an event of Costumer's Guild West, Inc.

Classes at Costume College 2008

"The following is an alphabetical list of classes that were presented at Costume College 2008. Should you have any questions regarding our teachers, or wish to volunteer as a teacher for Costume College 2009, please contact our Programming team at programcollege@yahoo.com."

1, A/B, C, D, E, F, G/H, I, J-L, M, N, O, P, R, S, T, V, W

 [Please Note: we have had search capability in the past, and will have it again, but not just now. Thank you for your patience.]

16th Century Irish Women’s Headdresses
Regina Lawson Voorhes
This class will present the period art and observations of Irish Headdresses, and related accouter from other parts of Europe. Irish women wore a variety of head coverings, many of which have been incorrectly interpreted for modern usage. We will examine the evidence, and provide the roots of the separate pieces and assembly of appropriate combinations of pieces. 

18th Century Shoes From Your Closet
Loren Dearborn
With a little work you too can have a closet full of lovely shoes just like Marie Antoinette! An overview of 18th C shoes and information on how to convert modern shoes to 18th century styles.

Average American Women's Dress in 1860s 
Rebecca Thelin
Instructor will discuss what the average American woman wore during the 1860s. Emphasis on middle/working class but will also present a brief look at more well-to-do "average" people. A brief look at undergarments will be given. As time permits, we will also discuss resources available for sewing patterns, fabrics, trims to help create your own basic day wear.

Basic Costume Drawing
Sarah Lorraine
This class follows the principles laid out in “Introduction to Costume Figure Drawing” and can be taken in conjunction with it. Covering basic techniques for rendering fabrics, folds, pleating, and how to draw costumes on the fashion figure, we focus on learning how to convey our costuming ideas through drawings. Following a demo, a discussion of how to prepare a costuming portfolio will be given to prepare you for presenting your work in a profession setting... Or anywhere!

Basic Hand Embroidery
Kristin Stonham
Learn how to thread a needle and do basic embroidery stitches! With these basic stitches in your repertoire, decorating your clothes, costumes, and furnishings becomes a snap. Easy and addictive, embroidery is a fun and cheap way to jazz up the plain and make the ordinary extraordinary.

Basic Handsewing
Jess Miller
This is a workshop that covers basic techniques of handsewing, which are the building blocks for fancier heirloom sewing. Topics covered will include basic stitches for plain sewing, thread and fabric choices and an overview of a basic sewing kit and notions.

Basic Pattern Drafting Supplies
Elizabeth Martin Gerds
There are all sorts of tools out there, including computer programs, for drafting patterns. What do you really need? 

Basic Sewing Supplies
Elizabeth Martin Gerds
What do you real need to get started in sewing? What tools are nice to have and where can you save your money. Do you really need that $100 pair of scissors?

Beading 101
Tracey Gorin, Debbie Wells Bogdan
Outfit looking a little plain? Add some beads! Making a flapper dress? You will need some beads! Need another hobby? Try beading! Beading is a fun, easy, and relatively cheap way to add sparkle to any outfit, whether it’s some decorative beading around the edges, simple choker, or a full-on getup! We’ll show you how to make a variety of fun techniques to inspire you!

Beginning Chain-Maille
Carl Nelson
A basic introduction to chain mail for jewelry and costume decoration

Beginning PMC
Olivia Competente
Missing metal antique buttons? Yearning for jewels that need to accent your period costume? Or just love jewelry. PMC (precious metal clay) is a wondrous medium that starts out as soft pliable clay and when fired will transform into a piece of fine silver. This class will cover the basics of PMC techniques from start to polished.

Bitz of Glitz
Cat Slater Woodward
The instructor will show students quick and easy ways to jazz up their outfits. This class is intended to show students how to add that little something after the outfit is done. A small amount of beads for a quick glint. A pearl or two, maybe a self done ribbon rosette here or there is a good thing. Students should bring projects they wish to discuss, such as where to add little sparkle, shine, or who knows what? 

Chain-Maille Costuming
Carl Nelson
An overview of ideas for the use of Maille in fantasy costuming.

Chain-Maille Head Piece & Construction
Carl Nelson
A practical class teaching three pieces of decorative Maille the head piece, the hand flower, or the necklace. Students will be able to construct at least one possibly two or all three of these. 

Civil War Re-enacting 101
Barbara Gerleman / Lynne Ashby
Civil War reenacting: how to get started in the hobby. A basic primer on getting started in Civil War re-enacting, with helpful hints and tips for those new to the wonderful world of re-enacting.

