Facings

It turned out I had beginner's luck with the first band... but now (after some picking-out, new try, more picking-out) all the bands are in place. Also, all the facings are in place.
(Are they still called "facings" if they go all the way around the neck?)

Decoration

(No, this is not the total "decor")

Taking shape

Yet another gown

One of "my" universities is getting a new rector.

I was invited to submit a sketch for the new rector's gown - and it was expressly said it should have sleeves.
(And I am grateful for that - the original pattern is not one I am proud of, these many years later. How did it come to look like that? Read parts of the story here...)

Yesterday I delivered it.

(unfortunately, the back view is blurry)

As you can see, it has elements of the original, and sleeves that are cousins to these.

Some sightings

in chronological order:

(London usually gives one a good walk-out, but I have never seen a whole troop. Yet, that is.)

Two armholes of the inverted-T type:

(seen at the Congregation of the Burgon society)

and one recommendation (or should that be "urging"?):

(spotted on the wall of Robes of Distinction)

Morning over "The Vale", Malvern:

(in reality, it looked like a seashore at ebb tide - some clumps of seaweed (I mean trees), sticking up over the low water (I mean fog). I had a very nice visit with Pat of Purple donsu - we even saw some sunlight later in the day)

On the whole, I had a very wet but very interesting and informative week-end.
Unfortunately, my homeward flight was delayed, which meant I missed the last train. The next train was at 4.26 (in the morning). It was a long night...

Organized!

No more pawing around among the gown patterns:

Now that I have (yikes!) six different gown patterns, I decided it was time to make a "foolproof" organization. I made copies of such pattern pieces that are used in more than one, put one complete pattern, including a printout of the how-to description, fabric samples, best lay-out for production... in one bag and hung them over the guest bed in the studio.

Two more bags to prepare ('cos one of the gowns will never be produced again).

(And now you know where I buy my food, too :-)

And… they’re OOOFFFF!

(is what the, hm, what’s-it-called? "speaker"? yells when the racehorses jumps out of the starting gates)

Two of these are now in the mail.

For me it remains to write up all the details, including what I learned about "appliqué-ing" velvet onto a flat surface.
And perhaps present it to my pals in the Burgon Society, to get (informed) critique...

Oh – and here is a link to a video showing a couple of the velvet gowns on stage (opens in new window, as usual).

Another detail

This is a sleeve decoration, in place. (The not-yet-attached lining is just hanging inside)

This model, like every "new" one, has caused several procedure reflections. For the velvet gowns one problen was to attach the (flat) silk to the velvet. Here it was the opposite: how to attach the velvet to the (flat) worsted. The pile of the velvet tended to make the worsted pucker.

One can go any lengths towards perfection, but for several reasons there have to be compromizes – time is limited, and time is also money.
After some (false) starts I had found a "good enough" way to attach the velvet facings. (The cording helped, too)
Now, to attach the sleeve decorations was another thing... but I think I have found a way.

More than half-way

There is velvet

and then there is velvet...

Some time ago I wrote "when sewing velvet, there is no such thing as too many pins, or too much basting".
Little did I know.
In fact, I was Very Lucky with that velvet...

Now, this velvet... gets marked by pins, by basting, by tracing the pattern pieces...
Hand sewing is underrated anyway, right?
(Front piece just pinned to the dummy, which has a... Prominent Colour)

And a free tip: for ages and ages I have used these nuts to weigh down the paper pattern pieces (or whatever needs to be weighed down). Some time ago, I found one can buy special weights to use for this - and they are quite a bit pricier than are nuts from the hardware store...

Velvet at the bottom of the pleats...

- the shell really is black, but the velvet would not show without flash...

New adventures in academic dress

Same principle as the others, only longer and wider, this is part of a sleeve.

Trying to use a very old version of Elements, not really knowing what I’m doing – is there a way to optimize the pattern layout to minimize cabbage?

Fabric to frock

First catch your fabric...
If it turns out that your favourite fabric shop has stopped "doing" black velvet (Black velvet? Out of fashion? – come on...), you can always go to London, after having made sure that all shops at Goldhawk Road are still there.

