Last term at London College of fashion we were taught how to Modify the Form and then use this knowledge to help inform our design work. See here for my design project for the story Animal Farm by George Orwell adapted by Peter Hall.
We used body padding to modify the form. I decided to make a simple pregnancy belly. I'm still dying to go out walking around London with it on! It would hopefully guarantee me seat on the tube in the mornings!
We then made an 18th Century Pannier from the Jean Hunnisett Book: Period Costume for Stage and Screen (1500-1800). All of her books are great and these ones in particular are a must have for Costume students!
I wanted to make a second pannier but didn't have enough money to buy more steel so I used polyester boning instead... As you can see it didn't quite have the same effect as (the right one) is a bit flat! When I have a bit more money I will buy some and remake the right pannier.
The majority of our workshops were spent making a late Victorian corset to fit ourselves. It was made from a beautiful white courtil with white satin binding and silk embroidered flossing. Working with white was a bit of a nightmare as I'm not the tidiest of people so I had to be extra careful with washing my hands all the time etc. I can't imagine what it must be like to make a wedding dress!