Completing the Picture: Accessory Overview
From Portraits and Fashion Plates 1600-1940
Martha Davis
Accessories can make or break a costume. Just something as simple as the wrong length gloves with your gown can ruin the whole effect you are trying achieve. This class will help students learn what accessory is correct for what period. By using period fashion plates, portraits, and photographs of real and reproduction clothing, students will learn to truly create a period look. Hat and hair styles, wraps, gloves, reticules, stockings, and jewelry will all be covered. Accessorizing Crinoline Era garments will be the focus of this lecture. This class will include source ideas for patterns and fashion inspiration, as well as information on where to begin to look for those vintage items, accurate reproductions, or good fakes.

Costume Rendering for the Drawing Impaired
Tara Maginnis
If you can design great costumes in your head or in cloth, but still can’t draw what you imagine this workshop is for you. We break down the process of drawing costume renderings into simple steps even the most inartistic person can follow. Participants will be given all the needed tools for completing a successful drawing by the end of the class.

Costuming for Movement
Thomas Moore
This class will examine fabric choices and modifications to fit that are needed when the outfit will be subjected to athletic activity (combat, dance, etc.) While this class will focus primarily on adult male garments, the information can be applied to women and children as well.

Costuming in Hollywood
Rory Cunningham
A Professionals Take on Working in the Industry, this interactive lecture will introduce all attendees to what it is really like to work as a professional costumer in film and television. A wonderful primer for those who are interested in getting into the "biz". Information will be provided on how to get into the costumers union and how to work ones way up in ladder. Questions will be answered and stories will be told!

Costuming the Inanimate Object
Casey Bernay
Join Special Guest Presenter, masquerade award winner, Bucky the Robot and learn how to work with the personality and special challenges and of your inanimate friends to have a unique costuming experience.

Drag Queen Glamour Techniques
Tara Maginnis
Ever wanted to look as glamorous as Lypsinka? Pick up simple makeup tips for that hyper-feminine costume look that reigns at Wigstock in this live demo of drag makeup tips.

Dress for the Photographer
Joan Severa
Chronologically arranged slides will be used, to demonstrate the flow of fashion details and to aid students in dating and reproducing garments. Attention is paid to plain dress as well as to high fashion, and especially to the relationship between the two. Questions will be welcomed. 

Dressing the Empress
Various
Panel discussion on recreating The Royal Portrait of Empress Eugenie & Her Ladies

Dyeing to Costume Workshop
Jonatha Caspian
How to get the colors you want in natural (and un-natural) fibers. Are you scared of dyeing? Do you despair finding the color you want in the fabric store? This hands-on workshop lets participants try actual dyeing techniques on silk scarves and cotton handkerchiefs, while presenting an overview of vat dyeing tips, fabric manipulation, and fiber content considerations. Discusses acid/fiber-reactive dyes, hot water dyes, and dye-like fabric paints. Gloves and aprons are supplied, participants are recommended to wear old clothes.

Elizabethan Blackwork
Shannon S. McSmith
Blackwork is a wonderfully simple technique for adding contrast to your costumes. This class will cover basic blackwork skills; specifically techniques needed for costuming. We will be focusing on the needs for the Elizabethan, Jacobean and Victorian eras.

Elizabethan Sumptuary Laws
Elizabeth Martin Gerds
Ever since the beginning of European history the people in charge tried to regulate who could wear the fancy stuff. Come hear the whys and wherefore of the Elizabethan Age in England, and whether or not they could actually make the laws stick.

Fabric Self-Embellishment for 19th Century Gowns
Diane Yoshitomi
You needn’t spend hours – or extra dollars – searching for the perfect color-match of braid, cord, ribbon, etc. for your dress when you can do what seamstresses did then. Look at photos and fashion illustrations from the 19th century and you will see that gowns were beautifully and economically embellished – with pleats, ruffles, flounces, shirrs, ruches, furrows, pintucks, and much more – using either the dress fabric itself, or a contrasting or complementary fabric! Students will learn how easy it is to master these embellishments, and will leave the class with a sample board of at least 6 examples.

Fabrics of 16th Century Europe
Simone A. Bryan
This is an overview of fabrics used in Europe, and how to create, find, and use modern fabrics to get the correct look. With samples of fabrics found in today’s market that mimics the Renaissance’s rich fabrics.

Full-Sized Fairy Wings
Kristin Stonham
Ever wanted to be Tinkerbell or a Nene Thomas fairy but couldn’t manage the wings? Come and learn how to make fairy wings that are proportionate, lightweight, stable, and easy to transport.

Fun Foam Factory
Shawn Crosby
Make complex costume enhancements without expensive thermoforming equipment... From stormtrooper to elf, Fun Foam could be the answer to your armor and jewelry dilemma!

