Teachers 2012
The Costume College 2012 Teacher's Form is now available.
Share your knowledge with your costuming friends!
Our Teachers from 2011
The following is an alphabetical (after our Guest Teachers) list of instructors who taught classes at Costume College 2011.
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | J | K | L | M | N | P | R | S | T | U | V | W | Y
Our Guest Teachers
Charlotte Johnson
Charlotte Johnson is a reenactor and costumer specializing in 14th and 15th century Western Europe. Since 2000, she has been costuming in the SCA, La Belle Compagnie, and other living history organizations. She has costumed fitted styles for both men and women, outfitting her whole family head to toe for both centuries.
Charlotte’s lectures and website aim to help make museum-quality clothing construction accessible to everybody, no matter what experience level, focusing on accuracy in both form and detail. Her hands-on fitted dress workshops have taught hundreds of women (and even a couple of men) to achieve the fit seen in images and sculpture of the period. Additional information, articles, and lecture notes can be found at http://www.bymymeasure.com/.
Robin Netherton
Robin Netherton is a researcher specializing in Western European dress of the Middle Ages. Since 1982, she has given lectures and workshops on medieval clothing for academic audiences, historical societies, re-enactment groups, and other organizations. An experienced costumer as well as an academic researcher, she addresses both the practical aspects of medieval clothing construction and the significance of costume in history, art, and literature. Her lectures emphasize approaches for researching medieval costume and ways to avoid common myths and mistakes.
Ms. Netherton is co-editor (with Gale Owen-Crocker) of the academic journal Medieval Clothing and Textiles. As founders of the study group DISTAFF, she and Dr. Owen-Crocker organize tracks of sessions on medieval dress and textiles each year at the major international congresses on medieval studies in the United States and England. Ms. Netherton’s recent published papers have focused on the cut of clothing in medieval Greenland, the tippet (a 14th-century sleeve decoration), and the development of the Norman hanging-cuff style.
Our volunteer teachers are remarkable, knowledgeable and have spent countless hours developing their classes. Without their contribution, Costume College would not be the event that it is.
The Costume College Committee and CGW Board of Directors would like to thank them for all their hard work.
The Teachers:
Lana Bailey
Lana is a lover of history, with a passion for detailed research of historical clothing. She received a degree in Fashion Design from FIDM and has more than 15 years experience as a historical reenactor. Involvement in the Costumer’s Guild West resulted in the honor of being Dean of Costume College 2007. While a commitment to historical accuracy resulted in her inclusion in a group reproduction of Winterhalter’s portrait of “Empress Eugenie and her Maids of Honor, 1855” for Costume Con 2008, where they competed at the Master Level and were awarded Best in Show. Lana is looking forward to launching Lana/Lily a design company offering wedding and historical, fashions and millinery.
Brandon Barnes
Brandon Barnes enjoys re-enacting the Roman Empire with his wife Lisa Klassen. He has made many sets of Roman armor in both metal and leather. He is also well-versed in historical arms and armor and enjoys military history.
Cynthia Barnes
With extensive historical dance experience, Cynthia Barnes has a theatrical dance performance resume spanning decades. Her costuming specialty is historic social dance wear for both men and women. For 20 years, she has been dancing, costuming, choreographing, stage managing and performing with SF Bay Area groups, including the Butterfly Bloomers Can-can troupe at San Juan Bautista, Stanford Vintage Dance Ensemble, Dickens Faire, Stanford Gilbert and Sullivan Society and Friday Night Waltz. Cynthia was a founding member of Danse Libre, an internationally touring company showcasing 19th & early 20th century social dances. Lately she’s been studying Renaissance dance, fashion & etiquette.
Trystan L. Bass
When she was five years old, Trystan loved to dress in tights and a trench coat to play Mrs. Peel from “The Avengers.” She’s been wearing funny clothes ever since. She’s worked at Renaissance faires and science-fiction conventions, launched the Greater Bay Area Costumer’s Guild online, organized gothic fashion shows, and won Best in Show with the Eugenie group at CostumeCon 26. This year, she’s running Collegium Occidentalis, a weekend of classes about pre-17th-century history. She can be found at www.trystancraft.com.
Arabella Benson
After a short career in special effects (helping to build a thirty-foot buffalo being the highlight), Arabella now chooses costuming as a hobby. With both historical and science fiction costumes under her belt, she has decided to pass on the weirder tips and tricks she’s picked up along the way. Arabella is a returning Costume College instructor. You can follow her at twitter.com/vylettefairwell
Robin Berry
Robin has been making costumes and doing embroidery for over 40 years. Much of this time has included being active in the Society for Creative Anachronism, the Greater Bay Area Costumers Guild, The Bay Area English Regency Society, and other historical and science fiction venues. As an embroiderer, Robin has taken training classes at a number of different international venues and teaches all around the San Francisco Bay Area and Pacific coast.
Bridget Bradley-Scaife
Bridget started costuming at the age of twelve when she got involved in Renaissance Faires. Since then, she has expanded her love of costuming to all time periods, including fantasy. She loves researching and collecting images of historical clothing and also finding the supplies to recreate them. Bridget is an active member in the Greater Bay Area Costumers Guild and is currently on the board as the Web Administrator.
