Dorset Echo Review

Dorset Echo came to se the performance and wrote a very positive review about it.

Find it here: 

Dress Parade

The dress parade ran smoothly today and everybody was happy with how Macheath’s outfit was working as a whole. There were no changes to the makes of the costume, only small changes to the sourced parts. Seeing how all the costumes are working on the actors is really good and I am looking forward to production week net week.  

Tie

I created a tie to go with Polly Peachum’s Zoot Suit. I used a tie to trace a pattern onto the fabric and then cut out. I lined the tie and turned it through. Once completed I tied it with a half Winsor knot and set it like this. I then cut the back in half and finished the edges, adding a popper to fasten it at the back. 

Dress Parade

The dress parade ran smoothly today and everybody was happy with how Macheath’s outfit was working as a whole. There were no changes to the makes of the costume, only small changes to the sourced parts. Seeing how all the costumes are working on the actors is really good and I am looking forward to production week net week. 

Bionic Leg - 3PO

As I have finished my makes for The Threepenny Opera I spent today helping on other things which need completing for the dress parade on Monday. This included finishing a bionic leg for one of the beggars. This leg was created with a pair of Lycra legging with one short leg. They had been cut out and partly stitched together and the reverse appliqué outline shape had been tacked on.  

I completed the reverse appliqué and stitched them together; I then fitted them to the actor, adding a waistband and stirrup. 

Once the designer had seen the fitting they decided that they wanted to add elastic strips to give it a more mechanical look.  I pinned the strips on noting the size, I then created the strips out of Lycra and attached them to the leg.

The designer was happy with the final outcome and I now have more experience with working with Lycra.

In the Echo

As part of the promotion for The Threepenny Opera there was a piece in the daily Echo. As Macheath is a principal character he was feature in this. However as this was before I had completed the costume there was still tacking in the costume.  

Pre-dress Parade

Today was the pre-dress parade and was the first time we got to see the costumes as a collection. This was really exciting as though we are working collectively as a team I only really knew about Mac’s Jacket, as I was working with closely Naomi, and the other gang member suits. It was really nice to see the outfit together with the hat and accessories and to see how the work Naomi and I have been doing is very closely linked together. Everything went really well and everybody is happy with how I have interoperated the design. All I have to do now is remove the tacking and sort out the problems with the lights. I have found that I have managed to catch up with the work that I need to do and I feel as if I am back on track. 

Light Problems - add photos

I have been testing the lights at regular intervals throughout the production of this waistcoat and until last night they were working fine. However today the left side lights are no longer as solid and they seam to be a lot dimmer. After talking to a technician I discovered that if the lights re bent too much they will damage and cannot be fixed. I then met with the designer and we decided that re-piping the lights was going to take to long and the lights would be much brighter if they were whip stitched on top of the waistcoat. There was also the risk with re-piping the lights that the same thing would happen and it would not be possible to replace them during the show.  Whip stitching them on should be fine and not hinder the actor’s performance. I am happy with this decision as taking the waistcoat apart and re piping it would have taken a long time and it would have effected getting everything done in time. 

Lights

My design consists of having a strip of lights either side of the in the front panels. I have decided the best way to attach these lights if by treating them like piping. I have tired enclosing them in PVC and organza to see which has the best effect. I have found that when piping them in PVC they shine brighter however in the fitting the curve was not smooth enough and this gave the waistcoat too much shape. I then decided to use the organiser as it was more flexible and meant that a smooth curve could be created.

Fitting Notes

The fitting went really well and there are only minimal changes to make. Due to my previous fitting the trousers fit really well and my actor is really happy with them and feels he can move and breathe comfortably in them. The waistcoat is fitting well apart from a few adjustments however the lights in the front are stopping it from laying flat. This is something I will have to look at but the designer has suggested using organza instead of PVC and this should work better. I am really happy with how it is beginning to take shape.

Take in CF as far as 1^st zip line

Reduce centre panels

Make the collar out of the leather around ½” wide

Organza instead of PVC

Bring the bottom seam up by 1cm at the centre back.

Millenary - Shaping

Using the same technique repeat with the capeline however place the pins around the hat were the brim angles out to help to create a right angle. Once again leave to stiffen over night. Once the capline has stiffened remove from the block, spray with water, and iron the brim putting a piece of calico between the felt and the iron.

When doing my hat I had a problem here, as a tight right angle had not formed. Due to this I had to re-block my capeline, whilst doing this I looked at how the pins were holding the felt to the block and discovered the felt was pulling away slightly. This is what caused the hat to not form a right angle, to stop this from happening I placed two pins at a time and made sure the were in securely and angled down.

Once both parts are blocked and ready measure around to check to see the head size, if the hat is too small, spray, steam and place on a hat stretcher for 15 minutes each way. Take of and re-measure repeating the process as many times as necessary.

When happy with the shape and side remove any excess felt, mark on the capeline around an inch above the brim and cut away. Cut away the excess on the cone where the pins were placed. Then measure the maximum height the hat will be and trim away the excess. From the angle of the brim mark a circle around the brim around 7 cm out. Trim away the excess.

Now shape the cone to create the trilby effect. Spray and steam the felt then manipulate it by pinching the inside, shaping it and holding it until it cools. Keep manipulating it until you find a shape you are happy with.

Place the cone on the brim and pin at the front, back and sides. Wrap petersham around the hat to hide the pins and the seam. Now fit the hat to decide on height and width of the brim.

