Initial Scaled Toile made for The Bride in Abu Hussan/Arabian Nights Tales 2014

I spoke about how I attempted to make a scaled Toile of the Bride's Outfit in my first post on this subject and how it did not work out and why.

Below are photos of  the attempt.

It was not very successful and I went on to make a full size basic Toile which I then adapted and went on to make the correct pattern from. (see other post)

Adapted Toile Sleeve/Extended Back Panel - Bride of Abu Hussan 2014

After a discussion with the head of the department I decided to make some adaptions to my Toile.

She suggested I should make the sleeve of the outfit more obvious that it is a multi-layered garment. I decided to take one of the sleeves off and cut it shorter at an angle. I then made a full length narrower sleeve to go inside the shorter sleeve and finally I made a mid length sleeve which I gathered and puffed out to go between the 2 sleeves. Thus giving the appearance of 3 different sleeves.

(above shows the extended bridal train made from the full length tapering back panel and the final sleeve with 3 distinct layers to it. Also shows the stages of adjusting the sleeve pattern).

She also suggested that the bottom gathered frill and underneath frill should go all the way round the bottom of the outfit and not stop at the edge of the back panel which tapered down to the hem line. She felt that the frill ending at the back panel did not give the outfit a continuity of complete separate layers underneath the top, first layer of the dress. I agreed with this and chose to continue the frills all the way round the bottom.

She suggested I should cut the back panel shorter and end it at the beginning of the frills.

Although I undid the back panel and added the frills all the way round, I decided to extend the tapering back panel and make it more of a feature. Allowing it to give the appearance of a bridal train at the back of the outfit. The tapering full length back panel was one of the features I liked about this pattern and I wasn't going to lose it at this stage.

I discussed it with the actor whether this would be practical for him whilst wearing it to act in and he loved the idea. We both agreed if it wasn't working for him whilst on the stage during a dress rehearsal I could shorten it to a more manageable length. 

Another suggestion made was to lower the front neckline and add another neckline underneath that then sits where the original neckline was to be, thus giving the appearance again of more than one layer.

She also suggested that fabrics should match up in places to give the appearance of complete dresses that are in layers. Baring this in mind I have decided that the material I use on the gathered frill will also feature on the gathered middle sleeve and the underneath neckline. The fabric used on the underneath frill will also feature in the full length narrower sleeve. The shorter top sleeve will have the same fabric as the main top coat.

Arabian Nights 2014 / Bride of Abu Hussan Toile

I did not have a pattern for the outfit I was to make. I had chosen an original design from the book Costume Patterns and Designs by Max Tilke published by A. Zwemmer Ltd, London. I am making the Bride's outfit for the story of Abu Hussan's enormous fart, part of the Arabian Nights tales. The dress is described as a dress of 7 layers. I have chosen this outfit for my period costume unit. 

I chose the design of a long coat, (headed in the book as 'The most important types of garments of the Middle East'), the reason I liked this design was the front panels of the coat were cut at a diagonal angle. I also liked that the rest of the coat was in lots of small diagonal sections wrapping around to the back. The back panel of the coat was a strip of fabric starting across the width of the shoulders and went the whole length of the coat, tapering narrower towards the bottom of the coat.

The whole design, for me, made it more interesting and a challenge to make. 

The Arabian Nights have their roots in the 7th Century. I discovered that the widths of fabric further back in history were not as wide as our fabric widths today due to the size of the loom. This explained why the coat design I had chosen was made of small widths of fabric and sewn into larger pattern pieces. 

 I did not have a pattern to follow only just a picture of an outfit. I had to start by just draping the calico fabric of the toile over a mannequin. I chose a male mannequin as the person to wear my outfit will be a guy. I feel that the height of the actor and his mannerisms will carry the outfit off well.  

I had never done this before but once I got the idea of what I was to do I got into the swing of it and enjoyed the process.

I started with one side of the outfit and drew and cut to shape and size. Then draped onto the other side of the mannequin, following the same procedure of drawing and cutting as I went.

Originally I had tried to make a scaled toile of the pattern in small sections of calico that had been cut in 20cm widths, I laid them out diagonally, drawing and cutting each of the sections of panels as I went. I then stitched these together using a zig zag stitch as I had not allowed for any seam allowances. I did get quite confused doing it this way and was not very successful.  It was decided to make a base under garment in calico on which I would sew sections of fabrics to give the appearance of the original design.

The pencil drawing above shows my simplified way of how I saw the original pattern and how it was to look . I drew it in sections so I could understand how each piece should fit together. 

When drawing my initial design of the Bride using this pattern design, it reminded me of Joseph's Amazing Technicolour Dream-coat and I decided that I would use different fabrics for different sections.

The whole Bride's outfit is to be OTT and madcap. A theatrical, Dame quality outfit. I also need to adapt the original pattern to appear to look like a dress of 7 layers. I also researched traditional bride outfits of the Middle East / Arabia / India and have based some of my design on a traditional Yemen Jewish Wedding Outfit.