Futuristic Guns and Weapons
Shawn Crosby
Turn anything into a convincing Weapon of the Future, covering genres from Steampunk to Star Wars to Barbarella! Bring your projects for critique and brainstorming.

Getting a Great Photo of You in Your Costume
Diane Harris
Tired of bad photos of you in your costume? This class will help you understand basic poses for a fabulous photo. Students may bring a camera. No camera? CD of pictures provided at $2.00 cost.

Glove Making
Frances Burns
Can’t find a glove to match your costume? Have a difficult hand – at least as far as gloves are concerned? This is a class for you. In class you will learn how to customize a glove pattern to your hand – no matter what size or shape hand is. Yes, this includes men’s gloves sizes. Learn and understand the watch points of glove construction and fitting. And start construction of your gloves. 

Godey’s Color Plate to Reality
Shelley Peters
What inspires a new Historical Costume? How do you make decisions based on a picture? Where do you find the patterns? Teacher will discuss these and other questions about her choice to copy the Godey’s 1858 January color plate. 

Hairpiece Basics: The Regency Updo
Bridget Bradley-Scaife / Lana Bailey
Learn the basics of hairpieces. Learn how to match your hair color, where to buy, and even how to make your own. In this class, we will demo how to style a Regency updo using various hairpieces.

Head Dress for the Ball
Shelley Peters
How am I going to “DO” my hair for the Ball? Students will construct a headdress using a wire frame with or without a hairpiece.

Herbs and Dyeing
Sandra Manning
Learn about the history of how herbs were used in daily life and in dyeing. Use of mordants and some recipes for dyeing will be covered.

Historical Influences in Period and Modern Costume
Kathy Lear
How often have you seen an illustration in Godey’s Ladies’ Book or Harper’s Bazaar and thought “That looks like a Renaissance sleeve” or “It’s a Medici collar” or “I’ve seen that design on a Grecian statue”? Many periods of clothing used ideas from earlier times for design details. There were fads for particular influences in specific periods, too. We’ll look at some of them.

Historical Sewing Tools
Ingrid Johnson
A presentation of the various types of sewing implements to complete your historical reenactment costuming – both as tools for needlework and costume pieces themselves! Explores the variety of tools (i.e., chatelaines, etuis, thimbles, thimble cases, needle cases, etc.) how and when they would have been worn and what was appropriate or available for various time periods. Exquisite needlework tools had their greatest popularity in the Victorian era prior to the advent of the mechanization/industrialization of needlework. But students can still find pieces or reproductions to complete their costume, use as tools or treasure simply for what they are.

History of Regency Ladies Fans
Alice J. Palacios
Depictions of Fans carried with the Gowns during 1780-1820 of English Regency period with handout and showing of some of the Fans in my personal collection.

History of Textiles: The Way We Weave
Fran Wasielewski
From ancient times, people have been using fibers to make useful items to wear, carry things, shelter themselves, and to trade. The class will look into the development of wild plants into the fabrics we so love to use today. We will look at the history of weaving, fabric and their effects on civilization.

Hooray for Hollywood!
Tonya Lehman
How Costume Designers Reinterpret the Past for Present Tastes. Historical dramas have been popular since the beginning of the motion pictures, yet costume designers rarely dress their actors in authentic historical recreations. View photos and film clips decade by decade to see how contemporary fashions influence the costumes of historical movies. 

Household Objects or Historical Ornaments?
Casey Bernay
Need to make special props and costume accessories? See how to create hysterical historical ornaments from common household items.

I’m So Sari (Intro to Little India Tour)
Mary Linhart
This lecture/demo will look at actual sari lengths and show different options for dress design determined from the sari pattern as an introduction to provide inspiration to the tour attendees. Lecture will show appropriate patterns and provide specific information to help tour attendees find the perfect sari for their Regency garment. This lecture is limited only for the members of the Little India Tour.

Ideas and Inspiration for New Costumers
Lisa Coffey
Are you new to costuming and intimidated by all the details? Do you find yourself overwhelmed by the possibilities, supplies, &c.? Or perhaps you don’t even know where to begin? Come and spend an hour being encouraged and asking questions. You never know what you might learn!

Identifying Women’s Military Uniforms of WWII
Rebecca Metzger
Ever wonder what the differences were between a WAC uniform and Army Nurse uniform? This class will cover the various styles of uniforms worn by the WACs, WAVES, ANC and Lady Marines during WWII. Learn how to identify these uniforms based on color, fabric, buttons and labels. Students will also have a chance to see original uniforms. 

Inside a Hat Box
Dave Wilson
Lecture on how to make a hat box to better protect the hat it contains. Also making custom boxes for odd shaped hats.

