Monday 12 March 2007

Timeline of Fashion through Theatrical Costumes

During Heritage Week in New South Wales on Sunday March 11th, 2007 I displayed 8 of my theatrical costumes in a timeline of fashion. The Drawing Room at Linnwood was the setting for this one-day-only display. I sat up till 1.30 a.m. the night before to make sure my exhibit descriptions were brief but informative, I hate seeing exhibitions with not enough info, don't you? In the past I have been asked about what's underneath when I've been wearing a costume so I like to also display pictures or drawings of underpinnings. Every costume had 2 A4 heritage green pages with petticoat/corset/underwear pictures and descriptions next to them displayed on little easels. I displayed the following, some of which are pictured elsewhere on this blog and some below:
Elizabeth 1, 1590 Opera Costume, Regency 1810 Evening Dress from Embroidery By Design Certificate, 1835 Day Dress from OGH Display, 1865 Crinoline from FOL member, 1887 Purple and Black Bustle Theatre Costume, an 1885 corset and combinations underwear, 1900 2 piece Day outfit which is my usual FOL outft and 1927 Wedding Dress and Veil my Film Costume. I also wore my Regency evening dress which I made for the OGH colonial ball in 2005. I must be getting a bit "past it" because I really felt the heat even though the mercury only said 32 degrees C, it felt much warmer to me!!

Timeline of Fashion through Theatrical Costume at Linnwood March 2007



Thursday 8 March 2007

Vintage Clothing, Jewellery and Textiles Show 2006

In January last year I was alerted by a good friend and fellow costume collector that there was to be an inaugural Vintage Clothing Show in Sydney in April. He urged me to attend and exhibit. It appealed to my sense of showmanship I guess and so I put together a display of my real vintage underwear and accessories together with my historical reproduction clothing. In the photos below you can see the view looking into my little stand, then the theatrical costumes on the mannequins and dress stands in front of the real vintage undies on the wall. I also made posters about "what lies beneath" featuring corsets, crinoline and bustles, petticoats and bloomers. Corsets were the most asked about items on the stand. If I had made some ready-to-wear I probably could have sold several on the spot. My stand was strictly a display, although one insistent lady wanted to buy the 1890's lace chemisette on the wall above the table to CUT UP to make a collar!! If she hadn't mentioned her intentions I might have taken a fair price for it, but NOT to cut it up!! My costumes included an embroidered silk Regency evening dress, 1830's cotton day dress, 1887 2 piece bustle outfit, 1875 corset, and 1920's beaded wedding gown with long narrow veil. On the walls were camisoles, divided drawers or "free traders", edwardian petticoat and the chemisette mentioned before. I will be exhibiting some of these again this weekend at an historic house where I volunteer at their bi-monthly Open House .

Vintage Clothing Jewellery and Textile Show 2006