The Bride's outfit will be mostly red in colour, traditional of East Asia, with oranges and golds and other contrasting colours for the other layers.

Because of the nature of the story it is also to have a comedic quality to it.

After I had the 2 front sections cut out, I laid them out on top of a large piece of calico to draw the back pattern piece. 

The outfit will be made in soft furnishing fabrics so will be fairly heavy and cumbersome. Due to the fact the outfit needs to be able to be put on and taken off quickly, I have also designed it all to be one piece that will be done up probably with a few hook and eyes. As the outfit does not have to be worn for very long I am not overly concerned about the possible weight for the actor. It is meant as a show stopper piece and have immediate, full impact on the audience.

The fabrics should hang well and give the desired effect I am looking for.

I have chosen furnishing fabrics for their oppulence compared to printed cottons.The patterns available in furnishing fabrics are more appropriate for the look of the Arabian Nights. I also feel the heaviness is more appropriate for the era.

I then drew a pattern for the sleeves once I had the back and front of the costume laid out. The sleeves in the original picture were just a rectangular piece of fabric folded in half. I also cut out a section for each sleeve where the armpits would go. This was to join the sleeve and the main jacket together.

I stitched all the pieces together using a sewing machine and tried the toile on the actor. (See picture below showing the toile from the front and the back).

Looking absolutely adorable! :-)

I adjusted the sleeve length and the length of the gown to fit the actor.

Once I had the toile all stitched together I decided to set about drawing the different panels onto the toile and also where I was planning to add frills to give the effect of different layers of a dress. This would also let me know how deep I needed to make the frills.

I also wrote down on the panels the colours I am intending to use. I also laid out on the toile the fabric and trims I had gathered so far that I intend to use on the final outfit. (See picture above).

After doing this exercise I decided that I would like to have a go again of making the final piece in sections like the original pattern would of been. It all became a lot clearer now that I had come this far with the toile. I understood the pattern a lot more. It seemed so obvious and simple and I felt confident I could do this rather than just make a simple under garment and stitch the final fabrics in sections on top of the under garment.

After speaking to my tutor about what I wished to do, he agreed it would be a good idea.

I had to make decisions whilst cutting the calico for the new toile, which direction the grain should run in each piece. The back panel the grain runs straight up and down, The diagonal pieces the grain does run diagonally and the sleeves the grain runs up and over the sleeve and not length-ways.

I traced all the sections that I had drawn on my first, original, full size toile onto paper and labelled all the pieces with numbers as I went. I then cut them out. It was beginning to look like a jig saw puzzle but I felt confident as I now understood the basis of the outfit and how it went together.

Once the pieces were cut out, which was a lengthy process, I started to stitch all the pieces together on the sewing machine. Thus bringing the jig saw to life as I went.

the first frill I decided to just cut in a straight length and gather and attach to the main part of the coat. The second, under frill, I shaped to fit the dress. This meant that the fabric was cut curved. I stitched this also to the main garment. On the final piece there will also be a lace layer between these frills to give the appearance of another layer.

I decided to keep the back panel going all the way to the ground and ended the frill/layers at the edge of this panel. I had discussed this with my tutor first and he agreed it would be a shame to lose the length of the back panel.

I was quite pleased with the final outfit and felt proud of my achievement of creating this pattern from scratch. 

By making the pattern this way it allows the fabric of the garment to hang correctly, whereas when I made it as an undergarment in just 3 sections, with side seams. the outfit hung limply. With the fabric cut diagonally the fabric has more body and gives it a better shape. It is now more in keeping with the original design.

(Above the actor wearing the toile which has been made using different sections).

After speaking to the head of the department I have decided to make some further alterations to my toile.

I am going to take the frills all the way round rather than ending at the back panel.

I have decided to keep the length of the back panel but actually extend it to a point and have it hanging separately over the frills as if it is a train attached to the coat.

I have decided to alter the length of the sleeve and add other sections so it looks like 3 different sleeves of the outfits showing. 

It was explained to me that although my costume should be based on a period pattern, it is a theatrical piece and can deviate away from the original design slightly. Also that the final choices of coloured fabrics do not have to all blend and tone as it is to give the look of several different dresses and be obvious where one dress ends and the new one appears. It is ok if the colours clash.

I will also be finishing the bottom edge of the top layer of the jacket with a border of fabric to make it more obvious that the garment is meant to finish there with further layers beneath. The lace layer will not be put between the top edge of the first frill and the bottom edge of the top garment. It will now be placed at the bottom edge of the first frill, again to give a better appearance that it is indeed yet another layer.

Mask Making Unit 2013-2014 (Continuation and completion)

In my original design my mask had horns that were quite curved. I decided to first cut the shape of my horns from fairly stiff card which I then added rolled up paper to and held this in place with masking tape. My drawing of the horns though onto the card was not as curved as my original design and I did not change this as I just didn't notice until I had added all the padding fixed into place. I decided to stick with the design I had just created due to the time factor I had for making this mask.