Introduction to Costume Figure Drawing
Sarah Lorraine
Do you have the ideas but lack the skills to draw them? Afraid of drawing? Fear not! This class will introduce the basics of drawing the croquis (fashion figure) using the “9 Heads” method, a streamlined technique used in the fashion industry. No previous drawing experience is needed! The instructor will walk you through every step in the process. Perfect for anyone who has always wanted to commit their costume designs to paper!

Jacobean Crewel Work for Clothing
Shannon S. McSmith
This is not your mother’s Crewel-Work… Instead this class will cover some of the basic Jacobean Crewel-Work techniques easily used and adapted for the costumes of the Elizabethan, Jacobean, Victorian and Early 20th Century costumes. (Please note, if you have a severe wool allergy, this class is not for you. We will be using wool threads.)

Knotted Pearl Bracelet and Earring Set
Kathryn Wolters
Students will learn basic knotting skills, as well as some basic wire bending to produce their own hook and eye clasp; choice of sterling or gold filled findings.

Ladies Regency Dancing Slippers
Kathryn Wolters
A workshop for making pointy toe soft dance shoe, suitable for regency.

Lattice Smocking Workshop
Jonatha Caspian
North American or Lattice Smocking makes 3-dimensional basketweave and other effects to embellish garments, accessories and home decorative items. This complicated-looking technique is simple to learn, requiring only a marking pencil, strong thread and a hand needle. This hands-on workshop lets participants stitch samples of at least two lattice smocking variations, and discusses design and technical considerations for incorporating into costumes.

Make a Fan
Karey Leichel
We will deconstruct a commercial brise-type folding fan and use it to construct a brise-type folding fan using custom material and attaching a ring through which a tassel can be looped. A brise-type folding fan is one comprised of sticks and guards, but no leaf. The sticks are joined by a cord or ribbon at the upper edge and held in place by a pin at the base.

Make a Mask
Karey Leichel
We will construct a mask using material mounted on wire mesh and attached to metal wire. This makes a lightweight, strong, supple mask which can be worn close to the face or altered to fit over glasses. 

Make a Metal-Frame Purse
Trystan L. Bass
Small purses with metal-frame tops and "kiss" clasps have been popular in the 16th, 17th, 19th, and 20th centuries. The only differences are in material choice and trims. In this class, you'll make a historically accurate purse to go with your costumes and carry your everyday items. You only need basic machine sewing skills, plus willingness to get strong glue all over your fingers.

Making Frogs - Lecture
Dave Wilson
Lecture on types of frogs, materials used and uses.

Making Frogs - Workshop
Dave Wilson
Students will learn how to make decorative closures with three different types of cord.

Making it Your Own
Cat Slater Woodward
If you are tired of making the picture on the pattern, but do not want to alter the pattern, this lecture/demo is for you. Students will be shown how to alter the look of your garment, so it is not a carbon copy of the pattern. Instructor will have multiple dress forms in the room. Please come in costume with the pattern picture where it will be put on a mannequin and simple ways to change the look of your costume will be discussed (suggested, but not a requirement).

Many Faces of the Swiss Waist
Lana Bailey
With bretelles, without bretelles, in black velvet, or in matching skirt fabric, over a white blouse or over a bodice, Yes this was done! Swiss waists of the 1860’s were a popular garment with a wide range of styles. Looking for versatile piece to add to your Civil War era wardrobe? Lecture will present images of swiss waists in portraits and fashion plates, and will cover the construction and patterning of this style of garment and show this style was not worn by only very young girls.

Matching Your Costume to Your First-Person
Barbara Gerleman / Lynne Ashby
Tips on making sure the person you are portraying at a re-enactment would have actually worn the costume you are wearing, with basic suggestions on developing a ‘First Person” persona.

Meet The Pleat, Plait Or Gauge
Corinne Pleger
Meet all the basic forms of pleating including: cartridge, box, knife, reverse, fan, multiple, stacked, organ to use in making garments. How to get 5-6 yards of fabric into less than 3 feet of space (your waist) without looking fat!

Mid to Late 19th Menswear Overview
JoAnn Peterson
An hour long lecture showing an overview of Mid to Late 19th Century Menswear. There will be handouts, depictions of various clothing viewed by overhead projector, and examples of extant men’s garments.

Modifying Shoes
Tonya Lehman
Want something to go with the gown you worked so hard on? Need comfortable “period” shoes for walking around Renaissance Faire? In this demonstration class, view and try out the different steps of modifying contemporary shoes to fit any time period and style!

Muffn’t Forget to Keep Your Hands Warm!
Lana Bailey
Need to keep your hands warm at events? Perhaps you need a place to stash your modern day necessities. Or maybe you just want a fabulous accessory! Whatever your need, come learn about the various styles of muffs in the 19th century and then make a mid century faux fur muff in class. The class will cover some of the challenges of sewing with fur and have a goal of students leaving with a completed muff.

