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5. Abstraction, Color
6. Texture
OLD DOCUMENT 1
====== The Psychology of Clothing ======
- James Laver in book “Clothes” – clothes are worn for 3 reasons
- Utility – the least important factor (depending on importance of other two reasons)
- Hierarchical Principle – clothes lend social status and display the wearers’ importance to the world
- Seduction Principle – clothes are donned to make the wearer as attractive as possible within the framework of what is considered attractive at any particular time in history
- Change in fashion is result of class struggle, and is used as a way in which the upper classes can declare their superiority
- What is considered “socially proper” can keep members of society in their appropriate niches independent of laws to do so
- Sumptuary laws
- Unwritten rules of society (even naming conventions, Du Tour vs. Dutour)
- What clothing lower class jobs (menial labour) entailed
- How do we express superiority through dress?
- Conspicuous consumption – expensive materials and many layers, extreme girth
- When the world is hungry the physical ideal is large
- An Edwardian gentlemen needed 16 different costumes to be correctly attired for every high status activity, with matching accessories
- Leisure – clothes that make it impossible to do practical work (corsets, long fingernails, foot binding, stilettos)
- Waste – practical things are not beautiful
- Military officers’ and polo players’ uniforms, fox hunting suits are expensive to maintain and are easily ruined
- Vicarious consumption
Fashion dictates with no regard for the individual and no concern for how the style will look on many who copy it. It declares what will be considered beautiful and, therefore, what will be thought ugly by reason of no longer being fashionable.
The past is always seen through the eyes of the present, and the appreciation of the styles of the past is influenced by the style currently in vogue.
===== The Meaning of Clothes =====
//(Note that most of the factors listed below are easier to express in period costume)//
- Age
- Young – more shape, tighter fit
- Old – less fitted, more layers, older style
- There are exceptions to the rule which say certain things about the wearer
- Occupation
- Uniforms
- Hierarchy religion
- Utility
- Exceptions to the rule and what they mean
- Social Status Class
- Practical vs. Impractical clothing
- Cost of the garment - fabric, dye, cut, trim, color
- Exceptions to the rule (Henry II of England was said to "wear his boots without a fold")
- Geographic Area
- Country - kerchiefs and kilts
- City
- Building - a bank or a day spa
- Room - your bedroom or the front parlor
- Season and Weather
- Time of Day and Occasion (any garment worn at an inappropriate time holds attention)
- Activity
- Historical Period
- Gender
- Intention or purpose in wearing the clothes – past or present
==== Psychological Factors ====
- Clothes express peoples attitudes towards themselves and their society, both in what they wear and how they wear it
- Whether to conform or rebel
- To achieve slight rebellion in how an accepted piece is worn
- Clothes can be worn to try and change an existing condition
- Moving up the social ladder
- To alter the wearer’s mood
- Extrovert - to cause a stir
- Introvert - for security, to become one of the crowd
- People often select clothes to fulfill the desire to be attractive to the preferred sex
- Items are chosen because they are thought to have sex appeal (they may be mistaken like Malvolio in 12th Night)
- Parts of bodies that are thought to be sexy are different in different periods and in different cultures (when wearing a kimono, for instance, it’s the back of a ladies neck)
What was once considered attractive in a specific historical setting must be considered along with the standards of beauty accepted by a contemporary audience.
A costume designer must understand both the objective and the subjective factors that work together to determine why people clothe themselves as they do in order to fully develop the possibilities presented by the characters in a given situation.
This understanding comes from observation & research!
OLD DOCUMENT 2
====== All About Sewing ======
===== A Glossary of Terms =====
Selvedge – the outer edges of a width of fabric are finished off as they are woven; this is the selvedge edge
Bias – the diagonal grain of the fabric, in a 45° angle from the selvedge. Bias grain stretches and results in clingy silhouettes when placed vertically to the body; very widely used in the ‘20s and ‘30s.
Straight Grain – the weave of a fabric running parallel to the selvedge; the most stable grain
Cross grain – the weave of fabric running perpendicular to the selvedge
Bobbin – the spool of thread that feeds from the underside of the sewing machine
Industrial Machine – high powered, used in the garment industry (also the Rinaldi costume shop)
Domestic Machine --meant for home use (Doris, her replacement)
Overlock/Merrow Machine – trims and finishes the raw (cut) edges of fabric. (Overlocks are domestic, merrows are industrial.)