(Above pictures show original drawing of design and finished mask)

I fixed the horns into place on the mask using masking tape. I secured them as firmly as I could but knew that once I had paper mache'd them in place and once dry, they would be more firmer and secure.

(Adding the horns)

I continued to cut out the flame shapes for the other side of the mask from card and secured them in place with masking tape.

(Completing all the added shapes and adding a base coat of white emulsion paint)

By this time I had taken the mask home for a weekend to work on it, as my time was limited at college for completing the mask. Due to this and the fact I had not taken any news print paper home with me (that is unprinted), I used actual newspapers from home to cover the mask completely with paper mache layers to hold all the additions I had added in place.

Once dried I painted the whole mask with a coating of white acyclic paint to cover all the newspaper print, back and front.

On return to college I started to finish my mask off by colouring it following my original design as a guide. Whilst I was working on my mask at home I had an idea to cover the mask in layers of coloured tissue paper rather than paint it. I took in various colours of flame coloured tissue paper to use at college. I started by adding the red tissue paper at the bottom of the mask using glue, tearing the paper roughly into small triangular strips and built these strips up into layers using the same method as paper mache. I felt that the triangular strips would represent a more flame like appearance to the mask. I continued building up the layers in various flame coloured strips of tissue paper and covered the whole mask on the front.

(Adding the coloured tissue paper)

It was quite tricky covering the flames at the side and very fiddly and I had to tear the tissue paper into slim narrow strips that weren't to long and wrap these around the flames covering the back and the front. At this point I regretted having designed it this way but once completed it was to me worth the effort and time and I feel those flames did enhance the whole mask..

For the horns I cut wide strips of black tissue paper and glued and wrapped this in place, wrapping the whole strip around the horn in a spiral like manner, covering the horns back and front.

I decided to cover the back of the mask using the same technique of paper mache'ing coloured tissue paper onto it but this time in larger strips and not worrying about building up layers of colour or flame like appearance.

(Adding coloured tissue paper to back of mask and adding cord spiral to horn)

On my original design the large horns had a spiral ridge running up the whole length of the horn. After looking in the costume room for inspiration and materials I could use I chose a white cord to do the job.
I had thought originally that I would add this ridge by adding rolled up paper around the horn and held in place with masking tape and eventually covered with paper mache but decided I wouldn't do it this way as I wanted it to be uniformly even and not very thick.
I thought about painting the white cord that I had chose red but then decided to make it look and feel in keeping with the rest of the mask design I would use the same technique on the cord as I had used on the rest of the mask. I cut thin strips of red tissue paper and by rubbing my finger tips in glue I proceeded wrapping the red tissue paper in a spiral like manner around the whole length of the cord. I also dipped the cord once wrapped into the glue pot and smoothed the glue all over the cord. Whilst still wet I wrapped the wet, glue cord in a spiral like manner around the horn, starting at the bottom and working its way up to the top.

I finished the back of the mask with a piece of red suede type fabric I found at home to cover around the eye holes and across the bridge of the nose. I added this to the mask to make the wearing of the mask more comfortable on the face.

 (Completed mask)

During one lesson of our mask making unit we had to have another student hold our mask to their face and give feedback on the masks comfortbility. As my mask was made to fit my face exactly it did not prove to be entirely comfortable for the other wearer. I did not make any changes to my design though but made note of their comments. I kept my mask as it was, as on my face it did not dig in and I felt I could clearly see out of the eye holes I had cut. All these points are important in the making of the mask for health and safety reasons, as it is important to have clear vision and important that you can breathe and that the mask is comfortable to the wearer, especially if they are acting whilst wearing the mask and having to wear it for a long period of time.

My original design had curled ribbons dangling from the bottom edge of the mask but I didn't know how I would fix curls into real ribbon, so had an idea to use curling ribbon used on wrapping presents with. I took in some curling ribbon I had at home which were gold and red in colours and cut and curled them. I also took in some small plastic skulls to add to the ribbon hoping they wouldn't be too heavy to pull the curls out of the ribbon. As it is, the weight of the skulls did straighten the curling ribbon out. I also decided that the curling ribbon I bought in was far to shiny for my mask which was matt in its colouring. Having held the ribbons next to the mask and feeling that they did not enhance the look of my mask in any way I decided to leave this part of my design of from my completed mask.

I decided my mask would be held in place onto the face by elastic.

In the most part I think the original design of my mask worked well when transferred to an actual 3D mask. I felt the using of the coloured tissue paper worked well and this is a technique that I wouldn't mind exploring further to gain better finishes. After adding all the coloured paper and once fully dry my mask is quite a solid robust prop. I am happy with the finished mask and apart from the fact the horns weren't as curved as I would of liked them to be I am pleased with everything else. I could of easily re-made the horns but had decided not to.