Napoleonic War Uniforms
Walter Nelson
Leave a well dressed corpse - A quick overview of Napoleonic War Uniforms. A slide show covering the uniforms of the major combatants in the wars of 1789-1815.

Naval Uniforms For The Latter 19th Century
Ingrid Johnson
During the reign of Queen Victoria (roughly 1837-1901), the British empire was at its apex, and its military supremacy was entirely dependent on the strength of its navy. This class primarily concerns what was worn by the British navy (and why, and by whom, and where it came from), but the uniforms of the other naval forces in the world, if available, will also be presented, along with some practical information on shipboard life.

Nineteenth Century Corded Petticoats
Jennifer Rosbrugh
Before the creation of the Victorian cage crinoline and hoop skirt, women wore corded petticoats to hold their skirts out. The corded petticoat, covered with one or more regular petticoats, created the soft bell shape of the mid-19th Century. The instructor will lecture on fabrics and cording that were used as well as a brief history of the garment itself. There will then be a demonstration of the fabric cutting and insertion of the cording into a basic corded petticoat.

Old Age Character Makeup for Masquerades
Tara Maginnis
Not every masquerade costume is about glamour. Here you can learn how to provide the finishing makeup for old witches, bad fairies, and historical persons that will “read” out to the back of the hall. Turn lovely young hands into arthritic claws, make a normal cheery face look gaunt and forbidding, see how natural facial age can be exaggerated by art to be a costume advantage instead of an impediment.

Open Cutwork
Natalie Meyer
Embellishment technique for creating eyelet-type designs that can be used on outer or under garments.

Overview of 16th Century Gaelic Clothing
Steven F. Gillan
This class presents an introduction to 16th Century Irish and Highland clothing as derived from original source material and as practiced in modern re-enactments of the period. Men’s and women’s dress will be discussed using artworks from the era.

Overview of Ladies’ Regency Fashions
Martha Davis
While we tend to think of the “Regency” as a relatively static fashion period, it wasn’t at all. A complete reaction to the prior over-abundant Georgian period, the Regency had many subtle and unsubtle changes during its short lifespan. This class will show the changes and discuss the styles in women's dress from 1798 through 1820.

Overview of Mens’ Regency Fashion
Mela Hoyt-Heydon
This lecture will provide an overview of the changes in mens’ fashions from 1795-1820. From the over flamboyant waistcoat and jacket of the pinks of fashion in the late 18th c. to the understated elegance of the Corinthian in the early 19th century, this lecture will provide a timeline guide to help the tailor create the appropriate men’s look.

Overview of Regency Hats & Headdresses
Mela Hoyt-Heydon
PowerPoint presentation of ladies bonnets, hats, turbans and hair ornamentation 1790 - 1820

Overview of Women’s Fashions in 16th Century Venice
Kendra Van Cleave
Focusing on upper class women, this class will examine Venetian styles from 1550 to 1590. The instructor will discuss changing styles, fabrics, cut and construction, underpinnings, hairstyles, and makeup. Additionally, research, theories, and practical advice for recreation will be included during the class.

Paris Millinery Salons of 1900
Barbara Troeller 
Lecture with slides and props, that takes you on a brief "Tour" through the opulent showrooms of 10 famous millinery salons in 1900 Paris, France. Rare actual photographs of the salon interiors, incredible hats, photos of the modistes and milliners, & brief bios on some, and their individual styles. Includes a tale of how Paris millinery designs made the long trip across the Atlantic to grace the heads of American women in 1900. Ends with a display of several rare examples of actual antique Victorian and Edwardian hats of the late 19th and early 20th century from famous French modistes. 

Parti-Colored to Punk: History of Stripes
Trystan L. Bass
Striped fabric holds special meaning in western fashion. It's been symbolic of entertainers, criminals, rebels, revolutionaries, flirts, and sailors, yet it's also meant cleanliness and prepiness. This lecture will look at the evolution of stripy fashions and how the fabric has been used in European and American clothing from the Middle Ages to the present.

Perfectly Matched Plaid and Stripes
Diane Yoshitomi
Students will bring a short-sleeved shirt/blouse pattern and the requisite yardage of plaid or striped fabric of their choice. Teacher will demonstrate how to prep both pattern and fabric, then lay out and cut the pattern pieces so that when seams are sewn, all plaids or stripes will match perfectly – vertically AND horizontally. Pin & hand-baste seams to see results, finish the garment later at your leisure!