Simone A. Bryan
Simone became hooked on costumes when she saw “Cinderella.” However, after a strange burning incident in Home Ec., she became “sewphobic.” She joined the SCA in 1985 and became a Stage Interpreter for the Renaissance Faires without ever getting close to one of those scary sewing machines. After marriage, though, she picked up a second-hand machine, and with lots of encouragement conquered the fear (if not the machine). Simone began to bring to life the creations in her mind and 18 years later, Simone is making costumes for play and garb for her family. She is the founder of the West Kingdom Costume Guild within the SCA and considers herself a true fabriholic and certified “Garb” hound.
Amy Calcote
Amy grew up watching her mother make costumes, clothes, and dolls. Her mother taught her how to both hand sew and sew by machine. In middle school, Amy took basic and advanced fashion design classes. By college, she was costuming plays, when she wasn’t busy in her engineering or art classes. In North Carolina, Amy got involved in Middle Eastern bellydancing and costuming. Now, she works in the film and video game industry and spends her free time, when she’s not at work or business school, sewing costumes from the late Victorian era through the mid 20th century.
Andrew Camp
Andrew caught the living history bug sixteen years ago and has been an active participant in public displays and tactical reenactments since with the California Historical Group, Great War Historical Society and British Victorian Military Society. He has an equal interest in cinematic and popular culture costuming and is an advocate of the minority view that costumers and reenactors are really the same people. Professionally, Andrew has served on active duty since 2000 as a US Army Intelligence Officer.
Kirstin Camp
Kirstin Camp has been costuming in earnest since 2004, although one could argue that begging her mother for a Star Trek uniform in 8th grade was really the start of the adventure. After a few high school forays in to Renaissance Faire attire, dressing up was put on the back burner. A life long love of history and classic Hollywood collided when she got involved in WWII living history. Unable to find exactly what she wanted in the right sizes and colors, Kirstin discovered vintage patterns and hasn’t looked back since. A random invitation to attend Dragon*Con at about the same time kicked the costuming bug in to overdrive. It’s all about getting the right details for her - after all, Boba Fett doesn’t wear Nikes.
Amy Carpenter
Amy and Brayton own Legendary Costume Works. With over 3 decades combined experience in design and fabrication, they work in a variety of textiles, leather, metal and synthetics. Their portfolio showcases a range of genres, with specific focus on 16th century German Landsknecht, Steampunk and Star Wars-inspired clothing. Their work has been featured in museums, films and on television, most recently on the steampunk-themed episode of “Castle”. Amy also sub-contracts for Sideshow Collectibles, prototyping clothing in various scales and with painstaking detail for their many lines of limited edition figurines. These days they can often be seen at Sci-Fi and pop-culture conventions, hawking their goods under the Legendary Costume Works banner. They have taught costuming/ leathercraft as guests of the Ventura Unified School District and this year marks their return as instructors at Costume College
Brayton Carpenter
See Amy Carpenter
Jonatha Caspian
Jonatha is a fine-arts-trained craftsperson continually exploring new techniques. She makes costumes because it’s FUN, to discover how people dressed in previous eras, and so she’ll have something to wear at events she attends! What Periods She Does: She’s been saying “The fall of 1830 was pretty dreadful, but other than that...” Note that “Other” extends to different galaxies and realities. Why limit oneself? There’s a broad spectrum of detail and creativity. Jonatha’s been exploring fibers, fabrics, dyeing and embellishing since her mom taught her chain stitch (embroidery) in 1966.
Bess Chilver
Bess Chilver, an entirely self-taught amateur historical costumer, caught the “costuming bug” in 1993 when she had to make her gown for her first year at Kentwell Hall’s Recreations of Tudor Life in Suffolk, England. 16th century costume has been Bess’ first love and specialism ever since and shares her knowledge by helping participants prepare for the summer event. In the last few years, Bess’ costuming interests have broadened from Tudor and Elizabethan to include Medieval, 18th Century, Regency, Victorian 1860s, “Titanic” Edwardian periods and WWII Women’s Auxiliary Airforce. Her latest obsession is needlelace: drawn threadwork, punto-in-aria and reticella.
Francis Classe
Francis has been costuming for almost eleven years, and making shoes for almost six. He has been intensely studying raised heels (chopines, zoccoli, stacked heels) for the past three years, and is the author of “Chopine, Zoccolo, and Other Raised Heel Construction”. Although his specific area of interest is the latter half of the 16th century, he is interested in all manner of costuming, both historical and fantasy. Originally working on Medieval and early Renaissance turnshoe construction, he shifted his focus to welted shoes, and then to platforms and raised heels and boots.
Tonya Clevenger
Tonya has had an interest in history, theater and costuming ever since she can remember. But only now is she able to scratch the costuming itch. She and her husband are active in many reeancting venues from the 1940s to Civil War, Victorian, buckskinning and Old West. They are members of the U.S. Territorial Marshal’s gunfight re-enacting troupe performing at events in Southern California, including Paramount Studios and at Hugh O’Brian’s 80th birthday party at the Autry Museum. When not shooting or taking tea at a Civil War event, she will be found in her loft sewing or heading for the garment district or JoAnns.
Sahrye Cohen
Sahrye Cohen is a San Francisco costumer with a love for historical and science fiction costuming. She is currently the events coordinator for the Greater Bay Area Costumers Guild.
