, even the most knowledgeable judge doesn't know everything. If you want us to know something, you have to tell us Telling us is called 'Documentation'. Karen Seamstrix -- Original Message -- From: Glenda Robinson glendasli...@exemail.com.au To: 'Historical Costume' h-cost...@indra.com Subject: Re: [h-cost] CC27 historical judge talks about workmanship andhistorical interpretation Date: Fri, 8 May 2009 19:09:54 +1000 You wrote: --The worst thing we judges saw, in Workmanship, was unfinished raw edges with loose threads fraying out of them. I think about half of what we saw had this problem, and it didn't gain anybody points. (That said, my own seam finish isn't always that great unless I think a workmanship judge, or one of my students, will ever see it.) Of course, there are periods where a raw edge is more authentic than finished edges. My 7th century Anglo-Saxon outfit is made that way deliberately. The cloth is a really hardy diamond twill, the seams are just laid over each other and stitched with the fabric's wool (which would have been left over from the fabrication), both inside and outside. A lot of 12-13th century garments were made without finished edges too. Glenda. ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume Start Email Marketing - fast, affordable, and measurable. Click here. http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL2141/fc/BLSrjpTEFePp7F6gYoCzD6iI9bvSqD3q34604CJ1XPYGzwxmhQIgAdS97e4/ ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] Book review requested - Nineteenth Century Fashion in detail
I've just got some bonus money and I'm planning on spending some of it on books. I'm looking for a book that will show me internal construction details of Victorian era clothing preferably using detailed photos. Looking on Amazon I found Nineteenth Century Fashion in Detail by Lucy Johnston, so for those who have a copy does it include these sort of details (or it is external decorative details like embroidery or ruching). There are very few books that have internal construction details. The best I've found (besides Janet Arnold's work) is Nancy Bradfield's _Costume in Detail 1730-1930_ - but she doesn't show photographs, it's all line drawings. Another place you could look is Your Wardrobe Unlocked: http://yourwardrobeunlockd.com/ which is a subscription website. There is a series of photographic essays there on the construction of women's clothing circa 1865-ish. Of course, I'm not unbiased about them, as I wrote 'em ;-) The final one covering ball gown bodices will be out next month. I started my vintage collection because I couldn't find detailed construction information already published. *sigh* Ebay is a great source for acquiring your very own Victorian construction example. Best of luck! -sunny ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] Book review requested - Nineteenth Century Fashion indetail
I've just got some bonus money and I'm planning on spending some of it on books. I'm looking for a book that will show me internal construction details of Victorian era clothing preferably using detailed photos. Have you seen the Cornell University CD of 19th century American dresses? It was produced in 2001, so I'm not sure if it is still available. http://www.news.cornell.edu/chronicle/01/6.28.01/McMurray-CD-ROM.html I just printed off from my CD the decades that I wanted and stuck them in a notebook for handier reference. Vicki Betts ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] CC27 historical judge talks about workmanship andhistorical interpretation
Of course, there are periods where a raw edge is more authentic than finished edges. You're absolutely right, except we didn't see anything from those periods, only from the ones where seam finish was common. But if you'd documented the lack of seam finish, and if your other hand-sewing was good, the lack of seam finish would have looked deliberate, not like an oversight. In that situation I would have credited it to your research and hand-sewing skills. No docs *and* bad hand-sewing would have looked like bad workmanship to me. I don't remember anyone specifically documenting seam finish this year, but we also saw also some good examples of finish work. The magenta one we gave the Furbelows award to was finished better than my usual stuff is - every single edge on that back drapery was bias bound and hand hemmed. Very impressive. (I usually let myself run out of time, and cheat on insides if I'm not competing.) -- Carolyn Kayta Barrows -- Blank paper is God's way of saying it ain't so easy being God. -- ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
[h-cost] Costume Maker's Art
