an event of Costumer's Guild West, Inc.

The Costumer's Guild West Inc. is a community of costumers dedicated to promoting the art of costuming and needlework in all forms. Through Costume College, we present an educational forum where members can learn about the history of clothing, expressing their imagination in costuming, and creating links to the past, present, and future in the fashion arts.

Costume College is a three-day educational conference on all subjects relating to costuming and clothing. The purpose of Costume College is to provide educational classes, programs, and tours covering all aspects of costuming. In 2008 it took place August 1-3, at the Airtel Plaza Hotel in Van Nuys, California. The Costumer's Guild West, Inc. (a.k.a. the CGW) is the organization that yearly produces Costume College. To find out more about the Costumer's Guild West, please visit our website.

"Hands on" is our primary method of teaching at Costume College. We offer an extensive selection of lectures, workshops, and demonstrations targeting every level of costumer (i.e., beginner, amateur, semiprofessional, professional, and just people who like to dress-up). We offer over 100 classes presented by more than 65 teachers and cover every imaginable topic!

Here's an overview of our subject range:

• Basic sewing classes
• Corsetry
• Ethnic clothing topics
• Fitting and tailoring methods
• Lectures on a wide variety of subjects regarding historical clothing
• Mask making
• Millinery
• Museum techniques and topics
• Pattern drafting and draping techniques
• Needlework and embellishment skills
• Theatrical and historical make-up and hair styling courses
• Theatrical costuming subjects (for stage, film, museum, and re–enactor)
• And much, MUCH more

We have something for everyone. To give you a taste of what's coming, click on Classes"to find out what we're offering this year.

When you consider everything we offer at Costume College, the price of a membership is one of the best bargains around. There is nothing like Costume College anywhere in the world, and if you compare the price of other conferences you'll find they can run as much as 10 times the cost of one of our memberships.

Each year we will offer a special bonus track. This is a series of classes that focus on a particular subject. The bonus track insures that there is always something new and fresh each year. However, this bonus track is only a small fraction of our total classes. The bonus track for 2008 was "The English Regency 1795-1810."

In addition to a fabulous and extensive selection of costuming courses, the CGW, Inc. provides a series of fun events during the three-day run of Costume College. Friday we have an orientation for our attendees, after which the Marketplace will open for your first look at the delightful things to buy. Also until at least 11:00 p.m., we will have a "Panic Room" open so you can sew on your Gala gown, get advice from the other costumers there, set up your sewing machine if you like, and get ready for Saturday. Saturday night, we host the Time Traveler's Gala, a fancy dress dinner dance showcasing attendees' costumes and fashions of all types. Music at the Gala features something for everyone, starting with the "Time Warp" and continuing with selections all the way from waltzes to rock and roll. Sunday morning joing the "Sunday Undies" group for breakfast. Sunday afternoon enjoy the Fantasy Tea, another costume-encouraged event, as well as our Sunday evening "School's Out" party in the Hospitality Suite. Want to know more? Click on Events.

Additionally, our teachers are from a wide cross-section within the costuming, museum, and theatrical community. Many are professionals, many highly respected self-educated costume enthusiasts, and even a few are curators at world-class museums. Several have won awards for costuming within the masquerade world and other areas of competition. Some have written books and published articles, or do consultation/construction for films and historical reenactment. Our teachers come from all over the U.S. Most have been costuming for a minimum of 15 years, and all are very knowledgeable in their particular field. Click on Teachers to learn more.