Olivia Competente
Olivia Competente /Jewels By Olivia, a jeweler, is a native of San Francisco. With a love of all things jewelry she is versed in metal smithing and her first love which is beads. Olivia now teaches all things jewelry with her mother Dina Competente at the Sharon Art Studio in San Francisco. She loves all things sparkly and colorful. Costume College has been her teaching home away from home for 4 years.
Colleen Crosby
As the current vice-president of the CGW, Colleen has been keeping busy with event planning. She also continues to make and wear costumes to historical, science fiction, and fantasy events, as she has been for many years. As a producer and costumer for Lux Theater, she is often called upon to come up with quick science fiction costumes. As a result, she has an awfully odd costume closet
Emma Cross
Emma Cross has grown up in costume. Starting at the age of five, she has worn 18th century clothing for a number of historic sites. They include Claude Moore Colonial Farm in Northern Virginia, Mount Vernon and others. At the age of ten she began working as a junior interpreter at Colonial Williamsburg with the tradespeople of the Margret Hunter Shop, learning the trades of Mantua-making and Millinery. In addition Emma has appeared in Colonial Williamsburg film productions, onstage and in photo shoots for magazines and CW publicity. Through her work with the trades over the past ten years, she has discovered that these clothes are not just costume but real clothing worn by real people. Emma would like to thank everyone at the shop and especially her mentor Janea Whitacre, for all the support.
Rory Cunningham
Rory Cunningham is a professional costume manufacturer for film, television and stage and has been in the Costumers Union, Local 705 for over 20 years. He has also been able to share his love for creating costumes by teaching at Costume College for many years as well as UCLA in the Department of Film and Television.
Martha Davis
Martha has been creating costumes for over 25 years with an emphasis on historical patterning and techniques for the last 15 years. She enjoys researching her projects for both male and female clothing. Martha strives to create historically reproduced “clothing” rather than “costumes” and goes to great lengths to find fabrics and trims that emulate those that may have been used during a specific period.
Claudine De Montigny
Claudine learned to sew, knit, crochet, draw, and tackle any and all crafts at her mother’s knee, and learned how to build things in her father’s backyard workshop. Claudine has since supplemented this home-grown knowledge with training in construction, pattern drafting, and fitting. Today, Claudine uses her technical and artistic experience to figure out how to get a design from paper to actuality. She seeks any opportunity to learn more, and wishes to share what she knows, so that everyone and anyone can have the “perfect” costume.
Chantal Filson
Chantal has been a Costume Designer in the film & television industry for ten years and has recently made the segue from hobby seamstress into historical costumer. She has learned both period accurate and modern techniques, and has taken several seminars including Susan Khalje’s Couture Corset workshop, an 18th century corset class with Mary Logan at the Stratford Theater [Canada], and Kenneth King’s Birth of a Bustier. She created the corset on the re-issued cover of Linda Sparks’ “The Basics of Corset Building” in a workshop held at Farthingales L.A. Her credits can be seen here-- http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1055434/
Elizabeth Gerds
A past president of the CGW, Liz has been costuming for most of her life, and has been creating and wearing costumes at Renaissance Faires and Science Fiction/Fantasy Conventions, as well as working professionally for the Civic Light Opera South Bay Cities, UCLA and independent theatre productions. Along with her husband Eric, Liz has been involved with Costume College from the beginning.
Eric Gerds
Eric Gerds has been a part time teacher at Santa Monica College for the past 20 years. When he is not teaching he has worked in both the Aero Space industry and the entertainment industry. Some of the companies that Eric has worked for over the years include, United States Air Force, Boeing satellite systems, CBS, Sony Pictures Imageworks, Frank Gehry Partners to name a few. http://www.youtube.com/user/ericgerds
Steven Gillan
Since 1982, Steven has headed Clan MacColin of Glenderry, the oldest operating 16th Century Highland and Irish reenactment organization in the United States. Through extensive and ongoing research, he has striven to establish and enhance a plausible, historic appearance standard for Clan MacColin. This information has been used variously by many subsequent Highland and Irish reenactment groups from the Middle Ages to the English Civil War.
Tracey Gorin
Tracey started her beading and crafting as a young girl, but didn’t begin costuming until 2003. As a beginning seamstress, she found sewing a wonderful challenge, which allowed her to expand her creative repertoire and gave her so much inspiration. Tracey loves learning from others, and finding new ways of doing things and combining talents into new projects.
Diana Habra
Diana Habra has been sewing historical clothing and costumes for too many years to count. She makes historical clothing from the medieval period through the 1960’s but her current loves are Victorian and the 18th century. She plays in Renaissance Faires, the SCA, the Greater Bay Area Costumers Guild, and several other re-creation societies. You can also catch her playing Florence Nightengale at the Dicken’s Christmas Fair in Northern California.
Catherine Hay
Cathy Hay loves to re-animate the beautiful clothes of the past and make them drop-dead gorgeous again. She has sewed professionally on both sides of the Atlantic, but is lucky enough to live on the side with most of the history.