I fitted my hat several times as the brim was too wide and the cone was too tall. After one fitting the dip in the cone was to deep so this also had to be altered. I am now happy with the shape of the hat so I can start attaching the hat together.I also helped to fit the 3 gang members hats, adjusting the brims and heights.

Trouser Fitting

As the trousers are needed for a photo shoot I had an early fitting to check that they fitted correctly. This was lucky as the trousers came up to big. I have had several fittings with the calico toile so it was odd that they didn’t fit and I am unsure where I have gone wrong with them. However I noted the necessary alterations and I will change these ready for the photo shoot. It is really lucky that I did arrange this previous fitting as my next fitting for the waistcoat is the day before the photo shoot and I would not have had time to make the alterations. 

Side Entry Trouser Pockets

I have created side entry pockets before however I have never created slanted ones as is shown in my design. I referred back to Metric Pattern Cutting for Menswear to see the shapes if the facings that would be needed.

I then constructed the pocket in a similar way to all side entry pockets. Starting by stitching the facings onto the Silesia, then attaching one side of the pocket to the trousers, folding it over, rolling the seam and securing. Then tacking the second piece of pocketing behind and stitching around the pocketing, the pocket is then caught in with the waistband and trouser side seam. 

As I am not creating these trousers in a traditional way and they are being used for a very physical piece of theatre I am also overlocking my seams to make sure they hold. 

Millenary - Blocking the Felt

Now that the felts have been stiffened they need to be stretched over a head block. To start with the head block is covered in cling film so the wood doesn’t get damaged with the moisture from the steam. This cling filming must be re-done every time you use the block.

Once happy turn on the steamer, spray the hat felt with water so it is slightly damp, then begin to steam the hat. Get some one to help then pulling 4 sides of the hat equally putt onto the hat block. Using house hold pins and a thimble pin the hat at the centre front and back and sides. Use two pins to mark the position and hold securely.

Using the steamer re-steam where you want to pin, stretch the felt down and pin into place. Always work evenly in opposites when hat making, slowly begin to pin the hat around and eventually each pin wants to be around 1cm apart. If pins need to be removed and adjusted do this remover then, steam and re-pin. Make sure the felt remains smooth and there are no ridges.  The felt now needs to be left for 24 house to dry and out re-stiffen. 

Suit Alteration

Part of working as a tailor on the costume team for The Threepenny Opera involves adjusting and altering some of the sourced suits. This suit is for a Gang member and needed taking up along the bottom jacket line, cuffs and in the leg. It also needed taking out at the centre back. I have recorded imaged of before and after the suit was altered.

This suit was really interesting to look at, as I believe it was tailor made in Hong Kong. I came to this decision from looking at the label and examining the construction.

I started by looking at the suit its self; a point of interest was the facing at the front. This was shaped so the pockets didn’t cut the seam and this was quit a nice effect.

The lining had been hand stitched in and this made it fairly easy to open up the suit and make the alterations I needed to make. Once I had opened up the bottom of the suit I could look at how the inside had been constructed. The majority of the suit was constructed similar to how I would construct a suit however one huge contrast was the canvases. I would pad stitch my canvases together however the canvases here had been machined together, this would reduce the construction time considerably.

Once I had unpicked the bottom of the jacket and the cuffs I altered them and then slipstitched them in place again. I also removed the buttons and raised them by the same amount as the cuff. There was a false envelope on the cuff, which would also reduce time, but once I had raised the cuff length this was not visible at all. I am really pleased with how the jacket looks after the alterations and although it was very time consuming I feel that I have learnt a lot from this experience.

I then moved onto the trousers, these were created in a similar way to how I would create a pair of trousers however the fly was constructed slightly differently and only the front of the trousers were lined.  I pressed all the seams flat and took in the leg of the trousers. I then reduced the seam allowance and overlocked it to keep in neat.

Next I hemmed the trousers to shorten them cutting of some of the excess as there was too much and it created a lot of bulk. I tried to keep the same curve to the bottom seam of the  trousers  whilst doing this.  I re-pressed the trousers including the seam down the front, as this was no longer central. 

To finish I extended the trousers around the hips, as these were tailor made trousers there was enough excess at the back to do this, if it had been a ready-to-wear suit this may not have been possible.

Alteration Measurements 

·      Take up by 2" around the bottom of the jacket

·      Cuffs are taken up by 1½"

·      Button are placed 1¼" up from the bottom of the cuff

·      Trousers are taken up by 2¼" at front 2½"  at the back 

·      Leg  is taken in by 1½"  from the bottom to around 13" up  then taper to the seam around 7" up. 

·      The centre back seam is extended by 1" tapering down 

Millenary - Stiffening the Felt

The first stage of creating the hat involves stiffening the felt. As I am making a tall trilby I am using a cone and a capeline together so I get enough height with a wide brim. The hat is stiffened using a water-based stiffener that is mixed 1 part water to 4 parts stiffener. Once ready work the mixture into the inside of bottom of the hat in small circular motions. 

Once this is covered work it into the side of the hat going round making with a pin to make sure you cover the entire area. Leave the brim until later making sure you get none of the stiffener on the brim of the outside of the hat.

 Once happy leave the felt to dry over night and then check to see stiffness, if needed add another layer of stiffener and leave to dry again. I used to layers of stiffener to stiffen my hat over two days and I will continue to work on my hat next week. I am really pleased with how it is going and I am happy to be making a hat, as this is a skill that I have always wanted to learn.

Felt Shapes

Capeline

Cone