Pin Fitting a Paper Pattern
Frances Burns
Would you want to like to check how a pattern fits you and make basic adjustments before ever putting pattern to fabric? Pin fitting a paper pattern allows you to do just that. We will go over how to find your correct pattern size; pin fit a paper pattern, and make corrections to your paper pattern. Note: I will be using a middle age model with a “real world” body; so several common pattern alterations will be shown, as well as discussed. 

Plaster Bandage to Masks
Jess Miller
This is a lecture-demonstration that will cover how to make a personalized mask using plaster bandages, the material that casts are made from. This messy but fun technique also provides the basis for casting a life mask, usable for creating makeup prosthetics. The basic technique will be demonstrated on one student.

PMC Rings
Olivia Competente
Love the one ring? Have problems with rings fitting your fingers? PMC rings will explore how to make a simple single band ring and then go in to more elaborate ring designs. Includes setting a stone and sizing rings on hard to fit fingers. All tools, materials and handouts needed to complete a fine silver ring(s) will be included in class. Just bring your ideas!

Poufing Your Bustle
Heather / Laura McNaughton
Do those tapes and strings inside you bustle skirt leave you tied in knots? Come and learn, hands on, how to support those bustle poufs. We will learn several patterns of poufs and how to acheive them with grace and ease. It is easier than in looks, and we mean to prove it to you.

Pressing Matters
Rory Cunningham
After sewing a beautiful seam, it will never look perfect unless it is pressed correctly. Learn tricks of the trade to take you from "loving hand at home" to "lovely garments to own." In this class, students will not only learn more than one way to finish seams of all sorts, but receive other insights to create your costume visions.

Purses in Pieces
Robert McLoughlin
Reconstructing the 16th Century Leather Purse from Dordecht. This class will be a lecture with hands on demonstration of how to pattern draft and construct the kidney purses typical of those found in Dordrecht excavations from the last few decades. Dordrecht is the oldest city in Holland dating to the early Medieval period. This wonderful multi use pouch contains up to six separate chambers and is useful for reenactors who are interested in 15th / 16th century Europe. The emphasis of the class will be on how to deconstruct drawings and pictures and how to reconstruct them in leather.

Regency & Grecian Tiaras
Olivia Competente
Need to make a head piece for the ball? Have the outfit, but need the perfect topper for a formal? In this hands on class students will make a Grecian / Regency style tiara (half crown) made from beads and wire. Class will include all materials and tools to complete one crown. 

Regency Chemisette
Mary Linhart
This workshop will explore several different options for creating a Regency chemisette or bodice filler, including patterns and guidance while beginning to create one in class. Discussion on period fabrics appropriate for making a variety of different styles. Appropriate materials will be provided from the instructor for a simple white sheer chemisette.

Regency Colonial Cap
Cheryl Looney-Whitney
Beginning to advance, this class will show how to construct a Colonial Cap worn under many a hat. A bit of history and chocolate.

Regency Corset
JoAnn Kirley
So, you don't think ladies of the Regency era wore corsets? Of course they did. This corset is quite different from all its predecessors and successors. Students will receive a custom pattern then cut, build, and fit this essential Regency undergarment. Note: this is a complicated garment and probably will not be finished during the class time allotted. Additionally, this is NOT a petticoat corset slip, but a full Regency corset.

Regency Etiquette
Rebecca Thelin
Have you ever wondered why it was so improper for Mr. Collins to introduce himself to Mr. Darcy? Or how about the proper length of time when Paying a Call? What IS the “Red Book” and why is it so important when drawing up a guest list? Was it proper to dine with gloves on or off? Etiquette, Deportment, and Social Manners in Regency will cover Introductions, Order of Precedence, Paying Calls, Dining, Dancing, Deportment, and any other related topics that we can squeeze in. If time permits, a Q & A session will follow the lecture.

Regency Gowns From Indian Saris
Martha Davis
This lecture/demo will look at actual sari lengths and show different options for dress design determined from the sari pattern. The lecture will show many dresses already created from saris as well as drape and look at how to lay out different regency pattern pieces on the sari to achieve unique garments. Students are encouraged to bring their own sari lengths for discussion and consultation; however sari lengths are not necessary to attend the lecture.

Regency Outerwear
Jennifer Rosbrugh
This class will cover the various outerwear garments and accessories of the Regency era. A review of the coat, Spencer, pelisse, mantle, shawls and stoles, cloaks, fichus, and muffs will be presented.

Regency Petticoat
Natalie Meyer
Construction of a Regency Petticoat

Regency Shoe Deco Clips
Cheryl Looney-Whitney
Beginning to advanced. This class will show how to construct a pair of a Regency shoe clip designs. All supply and patterns will be available for you to make a pair of shoe deco.