ASM. Marking out the Theatre Floor. Slice of Saturday Night 2014

Had to be involved in some marking out of the Theatre floor for the show Slice of Saturday Night. The plans had been drawn up and we had to work from the plan when measuring out the floor plan onto the Theatre floor.

(Picture above shows the scaled floor plan, top left and the beginnings of measuring and scaling up onto the Theatre floor)

 

We had to measure the floor and scale the plan up so we could mark it out on the Theatre floor. We took turns measuring and also laying down LX Tape where it needed to be, to mark out the plan onto the floor. When using the tape we had to make sure we didn't pull and stretch it whilst laying it down to stick to the floor as apparently when you do this it tends to lift up overnight and you end up having to mark out again. If left the bits that may of had risen, get scuffed up. The marking up was done so we would know where the staging and the set would be once placed in the Theatre. It would also allow us to know how the space would be used and how much would be taken up.

The set of Slice of Saturday Night will be using a Thrust format and the whole seating of the Lafranc Theatre will be changed for this show. The audience will be around the set in two places plus the audience will be able to stand on a third side or possibly sit on the floor. Slice of Saturday Night is a Promenade Show.

(The marked out floor)

Being a Dresser. Dance Show April/May 2014.

For the Dance Show I was asked to do the Dressing. The following is my account of how the week went:

(Picture shows the chairs Backstage where the Dancers Costume changes are kept)

On the Monday I watched the Tech Run in the Theatre which wasn't originally supposed to have any costumes in it but the Director wanted to see what the colours of the costumes looked liked under the lights so I took the costume rails, with the chosen costumes on, through to the workshop which is backstage.
I was given a running order of the show with the name of each dance and notes on costumes, LX, props and music etc. This had been made earlier by another crew member during rehearsals and I was to make my own notes on it whilst watching the Tech Run of what costume was needed and by whom. This was the first time I had been involved in the Dance show and the first time I had seen any of the dances. I do feel sometimes that you are thrown in at the deep end but I suppose that is life at times and the Theatre. I always feel I would like to have more involvement from an earlier start in each show.
Whilst watching the Tech Run I would occasionally have to get up and go backstage with them to assist the dancer to get their costume.
I also spent time gathering up costumes from around the Theatre after they had been used and re-hanging them back on the rails.
It was a slow day and by lunchtime only 4 out of the 18 Dances had been run through. We had no morning or afternoon breaks and only a 45 minute lunch rather than our normal hour. There is a lot of sitting around whilst running through a Tech Run if you are not involved in the actual lighting or sound, so patience is required and plenty of fluids as you start to dehydrate sitting around in a darkened, stuffy Theatre and can get a pounding headache by the end of the day if your not careful.

(The Monitor Backstage that shows what is going on on the stage)

On the Tuesday, whilst they continued with the Tech Run, I worked in the Costume Room labeling Dancers Costumes with their names and I also drew up a chart of the Dancers names so we could allocate them a pair of tights each. Usually new tights are bought for the Dancers and most never seem to be returned and there is no record of who had what and who had returned what. This time I was asked to label all the tights with a number and allocate each number to a Dancer. When at the end of the shows the tights are returned, the numbers can be checked off against each Dancers names. I also labelled the tights with their sizes as once taken out of the packet there was no visible evidence what the size was. I labelled these tights with a small calico label that i had cut out and wrote on and then hand sewed them into each individual pair of tights.
In the afternoon there was a full dress rehearsal and I must admit it was pretty chaotic and I did feel that I would not enjoy the shows at this rate. Again it had been a long day and various Crew and Dancers were dropping out and going early for various reasons and it did make you wonder how any show ever goes on. I had to help with quick changes, which mainly were with the 2 Male Dancers in the show. Poppy was allocated to help me with the dressing but she did also have to do some props and set changes as far as I was aware, so there were times where I was on my own. Plus we had decided to work opposite sides of the stage when necessary but we did have to do some of the quick changes together.

(The running order of the Dances to be performed during the show, copies of these were taped up in various places Backstage)