BTW, if you're the same Deb Salisbury who designed the wizard tabard I wore in Costume Maker's Art, now my 21-year-old has started making one. How fun! But no, that was Deborah Jones. We met at BayCon about the time you made the Emperor's New Clothes. I think your daughter was 3 or 4 at the time. I'd like to put in a plug for Costume Maker's Art, even if I'm not in it. ;) It's a brilliant book! I've heard rumors occasionally that they want to put together a new version. Has anyone heard about that? Happy sewing, Deb Salisbury The Mantua-Maker Designer and creator of quality historical sewing patterns Renaissance to Victorian Now available: Elephant's Breath and London Smoke: Historical Colors, Names, Definitions Uses www.mantua-maker.com http://mantua-maker-patterns.blogspot.com - See my Color of the Day ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] CC27 historical judge talks about workmanship and historical interpretation
On May 8, 2009, at 1:53 PM, Käthe Barrows wrote: Of course, there are periods where a raw edge is more authentic than finished edges. But if you'd documented the lack of seam finish, and if your other hand-sewing was good, the lack of seam finish would have looked deliberate, not like an oversight. One difficulty is that cloth was fulled much better in various historic periods than what's available now. There are some fulled fabrics available, but more expensive. Anyway, as pointed out earlier, sometimes raw edges are appropriate. So what happens when someone uses a non-period appropriate seam finish to accommodate a not-quite-period fabric? Frequently for 18thC, reenactors will make shifts with French seams (an easy finish with machine sewing), but flat-fell is the way they were done at the time. Likewise with sergeing, would that be better than a raw edge? -Carol ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] Book review requested - Nineteenth Century Fashion indetail
-BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE- Hash: SHA1 Vicki, vbe...@gower.net wrote: snip Have you seen the Cornell University CD of 19th century American dresses? It was produced in 2001, so I'm not sure if it is still available. http://www.news.cornell.edu/chronicle/01/6.28.01/McMurray-CD-ROM.htm Thanks for the hint. I went to the link (above), found an e-mail address, and asked about the CD. It is still available. Below is the information. Karen Steffy wrote: It's still available. It's $25. Please send a check, made out to Cornell University, to the address below. Karen ~~ Karen Steffy Administrative Assistant, Graduate Seminar Series Dept. of Fiber Science and Apparel Design 206 MVR Hall, Cornell University Ithaca, NY 14850 USA Telephone: (607) 255-8605, Fax: (607) 255-1093 -BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE- Version: GnuPG v2.0.4-svn0 (GNU/Linux) Comment: Using GnuPG with SUSE - http://enigmail.mozdev.org iD8DBQFKBIXZl1I2MRCAstYRAn0YAJ9kj+jtlC8sxgPPkAhrGGTbbzAMqgCeIO7L UHsY6DFtY6gMLyB4ciyV/U0= =y0a4 -END PGP SIGNATURE- ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
[h-cost] Help! Tear Away Stabilizer
I am working on my daughter's prom dress. There is an outer layer of organza that is very slippery. Is there a trick to keep it from sliding all over the sewing machine when stitching? On the list, I recall someone mentioning a few years ago, a tear away stabilizer. Can someone point me to a webpage that tells how to use this. All I have found are embroidery webpages. I have to finish the dress tonight. So I have to find a stabilizer at Hancock Fabrics, Joann's, or Michael's. BTW, I can't use the iron-on stabilizer because the organza, because the organza has a plastic type glitter on it. The glitter melt when an iron touches it. Penny Ladnier Owner, The Costume Gallery Websites www.costumegallery.com 11 websites of fashion, textiles, costume history ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] CC27 historical judge talks about workmanshipandhistorical interpretation
Yeah, I'm the type of person that trolls through the books looking for the correct period seams and uses what I've found as a mix throughout the clothing I'm doing. I took 6 years to work out how I should do my 7th century Anglo-Saxon cloak, out of a beautiful natural grey warp and deep red weft heavy wool, as the information I needed wasn't available. The lining cloth took 5 years - a lovely thick open weave hemp. However, not everyone can wait 6 years. The tunic took about 5 years of waiting after I'd made the good undertunic until I found the diamond weave too (on the other side of the world). Some people just spend way too much time and energy on reenactment! I could wait because this isn't my primary period. I started this project in 2001, and I think I'm happy with it now. Glenda -Original Message- From: h-costume-boun...@indra.com [mailto:h-costume-boun...@indra.com] On Behalf Of Käthe Barrows You're absolutely right, except we didn't see anything from those periods, only from the ones where seam finish was common. But if you'd documented the lack of seam finish, and if your other hand-sewing was good, the lack of seam finish would have looked deliberate, not like an oversight. In that situation I would have credited it to your research and hand-sewing skills. No docs *and* bad hand-sewing would have looked like bad workmanship to me. Of course, there are periods where a raw edge is more authentic than finished edges. ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] Help! Tear Away Stabilizer
