This was a quickie costume I threw together for Costume College because I’d heard the Friday Night Social had some kind of literature cosplay theme. Also, it was the hottest summer on record, I was only going to be at the event for a short time, thus I needed an easy, comfortable outfit. What’s better
I’d already worn my velvet teagown for two different Mucha-themed events when a group of friends suggested a Mucha meetup at Costume College 2023. As much as I love that teagown, I really did not want to wear it again this year and especially not in L.A. in late July! So I went about assembling
Meaning, my 15th year of attending CoCo. OMG, yes, it’s true. Back in 2004, I randomly decided to fly solo (literally) to this L.A. area event that I’d heard about from fellow members of the local Greater Bay Area Costumer’s Guild. I’d been to Costume-Cons and SF/F cons before, but I knew nothing of Costume
For several years, I’d planned to recreate a costume like those worn in the Chinese TV drama The Empresses in the Palace (2015), aka The Legend of Zhen Huan (2011). I reviewed the shortened Netflix version of the series for Frock Flicks and was in love with the costumes, of course. Based a smidge of
The final gown I wore to the Portland Vampire Masquerade Ball turned out pretty close to my vision. My mom helped out by doing a lot of the appliqué of the motifs on the forepart (though once I saw how the bat-shaped sequins looked, I had to sew them all over the stomacher myself). Accessories
Another CoCo has come and gone, and we survived! Well, except for some epically awful concrud, wherein most everyone I know came down with a nasty headcold immediately after Costume College. While I rarely, if ever, make elaborate new costumes for CoCo, I still have a blast attending for two reasons: I love teaching classes
Egads, I haven’t posted here since Costume College 2015. I did go to CoCo last year, but it was super-abbreviated — I flew in late Friday, taught one class Saturday morning, wore a modern cocktail dress to the Gala, and drove back with Sarah and Francis on Monday. I didn’t make any costumes last year,
This is the presentation to accompany the lecture I gave at Costume College 2016. The topic was the evolution of the gothic subculture’s fashion, rising out of punk in the 1970s and combining historical fashion elements with music, literature, art, and pop culture, plus how gothic fashion became high fashion. Punk + History = Gothic
For the Costume College 2015 Gala, I wanted to go along with that year’s “Plucked From the Pages” literature theme. And one of my all-time favorite book characters is Cathy’s ghost in Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë. It’s such an iconic scene from gothic literature. Of course, I’ve made this costume before back in 2002
I’m not ignoring my costume blog, but I really haven’t been “costuming” per se that much. Sure, I dress up for costumed events maybe once every six weeks, but I go huge stretches between making anything new. Until, dun dun dun, Costume College! Well, at least this year. I’ve gone back and forth over the
This is the presentation to accompany the lecture I gave at Costume College 2015. The topic was how black clothing has been worn over the centuries, sometimes for mourning the dead but also for utilitarian reasons and for fashion by different classes in western Europe. Black, It’s Not Just for Mourning – Costume College 2015
In case you haven’t noticed, I kinda like to combine books and costumes a bit. Also, books and costumes and movies. So over on Frock Flicks for National Book Month, I rounded up my top five and bottom five movies adapted from books, with an emphasis on costume. There’s some Jane Austen, natch, and a
Odd that I was able to post more during cancer than after treatment ended … although, since then, I’ve started a new job, my cat died, and I’m now dealing with some post-treatment health problems that will keep me from sewing & costuming for a while. So yeah, never ending. Basically, my right arm (where
Are we really almost there? Yep, the last few challenges are in sight. I started this after Costume College last year & intend to wrap it up with CoCo this year, because the theme will be accessories. I’m also teaching three accessories classes at Costume College: History of Purses (from about the 10th c. to
For the Costume College Gala in 2013, I had a hard time coming up with something to wear. Originally, I wanted to make the 18th-c. masquerade gown I’ve been lusting after for years. I have the main fabrics, I know how to design & create it, I have scads of research about it. Heck, I