Tag: Kingsley Hall

recording everything is tiring

Over my time at the studio ive been trying to make notes on the construction methods and tips. This will be both useful to reference for my own learning but also many of the prpsesses remain the same for different garments so having jotes will mean i have to ask fewer questions.

It’s quite a lot of information to get down and i struggle to remember to do it often.


Operation Mincemeat Trousers – full process in photos

Calico toile used for first fitting
Pleats tacked down, pockets tacked closed to check fot. Waistband will be tacked on for fitting
Centre back is left open so it can be fitted. the 2″ excess is left inside the trousers so they can be let out if needed in the future.
Trousers are hand tacked together for a second “in fabric” fitting
4cm wide petersham tape used to reinforce the waistbands.
Petersham stitched to seam allowances
Lining sewn to waistband right side then flipped over
front of waistband is checked to be exactly 4cm wide. seam can be rolled up or down slightly to ensure its right. its then pad stitched in place
the lining is secured in place by stitching in the ditch.
Trousers before the tacking threads are removed
Trouser hems secured with a herringbone stitch – the extra length inside allows them to be modified i n the future
final turned up hem
Complete trousers!

Some things ive made Nov-Jan

All fixed!
Twill trousers sewn from scratch
Set of calico sleeve blocks in 8 different sizes – useful for fittings
Calico toile for Hamilton
Canvas for a Hamilton jacket
Inseting and basting my canvas into the jacket front
Hamilton Cuff, ive made 4 so far
Ruff collar
Trouser toile for Operation Mincemneat (ive made 4 now i think?)
shaping then inserting shoulder pads into a jacket toile
Herring bone stitching shoulder pads
Inserting sleeves into a jacket toile – I ususally struggle getting pitch right but did well here!
Trousers for Operation Mincemeat – I made 3 pairs total
Patch pockets for Operation Mincemeat
inserting a soft lining into a jacket then felling it by hand
CF hemline
Closeup of the hand felled lining – stitches must be invisible and lining must form a perfectly straight line
sleeve lining flat felled onto armole – ease must be distributed fairly evenly and line must be straight.

Post Christmas thoughts

Its my 9th week at the studio. I feel very at home and have a good routine for commuting in. Im being trusted with more tasks and knowing how to complete them independently but still feel able to ask for advice to improve my technique. Its refreshing to be so confident in my abilities whilst also learning and improving my dexterity and tailoring skillset. Being paid for my time and work also has had a big impact on me, for the first time I feel my time, work and skills are appreciated and valuable. Accepting payment helps in accepting the responsibility of the work.

However, I feel as though the things I am learning about the industry and my professional development starting to plateau. I gained so much from random chats or even overhearing discussions with people passing through the costume department. It was especially great meeting actors and designers with such different perspectives of costume from me. The set and prop departments were also incredibly interesting to see and I’ve realised how much I miss building and painting things beyond sewing.

At Kingsley’s studio I feel more isolated and I only get to talk with the other freelancer sewers- no actors, directors, designers, supervisors…

Future plans??

Hearing other peoples experiences going on tours and working on cruise ships ect. Im realising id really like to travel in my work in the next 5 years if i can. I see myself really enjoying freelance studio work either part time or maybe 10 years in the future if i were more settled in my personal life. Looking forward; I could learn to dress for film/ theatre and see if i can get a job on any touring productions this summer/post-graduation.

Once, we are finished with Operation Mincemeat in February, I want to move on to a more dynamic work environment, perhaps something less sewing/tailoring-based. My current plan is to look into what skills i have & skills want to learn then research where i could do a placement to develop them.

4/12/2024 Day with Katy Adeney

This week Kingsley had some fittings to go to so there was not much to do for him but Katy had her big Christmas show deadline fast approaching so I offered to help her out for 2 days.

Katy specialises in event costumes and does some designing too. This event was for a tech company’s Christmas party inspired by The Greatest Showman so it involved lots of sequins, accessories and circus garments.

I went on a trip to Macollogh and Wallis in Soho for fabric supplies then came back and made a ruff for one of the costumes. I also adjusted the fit of some ASOS body suits and helped George hand-stitch decoration to the ringmaster jacket.

It was fun to see this other side of costume for events but it definitely felt stressful and chaotic. The event planner had made a lot of last-minute changes to the costumes and the tight time constraint meant a lot of the costumes were modified fast fashion garments.

1st side of bias tape sewn down. 16m in total!
halfway through sewing the bias tape…. Its been an hour…
all done 🙂
pleat then whip stitch, pleat then whip stitch, pleat then whip stitch
one side done, ready for the other side of the band to be sewn
Ruff collar

First week with Kingsley

For my first week, I’ve just been at the studio for 3 days. I had a little tour and met the other people working in the space. Kelsie is Kingsley’s full-time assistant, then he has a few people working on a casual basis sewing; George, Sarah, and Katie. Another costume maker Katy Adeney also uses the studio, they each have half of the room and split the rent + business rates.

The studio is very chatty and everyone has known each other for a long time. George and Kelsie met at uni then Katie and a few others worked together for a season at Dorset Theatre. In contrast, the work is very professional and made to a specific standard.

As a freelancer working for costume supervisors, the costume quality are being judged by costume designers and supervisors, not just by audiences watching them in a show. That means all work produced needs to be of a certain standard of quality, inside and out.

For Kingsley to gain an understanding of my skill level and for me to learn the standard methods used at the studio, I repaired some old corduroy trousers and made a twill pair from scratch. I was at first worried about “failing the test” but quickly realised I’m confident enough in most of the processes and it was completely fine to ask for clarification on preferred methods for specific tasks.

Removing th waistband
All fixed!
pockets in
Patch pockets, very happy with the top stitching
Twill trousers sewn from scratch

Preparing for my new placement with Kingsley Hall

After finishing at the Lyric Friday, I have a free Monday before I start with Kingsley Hall, a freelance costume tailor tomorrow.

I’m excited to work with him as I specialised in tailoring for my projects last year and I look forward to experiencing the freelancing side of the costume industry.

At the Lyric for one of Abonaza’s costumes, we commissioned a freelancer to make a wrestling suit and cap. Harry decided achieving the vision would not be worth the time it would take us and getting it made out of house by someone specialising in lycra bodysuits would be a good use of the budget.

From our perspective, they had a few phone calls and sent the design, measurements & fabric. A week later the costume and an invoice were delivered. Now I’ll get to see what it’s like on the freelancers’s side, creating costumes from measurements remotely and juggling different projects for different clients.

Preparation

To remind myself of the terminology, processes and stitches used in tailoring I revisited my submissions from my second year and went to the library to look through the tailoring resources there. Knowing we’d be working on Hamilton, I also looked into mid-18th century fashion and patterns.