Regency Wigs
Tracylynn Gomez
We will design styles to suit you persona or needs! We will cover wig rehabilitation, cleaning and storing. You take home a finished wig with stands and styling equipment!!

Regency Fan Language
Alice J. Palacios
Learn how to use the fan for flirting with gentlemen at the Gala (Gentlemen are welcome to attend).

Secrets for Sewing Beautiful Bias Gowns
Joycelyn Falsken
Garments cut on the bias are acknowledged to be one of the most challenging kinds of garments to construct. This class will share the techniques developed by renowned high-end ready-to-wear and couture designer Charles Kleibacker, Master of the Bias Cut who specialized in elegant bias cut dresses produced in his workshop in New York City from 1960 to 1986. Joycelyn extensively interviewed Charles and worked directly with him in making several reproductions. These will be available to handle and look at closely as well as a Kleibacker original.

Sense & Sensibility Bonnet
Mela Hoyt-Heydon
Using straw braid and silk to create a bonnet similar to those worn in the film Sense & Sensibility.

Sheer Delight - Sheer Dresses of the Crinoline Era
Bridget Bradley-Scaife
Ever wonder what those lovely ladies of the south wore in hot weather? This overview of Mid-Victorian “sheer dresses” will explain the style, fabrics, and construction of these warm weather day garments. This style of dress is a great alternative to the traditional printed cotton day dress worn at most Civil War reenactments.

Simple Belly Dance Clothing
Sandra Manning
Learn to make a circle skirt, harem pants, tops, straight skirts, gauntlets and other simple clothing.

Sleeves: Basic Block to Period Variations
Rory Cunningham
Students will learn how to draft a basic sleeve block to fit their own body. They will then learn how to adapt that block into any sleeve they can imagine.

Star Wars Pilot
Shawn / Colleen Crosby
Learn to make a Star Wars X-Wing, A-Wing, or Tai fighter pilot costume by modifying a surplus jumpsuit. We will provide patterns and demonstrate how to make specialized pockets and discuss the 8 types of Star Wars costume that can be made from a jumpsuit.

Stepping Through Time – Medieval Footwear 
Robert McLoughlin
This class will be a survey of fashions of footwear through the ages up to the 16th century. There will be a discussion of the development and evolution of the European footwear from the simple hide shoe to the elaborately pinked footwear in the royal courts of Europe and the shoes of the everyday town and country people. Shoe construction stitching (clicking and closing) will be discussed with samples of different period shoes. A lecture in honour of Olaf Goubitz.

Survey of Available Regency-Era Patterns
Janet Wilson Anderson
The number of available sewing patterns for the period of 1795-1820 has increased somewhat in recent years for both men and women. This class offers a summary of what patterns are out there for purchase, and the instructor will offer a candid evaluation of their historical accuracy, ease of construction, helpfulness of instruction and other useful information.

Taking Stock
Jess Miller
This class will cover techniques of creating stocks and cravats, from cheating to the complex. There will be an overview of different styles, covering the Regency period, from the standard to the extremes of the Incredibles. 

Tall Acid Free Hat Boxes
Lynn McMasters / Gail Nichols
Learn how to make your own tall hat boxes and cover them with your favorite fabric maybe even fabric that matches the costume the hat was made for. These boxes are difficult to find and are useful for tall hats as well as nesting a number of hats for long-term storage. Make an acid free, tall, oval, Hat Box ~ 13”X11”X9”. The class will construct and cover a hat box from pre-cut acid free board as well as adding a cord handle. We will also discuss how to pattern and construct a custom top hat shaped, hat box.

Tambour Work
Natalie Meyer
Embellishment technique combining crochet with embroidery that can also be sued to apply beads.

Taming the Stash
Diane Yoshitomi
As costumers, we’ve all got one. The only question is, “Who’s in charge? You, or The Stash?” This class can put YOU back in control of that ever-growing mountain of fabrics, trims, patterns, buttons, etc. that you’ve accumulated over time. Teacher will share the simple steps she took to tame her own stash, from affordable storage techniques to the creation of a practical system to inventory all essential items. Taking charge of your stash will, in the long run, save time, energy, money, and needless headaches!

Techniques for Successful Bias Cut Construction
Joycelyn Falsken
This class will demonstrate construction techniques developed by designer Charles Kleibacker, Master of the Bias Cut. Trained in Paris and later working in New York in the 1960s and 70s, Kleibacker specialized in soft elegant bias-cut dresses. Kleibacker patterns and garments will be displayed and discussed. Students will have an opportunity to learn and apply his couture techniques in class by producing a bias sleeve from a pattern Charles developed and perfected over several years. Students will also learn to do perfect bias strings, and take home an original Kleibacker bias skirt pattern. Students need strong hand sewing skills.