Her mathematician’s background provides a fresh approach, and her training as a high school teacher allows Cathy to share her discoveries clearly and simply with all skill levels. Cathy is responsible for www.FoundationsRevealed.com and the award-winning YourWardrobeUnlockd.com. She aims for them to be the online, year-round equivalent of Costume College, connecting the fascinating field of costume making on a worldwide scale.
Charles Hensley
Charles has been crafting and making leatherwork for over 10 years, and currently works on projects for Live Action Role Playing games. His portfolio ranges from standard “frogs” (sword sheaths), to full leather armor - completely hand sewn and tooled. His Elvin Armor was on display at Costume College 2009.
Maegen Hensley
Maegen graduated from Cal State Long Beach with majors in Fashion Design and Fashion Merchandising. Though she currently works in the fashion industry, her love is historical and fantasy costuming, and she incorporates it into her designing whenever possible. Maegen attends over a dozen events each year ranging in time periods such as Regency, Dickens, Gatsby 20’s and Civil War. Her favorite pastimes are doing research for a new fabulous dress and making costumes for her rambunctious daughter and baby boy! She has been a volunteer at Costume College for the past 10 years.
Mela Hoyt-Heydon
Mela is a union costume designer for the entertainment industry and is the head of the design department at Fullerton College. She is also part of the Smithsonian’s “American Research Expedition,” a member of the Costume Society of America and currently working on a book about men’s period tailoring. Additionally, Mela is one of Costume College’s most veteran teachers as well as a Dean Emeritus.
Mary Jennings
Mary has over ten years historic costuming experience, most of it utilizing thrift store items. She has won several “best costume” awards at various events.
Malaki Keller
Evidenced by a 15-year career creating magical things in the fields of Film, Television, Comics, and Toys, Malaki strives for a unique look in all he creates. Whether detailing comic pages, crafting props and costumes, or designing and building toys, each of his creations develops its own sense of personality. Past credits include Alien Resurrection and Starship Troopers on film, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Yo Gabba Gabba! on TV, and Airwalk and Heineken advertising campaigns. Working in foam, clay, resin, plastic, wood and any material necessary to accomplish the project, he h as on occasion even worked with chocolate. Evidenced by a 15-year career creating magical things in the fields of Film, Television, Comics, and Toys, Malaki strives for a unique look in all he creates. Whether detailing comic pages, crafting props and costumes, or designing and building toys, each of his creations develops its own sense of personality. Past credits include Alien Resurrection and Starship Troopers on film, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Yo Gabba Gabba! on TV, and Airwalk and Heineken advertising campaigns. Working in foam, clay, resin, plastic, wood and any material necessary to accomplish the project, he has on occasion even worked with chocolate.
Lisa Klassen
Lisa began costuming as a girl and taught herself to sew soon after. Although she has formally studied construction techniques, pattern making and fashion design for ten years, she retained her DIY ethic and creative eye and is known for her innovative techniques and uses of materials. Lisa began taking commissions four years ago and has clients in places like Hong Kong and London and her work has won awards and accolades. You can find her work on local stages, in photo shoots, conventions, historical events and indie films. In addition to being an award-winning costumer, she has also been honored for her quilting. She is a member of the Roman educational group Cohort 1 Praetoria and enjoys both historic and pop costuming.
Mike Klassen
Mike Klassen is Lisa Klassen’s brother and an avid cosplayer, While Lisa has always made his costumes, he has always built his swords and other fantasy weapons.
Regina Lawson
As a teenager, Regina costumed high school theatre productions and rock bands, such as Motley Crue and Quiet Riot in L.A.’s rock scene. Starting in 1985 at the Renaissance Pleasure Faire in Southern California, she has costumed Highland and Irish, English, Italian, and German re-enactors, as well as 16thC and 17thC Polish and Turkish, and Victorian clothing. Regina is currently the Historical Clothing Coordinator for Clan MacColin of Glenderry, the premier 16th C Irish and Highland Re-enactment organization.
Karey Leichel
Karey Leichel has costumed all her life and has been teaching costuming for more than 15 years. She has been collecting making fans for about 15 years. She has also made masks for about the same time. Hats and hat construction have been a passion since she was a little girl dressing her Barbie at four or five years old. She was in the SCA doing Chinese costumes for 20 or so years, and has won a major award at several conventions including a WorldCon.
Sarah Lorraine
Obsessed with Elizabethan clothing since childhood, Sarah has been researching and sewing 16th century costumes for the better part of two decades. She maintains the website Mode Historique (http://www.modehistorique.com/) devoted to sharing her passion for historical clothing with the world. When she’s not buried in sewing projects, Sarah participates in the Greater Bay Area Costumers Guild and the Society for Creative Anachronism.
Laura Lowe
Laura Lowe has been studying and reproducing the styles of the 1920s-40s since being bitten by the Swing-Dance Bug years ago. Since then, she’s become adept at sewing from vintage patterns, creating hairstyles from vintage diagrams and pictures, and adapting modern elements to suit a vintage silhouette. Her 10 years’ experience WWII reenacting have given her insight into the psychology and the style of the period, as well as a practical knowledge of how women created and kept their style. She has participated in many, many living history events geared towards teaching about women’s participation in WWII including doing work for the History Channel, presentations on the USS Midway; at Fort MacArthur and Fort Rosecrans; and with the organizations Marching Through History and The Spirit of ’45. Currently she is planning an interactive display for the USS Iowa.