BTW, I can't use the iron-on stabilizer because the organza, because the organza has a plastic type glitter on it. The glitter melt when an iron touches it. --- I hope someone can prove me wrong, but I don't think there is a tear-away stabilizer that *isn't* iron on. Can you use wide painter's tape (the blue easy release stuff) and peel it off after? I'd call your local store and tell them what you said above and see what they recommend. Good Luck Denise ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] Help! Tear Away Stabilizer
I don't think you're thinking of stabilizer used for machine embroidery. I believe that type of stabilizer is primarily NOT iron on, though it does come in a sticky back style. I haven't come across any iron-on type, but then I haven't looked for any either. I'm not sure what Penny is having trouble with, but perhaps she can use the stabilizer to sandwich the slippy fabric, so that the feed dogs and foot are against the stabilizer and not the fabric. I've used plain old tissue paper like this, but not with the specific fabric Penny is working with. Claudine - Original Message From: Land of Oz lando...@netins.net To: Historical Costume h-cost...@indra.com Sent: Friday, May 8, 2009 3:06:14 PM Subject: Re: [h-cost] Help! Tear Away Stabilizer I hope someone can prove me wrong, but I don't think there is a tear-away stabilizer that *isn't* iron on. ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] Help! Tear Away Stabilizer
In the days before stabilizers I used tracing paper or tissue paper cut into narrow strips. Depending on how nasty the fabric is you can just put one under the seam (against the feed dogs) or one under and one on top. You can do exactly the same thing with the stabilizer but the paper will tear off more easily. Beth Chamberlain A library is not a luxury but one of the necessities of life Henry Ward Beecher http://mysite.verizon.net/bachamberlain - Original Message - From: Penny Ladnier pe...@costumegallery.com To: h-costume h-cost...@indra.com Sent: Friday, May 08, 2009 4:32 PM Subject: [h-cost] Help! Tear Away Stabilizer I am working on my daughter's prom dress. There is an outer layer of organza that is very slippery. Is there a trick to keep it from sliding all over the sewing machine when stitching? On the list, I recall someone mentioning a few years ago, a tear away stabilizer. Can someone point me to a webpage that tells how to use this. All I have found are embroidery webpages. I have to finish the dress tonight. So I have to find a stabilizer at Hancock Fabrics, Joann's, or Michael's. BTW, I can't use the iron-on stabilizer because the organza, because the organza has a plastic type glitter on it. The glitter melt when an iron touches it. Penny Ladnier Owner, The Costume Gallery Websites www.costumegallery.com 11 websites of fashion, textiles, costume history ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] Help! Tear Away Stabilizer
Hi Penny, You can use anything from newspaper (which may get black ink so I usually don't use it anymore), white printer paper or tissue paper to act as a stabilizer while sewing organza. Just cut up strips a few inches wide, and put it on top of the fabric while you sew, and it will tear away afterwards. You can also sandwich the fabric between papers if it helps, so test both ways and see what works for you. There is also embroidery stabilizers, but most of those I've worked with require ironing to help with the stabilization. Ah, except the one that is water soluble. But that has its own issues, and I think using paper will work better for straight seams. hth, Kimiko --- On Fri, 5/8/09, Penny Ladnier pe...@costumegallery.com wrote: I am working on my daughter's prom dress. There is an outer layer of organza that is very slippery. Is there a trick to keep it from sliding all over the sewing machine when stitching? On the list, I recall someone mentioning a few years ago, a tear away stabilizer. Can someone point me to a webpage that tells how to use this. All I have found are embroidery webpages. I have to finish the dress tonight. So I have to find a stabilizer at Hancock Fabrics, Joann's, or Michael's. ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] Help! Tear Away Stabilizer
