Although this blog is no longer active (Agosia Arts still is!), it remains a useful repository for some of my early musings. My goals were to : 1) provide a peek behind the scenes at how my work is produced; 2) document my problem solving process; and 3) encourage others to try new things. If you have questions, email me at catibbets@agosiaarts.com. Thank you for visiting!

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March 21, 2013

Book Review: Underwear: Fashion in Detail

A few of my favorite books were published by the V&A (see my reference page).  This book is formatted in the same way (detailed drawing plus a close-up photo of the item) and covers underwear in all it's delightful and frightening complexity.  As always, the handwork is outstanding. The breadth of materials used is mind-boggling.   Following are some of the highlights:

lace-up stays
1) A corset cover of fine linen with Irish crochet work and tiny pin-tucks handmade by Queen Mary (sometime between 1885-95).  I guess when the politics was done for the day, even a queen had to think about her undies. Following the same theme, there are examples of Queen Victoria's drawers (with initials embroidered in).  I'm wondering, who thought to keep them...

handmade lace
2) Perforated iron stays (another name for corsets) from France (between 1600-1700) made for orthopaedic purposes (spinal problems).  This lovely and horrifying contraption is made from four plates of iron (yes, iron) with alternating square and round holes (decorative!) to reduce the enormous weight and is hinged at the sides. (bust 72 cm, waist 56 cm, front length 27 cm, back length 38 cm)

3) A leather 'Dermathistic' Corset (1883, used for exercise (and you thought your running bra was intense!).  Made from whalebone with leather facings and brass eyelet closures. (bust 73 cm, waist 56 cm, hip 80 cm) Quote for the day: "Women took up a variety of sports, including croquet, hockey, golf and tennis, in addition to  their more traditional outdoor activities in full day dress, including their corsets, and the common sight of bloodied corsets in tennis club dressing rooms testified to the pains of the active woman".  Yikes.

March 5, 2013

Old Crochet Lives Again

I recently began a commission and I decided to use an old crocheted doily in this piece for added texture and visual interest.  I dyed the doily a dark green and discovered that, gasp!, the motifs were joined with nylon or polyester thread.  I find it comforting that the artisan who created this piece broke a rule or two when finishing her work. (One is always supposed to use the same fiber to connect pieces of crochet or knitting.  There is lively debate among some sewists whether it is appropriate to use silk thread with cotton fabrics because silk is stronger and may eventually cut through the cloth.)
I wasn't concerned about the white thread because I eventually needed to deconstruct the crochet to finish the piece.  Step one was basting the crochet to the green wool backing.  Pins never work for me, so hand basting was done with a long milliners needle and bright yellow thread - shown at left. Step two created the body parts: right sides together (wool plus crochet treated as one fabric), sew, turn, stuff.  The fabric was used to make arms, upper legs and the body.


Step three took a bit of time.  Each bit of stitching holding the crochet motifs had to be carefully snipped, then the doily restretched and repinned.  Every single picot stitch was firmly tacked to the wool backing by hand and an olive green glass bead sewn into the center.  The glass beads are not immediately obvious, but they give another layer of texture and touch of delicacy to the work.  In this case, they body will be left as the main costume (like a body suit) and the layers of color give a rich finish.

Stay tuned for more on this piece...