On the Wednesday I had to label all the chairs that were placed backstage for the Dancers to sit on whilst they waited to go on stage. I stuck their name on the wall above their chair. This is so they would know where their pile of costume changes were and for me to know whose chair was whose so I could also know where to place their costumes. The Dancers kept all their costumes on their own chairs in the order which they were to wear them. The last costume at the bottom of the pile. The first being on the top. Once used most costumes were then put beneath the chairs.
I would of liked to of known each Dancers order of costumes and what items each costume consisted of. This would I felt benefited me to be able to be more organised as I felt at this stage out of my depth not knowing what was happening and who needed what, what each costume was and the order of each Dancers changes. I felt that I should be able to assist in the order of each of the Dancers costumes and get their chairs organised if I needed to but I wasn't in the position to do so. I did mention this to the Wardrobe Supervisor but she felt that the Dancers needed to take this responsibility and that it wasn't down to us!!?? I'm not convinced but had to let it go and work with what I could.
Wednesday saw the open Dress Rehearsal and it did run surprisingly smooth and the Dancers did keep their costumes in order and although it did look pretty chaotic backstage they did seem to be organised in their own way. the open Dress Rehearsal went well I think and the only mishap was for the final dance of the 2nd show, as one of the Dancers T-shirts and bandanna seemed to be missing. They went on in a different colour T-shirt to everyone else and without a bandanna. I can only presume there must of been some sort of domino effect gone on with someone taking a costume from the chair next to them and not their own, so thus making each next person taking the wrong outfit, as the missing outfit was found during the dance routine quite a way down the line.
The other thing we needed to do was draw up a quick costume change list and pin it up on the wall. Something that we could work to so we knew what was going on and when. It was drawn as a chart with the name of the dance, the Dancers name, the outfit they needed, what side of the stage they were coming off at and what side of the stage they were to go on at. This helped us know where to have the costume ready for and when.

(Our quick change lists. The original list on top and below it our chart for the quick changes)

On Thursday there was 2 shows and all went well. The Quick changes did have to be done quickly and it could prove difficult at times as Dancers get quite hot and sweaty and taking down trousers and attempting to put on jeans to sticky bodies is not the easiest things to do. Doing up shirts and putting on bow-ties can also be tricky and its not the time to have fumbling fingers, which did happen on occasions lol. To speed things up shirts were done up to midway and put over the head so not so many buttons had to be done up whilst doing the change. Trousers legs are rolled up and the trousers laid flat on the ground so they can step in quickly. T-shirts are put onto the Dressers arms, their arm slotted through the neck and through to the bottom, so they can be placed quickly over the Dancers heads. Organisation is the key points of being a Dresser and a sense of calmness in a chaotic atmosphere. Quickness is needed as well. To be able to direct the Dancer/actor to what you expect of them whilst they are pumped up on adrenalin, such as left foot forward then right, take control of the situation and take the lead and always be in your position on time and be ready with your changes. I actually ended up really enjoying my Dressing experience, the Guy Dancers were both lovely and tolerant and I felt the changes went comparatively smoothly even though there were some hic-cups along the way but all went ok in general.

(Running order of set changes and props needed throughout the show)

Towards the end of the last show we started to gather up the used costumes and sorting them into colour costume piles ready for washing. This was to save time at the actual end of the show.

On the Friday I continued to sort through the costume piles. Taking out name labels.Turning things the right way out. Unrolling sleeves. Untangling items etc and then putting them into separate bin bags of sorted colours ready to take to the launderette.

I would happily do the Dressing again but would like more involvement in all costume related details. Attending the rehearsals. Help in choosing the costumes and having the knowledge of what is what and chosen for whom. I feel this would help benefit with the smoother running and understanding of the order of things for me.

Costume. Russian Hammer and Sickle logo stenciled onto a red t-shirt. Dance Show 2014.

For the Dance Show I was asked to stencil the Russian Hammer and Sickle logo onto several red T-Shirts. It was decided to not include the Star that is part of the logo.

(The finished T-Shirts hanging to dry)

 

First I researched the logo online and chose a very simple design with clean lines, nothing fancy or fiddly. I drew the hammer and the sickle seperately onto 2 pieces of paper, which I then had to adjust as it was felt that my original designs were just a little to large. Once re-drawn I then placed clear acetate over the drawings and traced them onto the acetate using a black permanent marker pen. 

(Above pictures show the internet designs and the pencil drawings of the Hammer and Sickle)

 

Next I cut the shapes out of the acetate using a stanley knife, after placing the acetate onto a cutting board. I used a metal ruler when cutting the straight lines. These acetates were then used as stencils.

(Cutting the shapes out of the acetates)

 

It was originally decided that the stencils would be sprayed on but after trying this out on the first T-Shirt it was decided to use paint instead, which was to be sponged on. I thought it may be possible to spray the stencil without adding anything around the stencil but that was not to be and I did add sheets of paper all around the stencil, stuck on with masking tape. Even with this it proved difficult to spray the T-Shirt without it bleeding to beneath the stencil. Also the spray kept coming out lumpy and bitty even though I had shook it several times. Plus it needed to be sprayed several times, building up the colour, for it to look anywhere remotely bright yellow as the colour just kept soaking into the fabric.

Using the paint was so much more easier and quicker and neater. I used a sponge to apply the colour. I stenciled all the Sickle's on first and allowed them to dry and then I stenciled all the Hammer's on next.

(Pictures showing the original Hammer stencil after using the spray and the tub of yellow emulsion paint that was finally used)

 

The T-Shirts had to have the logo stenciled into the middle of the shirt. I placed a thick piece of cardboard inside the T-Shirt to stop the paint from soaking through to the back of the shirt and even though I felt I had folded the top of the shirt and the sides over all roughly in the same place as each other, after I had finished the task discovered that somehow not all the logo's were central and some were down lower than others. Oopps!! I was told that they were fine and wouldn't matter. Next time I feel I should work on my own without the distraction of other crew members chatting to me whilst I worked lol.