Muslin – a type of cotton fabric, usually unbleached with a tabby weave, and available in many weights. Also the “mock-up” of a garment that is fitted to the wearer and which becomes the pattern for the finished item.
Interfacing – a fabric used inside a garment to stabilize an edge. Usually used on curved edges to prevent stretching. Can be sew-in or fusible. Fusible interfacing has a glue coating on one side that fuses to the fabric with the application of heat.
===== USEFUL ITEMS =====
MOST OF THESE SHOULD ALWAYS BE PRESENT IN THE ENSEMBLE OFFICE COSTUME SPACE; IF THEY AREN'T, GO TO SEW-LOW AND BUY THEM (unless marked in italics)
If you are confused by the terms on this section, use Wikipedia or go ask the fine people in the Rinaldi costume shop, or take Stagecraft, there will be a quiz
*Seam Ripper* – for ripping out stitching
//Seam Gauge// – for measuring seams, hems and allowances easily (just use a ruler, it's not that much better)
//Tracing Wheel// – used with tracing paper to transfer markings from pattern to fabric
//Tracing Paper//
//Silamide// – waxed thread for hand sewing (not worth buying on the Ensemble's budget, but you could always ask Rinaldi if they'll give you some)
*Cone or Spool Thread* – for sewing machines and bobbin-winding (industrial machines use anything, domestic machines use small spools, and overlock/merrow machines use cones; look at your machine before you buy)
*Hand Sewing Needles* – eye and point at opposite ends, they come in many sizes and shapes
*Machine Needles* – have one flat side at top (industrial have a round shank) (read the package and look at your fabric to know what kind you need before you buy)
*Grommets* - so useful
*Snaps* - so useful
*Hooks and Eyes* - so useful
(Snaps, and Hooks and Eyes, Buttons, and Zippers can always be recycled; before you throw something away, remove the fastenings so you don't have to buy more!)
===== SEWING MACHINE NOTES =====
- Do not panic if a needle breaks while you are sewing; it happens. Replace the needle by unscrewing the old needle from the holder and pulling it out. Needles have a flat section on one side of the shank, this goes into the slot facing back. Push it in as far as you can, and tighten the screw as far as you can. The needle always threads from front to back.
- The bobbin goes into the bobbin case so that the thread pulls off clockwise. The bobbin case is under a sliding top near the presser foot (or elsewhere, look at your user guide). The bobbin pops into the well, and the thread hanging off it should be pulled into its groove.
- To pull up the bobbin thread, thread the needle. Hold the end of the thread in one hand and turn the flywheel until the needle thread pulls the bobbin thread to the top. Pull the bobbin loop through, and you have the second thread.
YOU CANNOT SEW WITHOUT THE PRESSER FOOT DOWN!
For more information, consult your sewing machine manual. There is also a store in Cambridge which repairs old and sells new sewing machines. If there's really a problem, go ask them (and the author will go look up which square it's in, it's right by a T stop, Doris came from there).
==== THINGS NO ONE TELLS YOU ABOUT SEWING MACHINES: ====
* The bottom layer of your sewing will “creep” because of the better traction of the feed dogs – therefore, if you want to ease something into a seam, put the larger amount on the bottom side and the machine will do your easing for you
* All bobbin cases (some machines don’t have them) have a little metal slot which the thread goes through. If you put the bobbin in line so the thread unwinds naturally in the same direction, then you have it in the right way.
* If in doubt about the way to thread a machine, remember that nearly all machines go from the spool to a hook, through a tension disc, to another hook, and either down or over a set of bars or a series of hooks to the needle.
* Most needles thread from front to back, but some go left to right. Those that go left to right often have the thread go down the side of the machine rather than down the front.
* All machine needles have an obvious front and back.
* 20% of the time, if the thread is breaking, the needle has a rough spot or is in backwards.
* 50% of the time, you have tension issues. Other causes are weak thread and machine timing.
* Excessive knotting and looping means the top thread does not have enough tension on it.
* Most patterns use 5/8” seam allowance. There may be a tape mark on the machine at this point.
* All machines will have tension problems. Experiment.