Sandra M. Manning
Sandra started costuming back when she was about 13 or so and been doing it since then. She’s been belly dancing for the past 9 years and making her own dance clothing. She’s also been gardening forever and she spends the year in the wilds of Alaska teaching mathematics.
Lauren Maringola
Lauren began ardently studying fashion and costume history over fifteen years ago and in 2002 expanded her love into her business, Wearing History. She has worked as a designer, stylist, and seamstress for film and theatre as well as studied both fashion and costume design on an academic level. She has a line of sewing patterns based on vintage originals and runs a popular vintage fashion blog. She can be found online at http://wearinghistorypatterns.com
Elizabeth McCash
A constant source of embarrassment to her husband and child, Elizabeth McCash has been costuming for the past decade or so. She has jumped into the deep end here with the CGW, and holds a few Guild titles at the moment. She hopes that people will take risks and try their hand at a new skill or technique, and that they will be unafraid to make mistakes. She tends to be a bit OCD (ok, fine, a lot OCD) about things, but that’s what allows her to enjoy this hobby while keeping her from being buried under a pile of fabric and trim. She doesn’t have a favorite costuming genre, as long as she has somewhere fun to wear it when it’s done. And she likes pie. Mmmm, pie.
Lynn McMasters
Lynn has tried her hand at almost everything that one can do with a sewing machine, from everyday clothes, to period costumes for porcelain dolls, educational puppets and costumes for such places as the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Point Reyes National Sea Shore and Santa Barbara Botanical Gardens. In the past 10 years she has concentrated on period hats and has started a line of period hat patterns. Examples of her work can be seen on her website http://lynnmcmasters.com. Lynn has taught at Costume College, the GBACG Costume Academy, and workshops at SCA Arts and Sciences. She teaches corset making, millinery, and Elizabethan embellishment-related classes as well.
Heather McNaughton
Along with her sister Laura, Heather is the creator of Truly Victorian Reproduction Patterns. Her main focus is on the bustle periods of 1870-1889. Heather also works full time as a custom seamstress. Like her sister Laura, Heather has a reputation for excellent costumes, and has a superb knowledge of historical clothing. Additionally, Heather is a veteran Costume College teacher and has assisted the Guild in its year-round programs and many of its fashion shows.
Shannon McSmith
Shannon was taught early in life to embroider and sew while watching television and during family holidays. Although she was not able to properly sew a garment until well into high school, she spent a lot of time copying and designing costumes and clothes. In recent years, she has not only improved upon her textile skills, but has also worked to become a true maven of fashion rules and acceptable appearances in the many time periods in which she indulges her creative skills. Shannon has helped to teach many embroidery courses at Costume College over the last few years, and is active in many historical, recreational, and educational groups.
Christine Megowan
Christine Megowan (pronounced like “McGowan”) is an enthusiastic amateur who has been sewing since the tender age of 11 when she drove her mother to wits’ end looking for the perfect Halloween costume. Since then, she has tried her hand at costumes of all sorts, from Viking to Victorian and beyond, and is always on the lookout for new techniques to try.
Rebecca Metzger
Rebecca has been sewing for as long as she can remember and has always been fascinated with women in history and the clothes they wore – particularly the women of the 1860’s to the 1950’s. However, it wasn’t till the late 1990’s that she began using her sewing talents to create the historical fashions that have always intrigued her. Rebecca is also a WWII living historian with the 45th Field Hospital.
Natalie Meyer
Natalie is the site costumer for both Heritage Square Museum and the Workman Temple Homestead. She has been sewing since she was six. Natalie has taught at Costume College too many times to count and was Dean of Costume College 2001.
Jess Miller
Jess has been costuming for over 30 years, starting with the Northern Renaissance Pleasure Faire and proceeding all over the costume landscape. She has a B.A. in Art with an emphasis on textiles, and has done further coursework in Anthropology, which only makes her that much more confused. Jess is a Dean Emeritus of Costume College, and runs masquerades for such conventions as LosCon, the Los Angeles area Science Fiction convention.
Jean Mosteller
Jean has been costuming for community theater for over 15 years. She has won numerous Inland Theater League Awards for Excellence in Costuming. She was an Inland Theater League Judge for 5 years and on the Board of Directors of Yucaipa Little Theatre for 2 years and Heartland Players for 5 years. Some of her favorite shows that she received awards for were: “Meet Me in St Louis“, “Jane Eyre“, “Pride and Prejudice“, “Arsenic and Old Lace”, “A Christmas Carol” and “The Importance of Being Earnest“. She currently makes a living selling Victorian costume items on her website WWW.OldMillMercantile.com.
Jennifer Mulvey
Jennifer has been costuming for only 4 years, but in that time she has jumped into the deep end with both feet! Jennifer has been in the Programming Department of Costume College for the last 4 years, involved in a the Historical Citizens Association, attended many costuming events and is currently serving on the CGW, Inc Board of Directors. It’s a dizzying life! Jennifer loves historical, sci-fi , fantasy and everything in between.