Props. White Suitcase. Dance Show 2014

I was asked to prepare an old suitcase so it could be painted white for the Dance Show. I roughly sanded the suitcase down so the paint would adhere to it. I wiped the suitcase over with a damp cloth after rubbing it down to remove the dust from the sanding down.



 

I painted the suitcase leaving the handle and hinges. It did take 2-3 layers of paint. Originally I felt that it needed a varnish type of coating, as when dried, the paint could be scrapped off but I did not get to do this as I went and worked on something else. I do not know if someone else did do this but having done most of the shows whilst writing this, the suitcase does seem to of faired ok throughout the shows.

Mask Making Unit. 2013-2014. Venetian Style Mask.

At the beginning of the college year we had to get into pairs to make a mould of our faces with the intention of making a Paper Mache Mask. We made these moulds using 'Modroc' (Plaster of Paris bandages).
We covered our whole face with Vaseline, taking care to cover our eyebrows and eyelashes so they would not stick to the 'Mudroc'. We used the Vaseline to act as a releasing agent.
We applied the 'Mudroc' direct to our partners vaselined face, building up the bandages in layers, being careful round the contours, pushing the bandages into the creases of the face, and leaving the nostrils of the nose uncovered so the person could continue to breathe. We covered the mouth completely. We applied about 5-6 layers of 'Mudroc'.
When the 'Mudroc' was hard, the persons face it had been on, twitched their facial muscles and gently pulled the cast from their face. This cast formed a 'negative' mould for us to pour Plaster of Paris into to form our 'positive' mould from which we was to make our final Paper Mache Mask on.

(Pictures show the negative 'Mudroc' mould and positive Plaster of Paris mould and the 'donut' paper ring to rest the cast in)

 



From paper and masking tape we had to make a ring like donut in which to rest our 'Mudroc' mould. This is so it would balance without tipping over when we added the Plaster of Paris. We had to thoroughly and completely smother the inside of the 'Mudroc' mould with Vaseline, again concentrating to get into the nooks and crannies of the mould. This again was to act as a releasing agent as we were going to pour Plaster of Paris into the moulds.
We mixed the Plaster of Paris up in a bucket which we had added water to. We gradually sprinkled Plaster of Paris through our fingers and mixed into the water until it formed into a thick 'double cream' consistency. Once at the right consistency we poured the 'gloop' into the 'Mudroc' mould up to the lowest edge of the mould so it would not overflow and gently tapped the mould to hopefully remove any air bubbles. We left the Plaster of Paris to set hard in the moulds.
Once hard we had to remove the now solid cast from the 'Mudroc' mould. We gently pulled the edges of the 'Mudroc' mould away and due to the fact we had added Vaseline as a releasing agent, we was able to remove the solid cast from the mould.
Any air bubble holes we filled in with soft brown clay and smoothed over and any rough edges or uneven surfaces we used a Stanley knife to shave them off.

(Pictures show the air bubble holes filled in with soft brown clay and shaving the Plaster away around the nose with a stanley knife)

 

After the clay dried we were ready to cover the Plaster cast with strips of Paper Mache. Before doing this though we again covered the Plaster cast with Vaseline to again act as a releasing agent from the Paper Mache covering. We used approx: half water to half PVA glue ratio and I put on 8-9 layers of paper, this was to give the finished mask strength. We were also asked to make 5 tester strips, these were made with a strip of card and about 3 layers of Paper Mache added to the end. These were made so we could test our paint colours on before applying to the mask.



 

(Pictures show the Plaster cast covered in Paper Mache and the tester strips)

 

Once the Paper Mache had dried we had to remove the Mask covering from the Plaster cast. This proved quite difficult even though it had been covered in Vaseline. I did use a pair of scissors to work away around the edge of the Paper Mache Mask from the Plaster cast. Once I had released the edge significantly the mask did come away quite easily.

(Picture shows on left the Paper Mache Mask and on the right the Plaster cast)

 

Now I had the Paper Mache Mask I started to draw my design, which I had previously drawn, onto the Mask and cut away the pieces I didn't need using scissors and a stanley knife.

(Pictures above and below show the different stages of cutting out the design)

 

I cut away a fair amount from the bottom of the nose to allow the wearer to be able to breathe and made sure the eyes were big enough to be able to see and wear comfortably. Once I had drawn and cut away what was needed from the actual mask I then needed to add extra bits of card to the mask to continue to bring about my design onto the mask. I initially used for this the pieces of Paper Mache that I had cut away from the Mask. 

(Pictures show the Mask taking the design shape I had planned and how it worked and looked on my face)

 

I started to add contours to the mask before I had actually finished the whole completed design to see how it would look. I used pieces of rolled up paper and masking tape to hold these in place. I lengthened the nose and made it more bulbous.