Arrived at Shepherd’s Bush underground station. It snowed...

(When we first got the through-trains to Copenhagen, a prominent local politician talked about how wonderful it was to be able to get to London "before lunch". If you like your lunch late-ish, and have a car to take you to Växjö to catch the first train, I suppose it is still true...)

After rummaging in 3-4 shops, I had secured the velvet I needed. With still 2 hours to go before I had to leave for Gatwick, I had a well-deserved pint with some crab cakes.

- like Cinderella, I was home before midnight, if only just.

About 40 work-hours later, even the second gown was done. (The first had been mailed.)

I delivered it in person, yesterday. By train, this time.

Sunset over Stockholm.

It is good to be home.

Today’s outfit

Or, rather, tomorrow’s. Or, actually - someone elses outfit, on Friday-to-come.

Better pictures can be seen here

(How do they do it, all the "today's outfit" bloggers out there? Set up a special "studio"?)

Da capo, sort of

When sewing velvet, there is no such thing as too many pins, or too much basting:

The story from last time can be found here and here.

There may be developments...

London: fibres, fabrics and...

fancy dress (NO! But how to allitterate? F...f... fanatics? no, that's even worse... ah: 'ficionados, that will do it!)
So: London: fibres, fabrics and 'ficionados.

Fibres: for the first time, I visited Handweaver's studio, a place full of fibres

"ordinary" yarns, more unusual yarns

glitter yarns

There are also spinning tools, looms, books, magazines... However, having baggage restrictions, I didn't buy much.

Fabrics: there is a small stretch of road having more fabric shops than anywhere else I have ever seen, on Goldhawk road (between Shepherd's bush market and the common). Silks, silks, silks, worsteds, fancy fabrics, fashion fabrics... Did I mention silks? (To make it even better, there is also a pub called The stinging nettle - not quite fibres, but almost...)

As this whole block is threatened with demolition, here are many pictures:

(Should you happen to pass by in the near future, please go in and sign the petition!!!)

'ficionados: as my specific reason for going to London was the Congregation of the Burgon Society, here are a couple of pictures:

Gowns on stage

New/more official pictures of the academic dress of Linnaeus University used to be on the Uni web page, but no more.
I have a couple of pictures on my website.

The snake-adorned gowns in use!

The gowns were for the rector and pro-rector (some would say the vice chancellor and the pro vice chancellor) of Karolinska Institutet , Sweden's oldest medical universtiy. They are celebrating their 200-year jubilee this year, and wanted new gowns for the highest officials. (So now you know why the snakes are there... :-)

The gowns were first worn at the ceremony of promotion of the new doctors (I guess I should say the ceremony of conferment of the PhD degree in medicine) last week.

Now I have found the site for all the photos of the event. There are a lot, so... here is a short list of the photos most interesting to me:
This shows the rector in front, the pro rector in the background (opens in new window). Click "next" for a picture of the pro rector.
I also like this photo. Photo nr 499 and 501 are nice, too.

After appliqué-ing...

my fingers look like this:



Probably I should learn to use a thimble...

The red silk had to be backed, and I choose a black bourette I had on hand. This meant the left hand not only got scratched, but also black from the crocking bourette.

For the first gown, I did the appliqué before I attached the facings. Easier to work, harder to attach to the gown.
So, for the second gown, I first attached the facings, and did the appliqué afterwards. Much more unwieldy, but easier to match.


Total: more than five meters of gold lace appliqué, with a golden "rod" in the middle.


Now the gowns are done and delivered, and I'm hoping for "official" pictures soon...

Belt, braces and basting

or: why painstaking pinning proves perfection (im)possible



Sewing velvet is something else...
A small test showed pinning was not enough. Nor was basting.

So, not to lose too much time (and fabric) testing methods, now I first pin the edges, then pin a bit inside, then baste near the edge, and baste again a bit inside the seamline. It works, sort of.
(Second basting not yet done)



And I'm glad I'm only making two of these!

However, I think they are going to look stunning - especially when the golden snakes are in place!