Barbara Muran
Barbara Muran has had a lifelong passion for sewing, taking and teaching sewing classes at every opportunity, some for fun, some required for her Home Economics degree. In 1999 Barbara joined Sutter’s Fort in and launched headlong in to the world of historic clothing. Using half scale garments and body forms, Barbara speaks at schools, historic parks, and other groups. Barbara began teaching Laughing Moon corset workshops in 2004, and as proprietor of ‘Of Corset’, Barbara teaches corset and historic clothing workshops throughout the year. In addition to making custom corsets, her line of corsets is available through Sacramento City Dry Goods.
Carl Nelson
Carl is a cartographer and Medieval historian with a B.S. Degree in history and geography. He has been teaching chainmaille for 35 years and is a returning teacher to Costume College.
Walter Nelson
Walter Nelson has been involved with all aspects of public history for over 30 years. He has organized and presented vintage dances covering eras from the Regency to the 1940s. He has also organized and presented history-related programs for organizations as varied as high schools, the Autry Museum of Western Heritage, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, the Huntington Library, State Parks and the Los Angeles Opera. Walter has also served as a historical consultant and has recruited skilled costumed performers for movies and television (Disney, PBS, History Channel, A&E).
Sara Newberry
Sara has been sewing and costuming for herself, her friends, and her family for 7 years, but her love of dressing up started nearly in the womb. Since then, she has dabbled in everything from Renaissance to Fantasy costuming – her current love is mid-19th century. A lover of unusual things, Sara actively researches alternative fashion, such as maternity and reform wear. In her spare time, she teaches high school and raises her two young children.
Gail Nichols
Gail has worked in costuming for many years, from making costumes for her children to working in a costume shoppe doing the full gamut including sales, designing, making costumes for inventory and custom jobs. For the past 14 years, Gail has worked for the Santa Cruz Shakespeare Festival in conjunction with UCSC, in the costume shoppe. She worked in the capacity of master-stitcher and first hand for the summer and holiday productions. She continues to accumulate a variety of skills and experiences in costuming and stitching. Gail has taught at creative retreats, assisted other teachers and most recently mentored native artisans in Peru, helping them in product design and development. She is a returning instructor to Costume College.
Sarah Northrip
Sarah Northrip has attended and volunteered at Costume College since she was in high school and is excited to be teaching this year. She grew up in the historic West Adams area of Los Angeles and was a part of costuming communities from an early age. Her love of playing dress up has never ceased and she particularly enjoys Renaissance, as well as the blend of historic and science-fiction elements in Steampunk. Making jewelry and accessories are her specialty. She discovered needle-felting while teaching elementary school and was immediately hooked! She is pleased to share her passion with other costumers.
Rondinella Olsen
Rondinella has studied historical costuming both in the United States and in Europe. A Laurel in the SCA she got her start in costuming at Science Fiction conventions.
Shelley Peters
Shelley has loved sewing and costuming all her life. She started sewing in second grade and costumed her eight younger brothers and sisters for home productions. Her three children and their friends were always dressed in creative Halloween costumes. She moved on to Renaissance, wedding gowns, and Dickens Christmas Carolers. Nine years ago she found Civil War Reenacting and has immersed herself in learning history through period clothing and construction methods. The “Widow Peters” is the proprietress of the Kansas Mercantile, a Civil War Sutlery, and has been active with the American Civil War Society, Inc. having been the Civilian Corps Director for three years. She has attended Costume College since 2000 and been a Costume College teacher for the last 8 years. She also teaches period sewing and corset workshops and has a custom sewing business, specializing in corsets and ball gowns.
JoAnn Peterson
JoAnn is the designer and owner of the pattern company, Laughing Moon Mercantile. She and her partner, Dale Blair, also own a retail store in Sacramento that caters to 19th Century reenactors, called Sacramento City Dry Goods. http://www.saccitydrygoods.com. JoAnn also has a permanent exhibition of real 19th Century clothing and accessories in her store.
Corinne Pleger
Corinne’s first sewing project was a Granny dress made at age 12. Her first costume was a Medieval outfit for an early Renaissance Faire. Corinne presently lives in a 1908 house, is involved with various re-enactment groups and attends historic themed dances and events. She discovered the first Costume College by accident, has been decreasing her closet space ever since, and joined the “faculty” of Costume College in 2000. To support Corinne’s costuming habit, she is a Certified Public Accountant with her own firm and has given tax advice to costumers about their activities. She was Dean of Costume College in 2005.
Cindy Price
Cindy was born and raised in Southern California. She was raised by her grandmother, who taught her to sew while she was still in elementary school. Her grandmother used to shop at thrift stores, selecting clothing made out of the most beautiful fabrics (velvet, lace, satin, etc.) whether the garment actually fit or not. She would take these garments home, take them apart, and remake them into wonderful outfits for her granddaughter. Cindy still loves scrounging through a thrift store more than almost anything else on earth! Cindy is now a Civil War reenactor. She still loves to sew. She also loves to do scrapbooking, altered art, crocheting, jewelry making, and anything else that is at all crafty! Cindy became aware of Steampunk during the 2008 session of Costume College. She loved the look right off the bat and was particularly interested in the jewelry. Her class this year is on how to create your own Steampunk jewelry. This is Cindy’s first time to teach at Costume College and she is very excited to be here.
