The Blogger is Back

So I know it's been a while but the whole specialist historical construction has been on the back burners for this term whilst I've been frantically working on all 4 AUCB school of performance shows! I know! MENTAL! So I'm back now, after months of abandonment, to start up the whole shabang once more. In the next post I'll give you a flash of all the things I've been doing, but for now I'm going to update you on what I'm GOING to be doing.

So next term our big unit is called EMP!!!! (Which stands for Extended Major Project...and pretty much does what it says on the tin). For EMP!!!! I will be working (fingers crossed, waiting for confirmation) on the 1st year film unit Costume for Screen, making a costume for a principal character. The film is as yet to be confirmed and none of the script-writing, casting or designs have been done yet, but the general idea is Marie Antoinette. So I had in mind making something elaborate and fancy like this:

Or something a bit more simple like this:

This should occupy the second half of term from about March onwards. My original plans for the first half of the term were to make something like this:

From one of the Janet Arnold Patterns of Fashion books. But at my assessment presentation at the end of my most recent unit, when discussing the next project, it was decided that this might not be enough of a challenge for my final year, and that I could quite possibly achieve this in my own time. The Janet Arnold pattern that I have chosen instead of the 1800s riding habit is something altogether rather more complicated. Something a bit...well....like this:

Yup.
Gulp.

This beautiful specimen is an 1860s ivory silk wedding dress with three-tiered skirt and ivory silk flossing. This is not the actual example in the Janet Arnold book but is strikingly similar. I know the last pattern wasn't a challenge when looking at this one because of the level of skill which will have to go into making this. I am really interested in the history of wedding attire and this will aid my research and well as my understanding. It's also going to be a feat of skill just to keep the silk from getting dirty! It will challenge my abilities as a maker and I'm really looking forward to the challenge.