The Techniques of Theatrical Makeup
Tara Maginnis
The Techniques of Theatrical Makeup in Western Theatre Before 1920. Slide and video presentation on the historical development of stage makeup, with an emphasis on the cosmetics and techniques developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This is followed by a live demo using these techniques and tools on an audience volunteer.

Theatrical Make-up for the Beginner
Casey Bernay
Learn how to look terrific from up close and the back of the room. The fundamentals of stage make-up, including proper placement of highlights and shadows for various effects. See how easy it is to enhance your best attributes and achieve beautiful looks that will not only look great in person and during presentations but will also look terrific on when photographed.

Timeline of Costuming: A Silhouette Review
Rebecca Metzger / Rebecca Thelin
Are you easily confused by the variety of fashion eras and their corresponding dates? Can you tell the difference between Rococo & Georgian or Victorian & Edwardian? If not, come join us we explore the fashion silhouettes of the early 1700s to 1920s.

Turban Across Three Time Periods
Lynn McMasters
The Turban Across Three Costume Time Periods: the Directoire, the Regency and the Romantic from 1795s to 1830s. After reviewing the types and styles of turbans worn during this 30+ year period. We will construct a fixed turban by draping fabric and trims then tacking them in place onto a shaped buckram base.

Vegas Baby
Tracylynn Gomez
Wild and fun feather headpieces for all occasions. Great to wear for Mardi Gras, Masquerade, Victorian balls, showgirls and more!

Victorian Corset Workshop
JoAnn Peterson
One day workshop where the participants will build and fit a plain white coutil corset. The class will be co-taught by JoAnn Peterson and Barbara Muran whose company is named “Of Corset”.

Victorian Embroidery II
Mary Jane Jewell
Learn techniques for hand embroidery that include little or no marking on the fabric being embroidered. These techniques can be used to show off your skill in any area. Use them on clothes, linens or even as a Victorian lady would have – in a crazy quilt. Students must already have an understanding of basic embroidery stitches. This is not a class for beginners.

Victorian Ladies Evening Gowns 1860-1900
Janet Wilson Anderson
If you ever wanted to make a Victorian evening gown and don't know where to start, this class will show you a myriad of choices! This survey will sweep through 40 years of style changes in evening wear for women: dinner gowns, reception gowns, and ballgowns, and the underpinnings that give each style its shape. It covers the era of the hoop, the rise and fall and resurrection of the bustle, and the expansion and deflation of the grand gay '90's sleeve. Over 100 looks will be shown in this whirlwind tour of one of fashion's most changeable eras.

The Wardrobe of the Ingalls Family
Tonya Lehman
You grew up reading the books and maybe even watching the TV show, The Little House on the Prairie. Sift through the stories and historical documents to understand what Charles, Caroline, Mary, Laura, Carrie and Grace wore.

What Not to Wear – Historical: Men
Shannon McSmith / Thomas Moore
This class is designed to allow every man look his best to modern eyes while still looking like he stepped out of a historical illustration. Borrowing from modern dress manuals, this class is designed to help any man person, of any shape and any costuming era, to look his best. These rules affect every body and every style, so don’t feel that if you are not interested in Historical Costuming this class will not be useful to you.

Where to Wear Your Sci-fi Costume
Shawn / Colleen Crosby
Find out where to show off your science fiction and fantasy costumes.

Wig Dyeing with Sharpies
Jess Miller
This class will cover techniques of dyeing artificial wigs with Sharpies and other materials. This will include methods of using the pens, both intact and suspended in various solutions, such as alcohol and white board cleaner. Bring any questions you may have regarding this technique.

Women’s Cross-Dressing
Fran Wasielewski
Why Women’s Cross-Dressing is Not a Drag. Women through the ages have sought equality to men, power, and a sense of identity by breaking the rules society placed on them. Starting with the Biblical injunctions to dress within one’s boundaries and traveling to our own androgynous era, we’ll visit the famous and the infamous women who braved inquisitors, ostracism, and disapproval for their fashion statements, Joan of Arc, George Sand, Marlene Dietrich and more.

Women’s Hairstyles & Makeup of the 18th Century
Kendra Van Cleave
The 18th century has a distinctive look in hair and makeup, yet it’s not always easy to figure out how to achieve it! Focusing on upper class women in England and France from the 1750s-1780s, the instructor will present a brief lecture on the fashionable looks in hair and makeup; demonstrate how to achieve an upper class makeup look using modern products; and demonstrate how to achieve the fashionable hairstyles of the period (focusing on the 1760s and 1780s). Note: the class will not cover how to achieve the huge wigs of the 1770s.