Jody Regan
Jody learned to sew on her grandmother’s treadle machine at the age of 8. In the small-town Iowa high school she attended, Jody was cast as a member of the chorus in H.M.S. Pinafore, as the king’s wife in The King and I and as Liesl in The Sound of Music. Cast members had to provide their own costumes, and while making hers, Jody fell in love with costuming. Since then, her interest in costumes has included various historical periods, fantasy and Steam Punk. Jody served as Dean of Costume College in 2006 and is the current vice-president of the San Diego Costume Guild (SDCG).
Carolyn Richardson
Carolyn Richardson has been costuming for nearly 30 years as a hobbyist, and participates in many periods including medieval and Renaissance, Regency and Victorian. This is her first time teaching at Costume College, although she has attended it several times. In addition to costuming, she collects and restores antique sewing machines, and currently has over 20 in her collection.
Jennifer Rosbrugh
With a strong draw towards 19th C. living, Jennifer explores the past by making historical clothing and teaching others how to sew 19th C. garments for their own dress-up boxes. She’s been making her own clothes for over 25 years and creating period costumes for the past 12. Jennifer’s passion is for early 1870s fluffy bustle dresses and Regency era gowns. She has a BA in Entrepreneurship, is an alumna of FIDM in Fashion Design and runs HistoricalSewing.com. As well as being an event time-traveler, Jennifer is a self-proclaimed Neo-Victorian, lover of dark chocolate, and long-time teacher at Costume College.
Carolyn Runnells
A BA from Baptist University, teaching history part-time, a wrangler in the film industry has allowed Carolyn to combine her love of history and her costumes into an informative edutainment presentation. Her shows/presentations are used by various museums, service organizations, tour organizations, educational institutions, casinos and the cruise lines. Over 13 yrs ago Carolyn’s love of history, enjoyment of everyday types of sewing provided a jumping off point to take her love of these two on a journey to the costuming world.
Debbie Russ
Debbie Parks-Russ started designing, making, and competing with costumes at age nine. She started Fantasyland Costume Company in 1980 with only 100 costumes. To fulfill customer demands for more, she created additional rental costumes starting at the beginning of time, creating authentic costumes throughout history, into fantasy and the future. Her costume shop now has over 3000 complete costumes of which 80% were designed, and manufactured, in house. Specializing in Renaissance, Debbie designed and manufactured her own historical clothing line, attained notoriety in the Renaissance community, and won the NCA Grand International Award for her Authentic Renaissance Nobles.
Audrey Russell
Although the daughter and granddaughter of professional seamstresses, Audrey did not discover that sewing was in her blood until the age of 33, when she volunteered to make her own costume for a church musical fundraiser. Costuming led to garment sewing and eventually back to costuming again, as Audrey believes that costumes are simply clothing from another time and place. Her interests range from sci-fi and historical costumes to hand-made children’s wear, and her passions are fit and impeccable construction. Audrey is a sewing instructor and stay-at-home mom to her favorite three-year old model of her sewn and knitted creations.
J.P. Ryan
J. P. Ryan specializes in patterns designed to clothe the Georgian Gentry. Each of her patterns is carefully researched and based on extant historic garments. Not only is each pattern historically accurate; it will produce a garment that will serve the same functions as the original. Further, each design is made to fit modern, healthy, 21st century bodies, while maintaining the lines and proportions of the original garments. And, most importantly, each design is reasonably simple to construct, using modern sewing techniques. Her goal is to provide you with quality patterns equal to the best on the modern market. Please visit her website at www.jpryan.com.
Donna Scarfe
Getting the correct headgear to complete your outfit can be difficult to find. Donna found few Renaissance Faire merchants had a variety of good quality hats and decided to fill the void. She has been creating hats for 12 years now and studied with a millinery teacher in Los Angeles and some courses in England where they really know hats! Her company “Fyne Hats By Felicity” creates a wide range of custom hats (period and contemporary fashion styles) and her Renaissance headgear has turned up at faires from coast to coast. She once outfitted a whole madrigal choir with 20 Dickens’ Bonnets. Her hats have been sold at charity auctions for the American Cancer Society and the Des Moines Opera. Donna admits she is partial to wide brimmed hats with lots of feathers!
Catherine Scholar
Catherine Scholar read “Little House on the Prairie” at age five and has been obsessed with historic clothing ever since. She learned to sew at her mother’s knee, and to embroider at her grandmother’s. In high school she discovered vintage dance, the northern Renaissance Pleasure Faire, and Dickens Fair, and was amazed to learn that she could combine her passions for dance, costume, history and theater. Catherine serves as Newsletter Editor on the board of the Greater Bay Area Costumers Guild.
Vicki Scidmore
Vicki Scidmore is an art major and history lover who combines that in miniature scenes and costumes. Being sewing challenged, she is a thrift-store junkie who usually re-models and adapts finds as well as items she has saved since childhood “on the chance it might make a good costume”. She did Star Trek, Ren Fair and Civil War before finding Costume Guild which opens up new eras for an already packed closet.
Caren Seaman
Caren has been doing historical re-enactment costuming for 15 years. She’s studied hard and learned so much from her fellow costumers that she now thinks it’s time to give something back. She’s re-covered six parasols of her own and taught many friends how to do it.
