Month: March 2025

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Week 4- Wednesday 16th October 2025: Butterfly Bodice and Moth Wing Adjustments

There was such a good, fun atmosphere in the workshop today. Amy and I snuck Dougie away and tied bow ribbons all over his harness. We then released him in full regalia back into the workshop and everyone, especially Diane, was very amused. I did a lot of replacing Moth wing zips today. It required a lot of attention as getting them on the right way, folding into the centre is fairly challenging if you don’t keep track of where the zips lie. I found it really good practice and feel it has improved my confidence around zips. I also began to unpick Jade’s Butterfly bodice, ready to take it I and remake some of the panels a bit bigger. I really enjoyed this and it feels like a bigger job to get my teeth into a bit. 

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Week 4 – Tuesday 15th October 2024: Taking Dress In

I took in a dress by creating darts this morning. I was initially a bit nervous and unsure as I haven’t often done this, however, with help and guidance from Amy, I soon realised it was a fairly simple adjustment and I was really happy with it once I finished it. It made me realise that often the thought of something is more confronting than the doing. 

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Week 4 – Monday 14th October 2024: Considering wearability and assessing my own limitations

Today I continued with small alterations. I quite enjoyed sewing a protective under-patch on the underarm of one of the sequinned dresses and was happy with its execution. This was to prevent the sequins from rubbing against the performer and causing irritation. It was a good lesson in considering how garments wear on the body and how this should be taken into account in their construction. I also attempted to add fullness into the Moth Maiden skirt, however I soon realised this was a feat outside of my experience and was a point to pass it onto Helen or Sarah. This didn’t feel like giving up, rather assessing my own skills and realising that in order to maintain the integrity of the skirt, somebody with greater construction knowledge would be better suited to working on it. 

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Week 3: Friday 11th October 2024 – Bra Adjustment and Goblin King fingers

Today I was focussing on smaller alterations: one included taking out an old bra and fitting the dress with a new one. Frustratingly, although a simple alteration, I realised, after herringboning it back in, by hand, that I hadn’t lined the back up exactly and so I had to redo it and unpick all of the herringbone. Ultimately this was a good lesson in checking my work and the silver lining was that I got in more practice of my herringbone stitching. I also replaced the fingers on the Goblin King suit, which I enjoyed because it gave me a bit of creative freedom with choosing from the spares. 

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Week 3: Monday 7th October – Swan Leg Arrival and Finishing ‘Monaco Princess’ Dress Hem

Today the Swan legs arrived. This was a really surreal moment, as they are incredibly iconic costumes; as a kid I remember seeing them for the first time at the end of Billy Elliot and being taken away with a sense of magic and awe. They are incredibly intricate and beautifully made, all created using hundreds of meters of fabric that is broken down and shredded, by hand, to imitate the look of feathers. I was so inspired seeing them and it felt like a pinch me moment, as well as being very motivating as to what can be imagined through design. 

I also got the hem for Bryony’s ‘Monaco Princess’ finally finished. This felt very rewarding as it had become very arduous on Friday. Looking on it with fresh eyes, after the weekend, made a big difference and I was really pleased with the outcome; the skirt was level, neat and I learnt a new skill. I felt proud of myself afterward.