March 2012 - Calm or Chaotic

This project was a dance film looking at the calm and chaos of the city and the countryside. The two concepts are juxtapositions, and either can be calm or chaotic. We took Gelt Woods as an example as it has a small river flowing though it, which in places is very deep and appears calm, but at points it is shallow and rocky, making the water seem fast and energetic.

There is also a small cut in Carlisle town center just outside the main pedestrianised part of town. This part is often teeming with people, but just at the end of the day it is serene and quiet, but just around the corner is one of the busiest roads in Carlisle. Here, busses and emergency vehicles rush past at all times of the day and night. The main concept for me is that she is disorientated into thinking she is in danger as both of these places are capable of achieving this feeling in the correct circumstances, which was really fun to play with. I had to create costumes for both scenes which are directly opposite, concentrating on the straight lines of the city and the flowing curves of the countryside.

November 2011 - Mr Wiggles

Mr Wiggles narrated this puppet show, based on a children’s fairytale but one which developed into a chilling dark fable of evil. The puppets and their costumes reflected the impending doom of the fable.

My role in this project was to create the puppets, Mr Wiggles based on a One Way Street pattern, but the story puppets were mainly created from mod roc, card and paper mache, with acrylic paint, and marbles on the inside for the eyes.

Arcadia - February 2011

In February 2011 we helped to ‘The Ruddy Armatures’ with the costumes for their production of Arcadia by Tom Stoppard. It is a play questioning God and science. It was set in 1809 and 1812, and we could find any appropriate trousers so we made 8 pairs along with 10 neck cloths and 2 dresses. Making the dresses was my main job, which was a lot of fun. Thomasina’s dress was interesting as I could concentrate on the detail, but Lady Croom’s dress was much more complicated as it was made from a thick velvet, which was very difficult to pleat and gather. Overall this was a really exciting project and looked really good onstage.

We were working with ‘The Ruddy Armatures’ which is company of actors that put on a few shows a year and it was a great opportunity to see how productions are organised outside of the University.

September 2010

In the summer of 2010, I decided to practice my skills at making a corset. I had made one in a previous project, and really enjoyed it, so I made another in a different style. I particularly like corsetry as it is one of the most complicated garments to pattern-cut and make, as it is one of the most architectural garments you could make.

March 2010 - A. H. Willis

I played on the idea of creating my own lingerie company, which would be made to measure, with a classy Rococo or French Boutique style. I like the idea of making garments especially for a particular client, as the garment would fit and suit them perfectly. I think this is very important in specialist garments, as it makes women feel like they look amazing, which I think is one of the most important things about lingerie.

I wanted to create designs and business ideas for this company, with drawings, samples and a few garments.

April 2010 – The Drowsy Chaperone

Toni Heller and I produced the costumes for a Musical called The Drowsy Chaperone which is a musical based in the 1920s. It was particularly challenging as the play was double cast, so each character was played by two different actors.

The costume I am most proud of, and which took the most work, was for the main character, Janet. In one song, she had 4 outfits on at once, with each layer being removed to reveal the next one underneath. These consisted of a dressing gown for the pool side, a sparkly black dress, a tasselled green dress and a red bikini style outfit.

On this project, we learned a lot about working backstage. The space we had to do all these changes was very small and very dark. It was a challenge, but we managed well with team work.

November 2009 – Project Prose

We were asked to take a second hand garment re-make it into something suitable for a catwalk show we organised at the end of the project. We had to base the design on a piece of inspirational literature, or a text that was personal to us. I chose to do my project based around the wedding vows, and how, especially in the past, they can be very trapping for a woman. I bought an old wedding dress for £10, remade the bodice and adjusted it to symbolise the sinister side of marriage.