(Above and below pictures show the building up of the contours to the Mask)

 

I have based my design and have been influenced by the film Labyrinth with David Bowie in. I love the grotesque Masks at the Masked Ball Scene and feel these have been influenced by original Venetian Carnival Masks. I still have a long way to go to finish my Mask.

Props. Large Poppy Flower. Slice of Saturday Night. 2014

I was asked to  make a large poppy for a prop required. At first I was thinking quite large and thought I would make it out of stiffened fabric but after I made enquiries found it was to be about 4-5 inches in diameter. This made me think to make it it tissue paper instead.

(Picture shows the finished Poppy)

 

I used red tissue paper for the petals and decided to use brown paper for the centre as we did not have any black paper and felt that brown would still look acceptable. I chose two different shades of green, one for the stem and another for the leaves.

 

 

(Picture shows the shades of tissue paper I chose and the shapes I cut to make the Poppy Flower)

 

I cut several circles in the brown tissue paper and cut with scissors all around the edge, cutting towards the middle, so to make a fringe effect. I cut several elongated shapes out of the green to make the bud leaves at the back of the Poppy and I cut 7 red Poppy petals. I cut a line up from the base of the middle of the Poppy petal so it could easily wrap around the stem. I used wire for the stem and through the centre of the leaves. The stem I needed to join 2 pieces of the wire together.

(Above picture shows the flower head, front, side and back and also the shapes cut for the leaves)

 

I assembled the flower head together by inserting the wire through the brown centre part and wrapping the Poppy petals around the centre. Gluing it in place as I went. I then attached the bud leaves to the back of the flower head, again wrapping them around the stem and gluing in place as I went.

The leaves I cut 2 identical shapes for each leaf and glued the wire through the centre of a leaf and then stuck the identical leaf on top. At this stage the leaf felt quite flimsy and I did think that it would not survive being used as a prop during several shows. I decided to cover the leaves back and front with PVA glue, with the theory that once dried it would stiffen the leaves and make them more durable. Whilst still wet I shaped the wire to the shape I required them to be and to speed the process up I dried the glue with a hairdryer making sure that the leaf stayed into the shape I wished it to be. Although using a hairdryer dried the leaves reasonably and did give the desired effect that I required, it wasn't until the next day when I went back to the workshop that it was more evident that my idea had worked quite well, as the leaves along with the bud leaves at the back of the Poppy flower head, that I also had applied the same technique to, were fully try, hard and a lot more durable.

(Pictures show the final Poppy, complete with stem and leaves)

 

I tightly wrapped strips of green tissue paper around the wire stem after attaching the leaves to the stem. I covered the leaf stems as well as the flower stem. I also decided to cover the whole stem paper with PVA glue as well to make the whole thing more durable and hopefully to last the whole durations of the shows. I left the Poppy petals and centre free of glue. I finished the leaves off by drawing vein lines on them with a permenant marker.

I am pleased with my final flower and feel sure that it will survive the shows.

Slice of Saturday Night. 1960's Dress. Making of the Outfit in the Final Chosen Fabric.

I was not involved in the selection of the fabrics for the 1960's dress that I had to make but am aware due to the outfit I was making was for one of the leading roles the outfit needed to be a bit special and it was decided to have a bit of a sparkle to it.

 

(Semi finished costume. Looks complete but am going to add a belt and adornment on the back)

The Fabrics that were chosen was a Black Jersey for the top part which was stretchy and had to be sewn with care not to stretch it whilst sewing it. I had to use a loose stitch so it would have a slight give in it whilst worn. I set the machine on a zig zag stitch on setting 1 with a stitch size 3.
The skirt part was a Black and Silver Brocade which again had its difficulties to work with. It would fray quite considerably and needed to be zig zag stitched all round before using. The fabric was able to be used either side and I chose the side that had the most silver showing rather than the black. I chose it that way round to give the outfit a bit more sparkle. I also suggested that the cuffs were to be made in this same fabric and I also suggested that the dress could benefit from a collar and after researching 1960's collars decided, along with the agreement of the tutor, that the front part of the collar being made in the same Silver Brocade fabric and the back part of the collar made in the Black Jersey. I felt the dress could benefit from a collar as after trying the dress on the actress I felt that it would finish the neckline off.
The sleeves were made of Black Chiffon which was slippery to work with and again all the edges had to be zig zag stitched to stop it from fraying.
The skirt was lined with Black Lining, which again was slippery and again also needed to be edged with a zig zag stitch to stop it from fraying.
I felt that making the cuffs and collar in the same Silver Brocade as the skirt helped tie the whole dress design together and I am pleased with the final results. I know the actress I was making for also liked the design and combination. She seemed to be pleased with the collar and especially liked the cuffs.
Even though at this stage of coming to write this, the dress though looking complete and finished, is not, as I feel something needed to be added to the back as it just seemed to have too much black. Also it was decided that I should add a belt, possibly with a buckle to finish the dress off. So I am still currently working on the dress.

