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Saving Savile Row Coat
Last autumn I was asked to repair an old hunting coat for a friend. I don’t usually do repairs – especially if the items were not made by me, but it was a favour and I agreed. The coat arrived in...
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Quirky outfit for Christmas
Christmas 2013 was supposed to be a bit different. Well, at least stress free. So a decision has been made, we are not doing it. No tree, presents, food etc, no last minute decisions who is doing...
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Robe a la Francaise in yellow brocade
There comes a time in every costumer’s life when you just cannot put it off any longer – you need to have a go at the sack back, or robe a la francaise. I have been meaning to play around with it for...
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Looking the Part; 3. Accessorise!
Ok, so not everybody can afford a steel-clad jouster on a white horse as a fashion accessory – but don’t worry, there are ways around it:-) So far, in our Looking the Part series, we have covered...
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Robe a l’anglaise in dusty pink silk
This was my first proper l’anglaise and a bit of experiment ( which project isn’t?). It was originally intended as a show piece for the bridal branch of the business, Prior Engagement, and serve as...
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2 Faces of Winter: Desolation
Following the autumnal fun with Spirit of Autumn, i decided to have a series of seasonal projects – and the next one, naturally was to be Winter.But since I couldn’t make up my mind which part of...
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Robe a la Polonaise en Fourreau
Well, we have done the Francaise and l’anglaise style, time for a little polonaise… The idea for this one sprouted as soon as I saw the fabric at the market – a lovely silk brocade in ivory, yellow...
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2 Faces of Winter: Polaris
This was the second part of the project 2 Faces of Winter, and whereas the first one, Desolation, was all about the bleakness of the season, this one, Polaris, was to be all about the sparkle of the...
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Garage Fire and Post-Conflagration Photoshoot
As some of you may already know, on December 28th we had a garage fire – a faulty socket started a rather unexpected conflagration. The fire was discovered by our neighbours and the fire brigade was...
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Victorian Christmas in Stoke Rochford
Last weekend of November and the first day of December last yer saw us, rather unexpectedly in Stoke Rochford Hall, attending a Victorian themed Christmas market. A bit unplanned event, but Black...
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Corsetry experiment – 1884 patent by C.W. Higby
1884 patent by C.W. Higby; US Patent #294620 Now this one was a true adventure – and an intrepid one, for someone with my limited corsetry experience! But when the challenge was announced on FB by...
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Suiting up – WWI style
Well, I must say that once we hit the Teens, I start to get bored with the clothes. But, being in business means that sometimes you have to stretch beyond your comfort zone – and this suit was just...
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Fastenings Across the Ages
Throughout the history humans have come up with a variety of ways to get their garments to close and fit – ‘to make ends meet’. For someone just beginning their adventure with historical clothing,...
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Embers – 1876 Visiting Gown
This particular frock has long been on my ‘to do ‘list. One of the ‘love at the first sight’ thingd – the moment I opened Harper’s Bazar on that page, I fell in love in the elegant lines of the frock,...
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Managing big projects
Have you ever spent a night diligently sewing away till dawn so that the costume could be worn the next day? Have you realized a day before the event that there is no way you can hand stitch as...
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Sugar Skull Photoshoot
A few weeks ago we spent a day in lovely Saracen Studio – shooting a rather interesting conceptual shoot – all planned and organized by Paul Mockford from Mockford Photography. The ideas were...
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Gentlemen prefer blonds.Apparently….
For the Jubilee on 2012 I was, rather unexpectedly,asked to work at Holkham Hall again – the unexpected part being the theme as I am not a great fan of vintage fashions and have no interest...
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Early Mantua – and La Maupin Style Shoot
I have always wanted to have a go at an early mantua – the period is relatively unrepresented, and I simply wanted to experiment with pleating and the look a bit more. Recently, I have been offered...
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The Petal Dress
Well, Spring has truly begun in the UK, and as soon as the trees started to blossom, I was on a mission – it was time for the spring part of our seasonal collection ( following Autumn made with...
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Vikings in Wales…
We have recently been on a short holiday – well, sort of holiday – not much rest and rather a lot of work with 5 planned photo shoots, 4 of which we actually managed to shoot ( weather was...
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