Hmm, this is why all clothing should be made of leather or denim...no need for stabilizers! Still, if you are committed, a few things I have had luck with are: Teflon foot (helps reduce resistance between foot-side and feed-side); Stiff but see-through tissue paper on top and/or underneath; and (personal favourite) Masking tape, the really textured type that will pull away easily). Still, a leather and denim prom dress? Hmm, could be a match for my old Harley Davidson Star Trek uniform, -C. This email was sent from Netspace Webmail: http://www.netspace.net.au ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] Help! Tear Away Stabilizer
Scribble pad. It's like unprinted newsprint paper. It's cheap, readily available, and doesn't leave a lot of hairs behind when you tear it off. I like it because you can trace your design on it and it leaves no trace behind. HTH-- LuAnn in Washington Date: Sat, 9 May 2009 10:22:07 +1000 From: stils...@netspace.net.au To: h-cost...@indra.com Subject: Re: [h-cost] Help! Tear Away Stabilizer Hmm, this is why all clothing should be made of leather or denim...no need for stabilizers! Still, if you are committed, a few things I have had luck with are: Teflon foot (helps reduce resistance between foot-side and feed-side); Stiff but see-through tissue paper on top and/or underneath; and (personal favourite) Masking tape, the really textured type that will pull away easily). Still, a leather and denim prom dress? Hmm, could be a match for my old Harley Davidson Star Trek uniform, -C. This email was sent from Netspace Webmail: http://www.netspace.net.au ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume _ Insert movie times and more without leaving Hotmail®. http://windowslive.com/Tutorial/Hotmail/QuickAdd?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_HM_Tutorial_QuickAdd1_052009 ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] CC27 historical judge talks about workmanship
If your fabric is finished, your seam does not have to be. In other words, if the fabric doesn't fray. But it's a finishing type that you can pretty much only get on wool--or polyester bathrobe fleece (loved that bathrobe for years . . .). If your as-accurate-as-you-can-make-it Anglo-Saxon costume has a linen part or parts, I'll bet the edges are finished, whether by selvedges, run fell seams, hemmed, or any of the variants. And if you chose to enter some sort of costume contest, and you Document that this type of seam allowance used in this period and this context is 'nothing', then you get points, at least for documentation. Ann in CT another of the Historical judges for CC27 fwiw --- Glenda Robinson wrote: You wrote: --The worst thing we judges saw, in Workmanship, was unfinished raw edges with loose threads fraying out of them. I think about half of what we saw had this problem, and it didn't gain anybody points. Of course, there are periods where a raw edge is more authentic than finished edges. My 7th century Anglo-Saxon outfit is made that way deliberately. The cloth is a really hardy diamond twill, the seams are just laid over each other and stitched with the fabric's wool (which would have been left over from the fabrication), both inside and outside. A lot of 12-13th century garments were made without finished edges too. Glenda ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] CC27 historical judge talks about workmanship and historical interpretation
On Friday 08 May 2009 2:58:59 pm Carol Kocian wrote: On May 8, 2009, at 1:53 PM, Käthe Barrows wrote: Of course, there are periods where a raw edge is more authentic than finished edges. But if you'd documented the lack of seam finish, and if your other hand-sewing was good, the lack of seam finish would have looked deliberate, not like an oversight. One difficulty is that cloth was fulled much better in various historic periods than what's available now. There are some fulled fabrics available, but more expensive. Anyway, as pointed out earlier, sometimes raw edges are appropriate. A raw edge is one thing; a seam with loose threads hanging off of it is another. *That* sort of seam is not period for Anglo-Saxon; clothing took too many resources (both of material and person power) to make for it to be tolerable to create shoddy clothing. -- Cathy Raymond ca...@thyrsus.com All the world's a stage and most of us are desperately unrehearsed. --Sean O'Casey ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
Re: [h-cost] CC27 historical judge talks about workmanship and historical interpretation
A raw edge is one thing; a seam with loose threads hanging off of it is another. *That* sort of seam is not period for Anglo-Saxon; clothing took too many resources (both of material and person power) to make for it to be tolerable to create shoddy clothing. Edges shedding loose threads is what we saw way too much of. ___ h-costume mailing list h-costume@mail.indra.com http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