Before I got to the final stage of constructing the dress I was hoping to have a final fitting of the Toile with the actress before cutting the pattern out in the final fabric. Unfortunately that was not to be so I had to make the final adjustments to the Toile and trust that they were correct.

 

(Removing the final piece of excess fabric from the Toile)

After cutting off the access fabric, after re-stitching the adjustment, I had to unstitch the whole Toile, including the bust darts and back, shoulder darts, so I could use the fabric Toile as my final pattern. I had to use this fabric Toile as it had considerably changed since I had made the paper pattern. Once unstitched I had to press the Toile to completely flatten it and then pinned these pieces onto the final fabrics.

Once cut out I set about stitching the whole pattern together to produce the final dress.

 (Cutting out the top in the final fabric)

(Cutting out the skirt and sleeve in the final fabric)

 

(Dress coming together)

 

(Dress without the collars and cuffs attached on mannequin / has been pulled in at waist)

 

  I drew a collar onto the Toile fabric bodice pieces then traced over the outlines on the front and back of the Toile which I had drawn the collar, to create a pattern. I then cut this pattern out of the Silver Brocade. I cut the Brocade in double fabric so the collar was of this fabric on top and on bottom. I originally stitched the collar parts together the wrong way round and when I attached the collar to the dress it did not lay correctly and flat. I then unstitched the back part of the collar and put them together the correct way and stitched them both back in position onto the dress.

 

 

(Drawing the collar onto the Toile and tracing it onto pattern paper)

 



  This time it lay correctly but I had accidently burnt the Silver Brocade slightly and although it wasn't noticeable I wasn't that happy with it. Also because I had only partly undone the collar from the dress and due to the fraying nature of the fabric it hadn't gone back together so smoothly. I had done all this work without any of the tutors input and as I have never put a collar onto a dress before I knew it wasn't done correctly in dress making terms but it did look ok.

 

(First attempt of attaching the collar to the dress)

 

 

When I showed the tutor and we discussed it further I decided I would take the whole collar off and start again and attach the collar in the correct manner. I'm happy I did do this as I was so much more pleased with the final outcome. I was also able to cut a new piece of fabric for the piece I had accidently burnt and the whole collar looked so much better and I know the tutor was happy as well.

(Second attempt at the collar. Stitching it together correctly and attached to the dress)

When it came to making the cuffs, again I cut the fabric in double and I added a rectangular piece of Vilene along the edge of the cuff to strengthen the fabric as I was going to add poppers to the cuffs. I added pearl buttons to the outside edge.

(Making the cuff pattern)

 

(Cuffs cut out in final fabric and being attached to the sleeve)

 

(Deciding what buttons to choose and adding the poppers to the cuffs)

 

 

I hand stitched the cuffs in place and I hand stitched the collar in place.
I did have trouble adding the zip and I think I lost count how many times I unstitched it to re-stitch it. The main problem was the stretchiness of the fabric but I persevered and it worked out ok in the long run.
I finally cut the skirt pattern out in Black lining and after zig zagging the edges to stop it from fraying I stitched the pieces together to make a skirt lining. I then pinned the lining to the inside of the dress and machined sewed it in place. I hand sewed the hem of the dress and machine sewed the hem of the skirt lining.

(Cutting out the skirt lining and sewing it together and attaching it to the dress)

I have tried the final outfit on my actress but have decided not to include a final picture of her wearing it on this blog, instead I have taken pictures of it on a dress mannequin and added those.
It does fit well after all the perseverance and alterations and as I have already said I am still working on the dress to make some final finishing touches.
Lastly, on reflection, now that I have finished the dress construction, I wish I had cut the 2 front skirt panels out as one piece and that I had cut it on the fold instead of in 2 pieces. I feel this would of looked better as the pattern would of looked complete and not broken up. If not cutting it on the fold then the 2 pieces should of had the pattern matched up. Having said this it is ok and is not necessarily that noticeable. I had made my original pattern in 4 separate pieces, rather than only 2 pieces cut on the fold as the other college students patterns were, as my pattern had to have numerous adjustments made to it and after increasing my pattern size I hadn't thought about the possibility of then cutting the front of the skirt on the fold as was the original pattern.

Have now finished the dress  :-)  Have added an adornment of a strip of Siver Brocade fabric to both sides of the back of the dress that loosely tie together and held in place with a popper. I do feel this has broken up the 'Blackness' of the dress at the back and will move freely when the actress is dancing. I quite like the look it gives to the back. I also cut a long piece of jersey fabric into a long strip and stitched together as a tube which I turned the right way round. I have hand sewn this Black Fabric band around the waist of the dress to form a belt. Again I do feel this has added to the final finish of the dress and look forward to seeing the outfit on the actress. 

 

 

(The final completed dress back and front)