Melinda Sherbring
Melinda Sherbring is an independent researcher focused on Renaissance English embroideries, including research behind the scenes at the Victoria and Albert Museum, Museum of London, Nottingham Costume Museum, Norwich Costume and Textile Study Centre, the Embroiderer’s Guild at their offices at Hampton Court Palace, the Legion of Honor Museum in San Francisco, and Hiscock and Shepherd Antiques. She has written Sweet Bags Richly Embroidered, now seeking publication. In 1988, as part of the Past Times With Good Company troupe, she did costumed historical interpretation in England at Buckland Abbey, Sudeley Castle, and Wingfield College. She is known in the SCA as Eowyn Amberdrake.
Kimiko Small
Kimiko has been involved in sewing costumes since a child, researching since a teen, involved with Tudor ren-faires since 1987, and recently joined the SCA. She was an advisor in costume research for Margo Anderson’s Historical Costume Patterns for their new Henrician pattern line. She continues her quest for more 16th c. costume information, from French hoods, to early Tudor clothing construction, and enjoys creating historical clothing almost as much as researching about them. More info about her at www.kimiko1.com.
Eileen Smolenski
Eileen has been sewing for more than 45 years, construction everything from custom made doll clothes, Renaissance Costumes, and bridesmaids gowns. She has taught Girls Scouts aged 10-13 to construct simple lined vests as well as numerous young people basic hand sewing.
Jennie Smolenski
Jennie has a BA from Cal Poly Pomona in Theatre with the emphasis in costuming. I have a little experience working with community theatre designing costumes and as a stitcher for a costume house, but I prefer to sew one of a kind creations.
Katherine Sterling
Kathy has been sewing most of her life. In high school she designed and made her first Renaissance costume and has been hooked on sewing “not every day clothes” ever since. She currently teaches part time at Pasadena City College in the Fashion Department. Most of those classes involve….sewing. Kathy is a member of the Wearable Art Connection of Southern California and Costumers Guild West and the American Sewing Guild.
Kristin Stonham
Born into a line of sewers, Kristin is sure her grandmothers never thought of all the things she’d do with what they taught her! Over a decade after watching a costume competition and declaring to a friend “We can do that too,” she’s still going strong, dabbling in every type of fabric craft she can get her hands on.
Lindsay Tallman
Lindsay’s costuming takes her all over the map and all over the history books. She plays with the Guild of St. Luke at the Northern California Renaissance Faire, visits the Great Dickens Christmas Fair, and attends anime and science fiction conventions up and down the state. She is currently nursing a particular affinity for Disney costuming, and is convinced she is actually an animated princess trapped in a human body.
Elizabeth Tarnove
Liz Tarnove learned sewing as a little girl from her mom, aunt and grandmother. She spent many happy hours sewing for her vast family of dolls. Today she sews historical costumes for herself. (She never did outgrow playing dress-up.)
Rebecca Thelin
Rebecca has always loved dressing up and re-creating historical eras inspired by reading classic books such as "Little House on the Prairie," "Little Women," and "Anne of Green Gables" while a child. It was in college, however, that the "sewing bug" and enthusiasm for reenacting really took root. Rebecca is a founding member and current Secretary of the Historical Citizens Association and has been a Civil War re-enactor since 1999. She also dabbles in other eras/genres, including Sci-Fi/Fantasy, as they fit it into her schedule. Rebecca first attended Costume College in 2003 and has been a teacher since 2006.
Feather Tippetts
With a French Milliner as her maternal grandmother it’s hardly surprising that costume design and creation are a passion for Feather. The owner and principal designer of Grand Gestures Historical Costume, she creates garments as historically accurate as possible. Her clients include Impersonators, Re-enactors, and Interpretive Speakers at Historical Sites. Frequently called upon as a speaker and consultant on historical clothing for museums, educational institutions, and private clubs, she also leads workshops on design and construction for students focusing on historical costume. Feather lives on a ranch with horses, mules, ostriches, camels, cattle and a beagle in Morgan Hill, California. She is a member of GBACG.
Barbara Troeller
Professionally trained in millinery at The Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, Ms. Troeller has devoted much of the past 30 years to the study of antique millinery and hat making. Her Passions, and her collections of thousands of antique hats, millinery historical items, feathers, trims, ephemera and books, have led her to a full time business as a public speaker, professional consultant, and dealer in antique hats. She also designs her own unique millinery creations, as well as devoting time to the restoration of antique hats in her California studio.
Kendra Van Cleave
Kendra has been creating and studying historic costumes for approximately 15 years (although we won’t talk about those early mishaps). She is a past president of the Greater Bay Area Costumer’s Guild and performs with Bella Donna Venetian Courtesans at various Northern California Renaissance Faires. Kendra maintains a costume website, “Demode” (http://www.demodecouture.com/), where she presents her research and projects.
Fran Wasielewski
Fran has been studying and teaching various re-enactment skills, from acting and dancing, to clothing, cooking, and lifestyles for more than 35 years. She has a Master’s Degree in American Studies (Outdoor Museum Studies & Folklore). Trained as an anthropologist, archaeologist, and folklorist, Fran enjoys bringing the past to life. She formerly worked for the Santa Barbara Historical Museum.
Neal Way
Neal made his first corset as a Christmas gift in 2006. After parking his commercial trucking business in 2007, his focus changed to art. Working full time in a metal fabrication shop doing custom metal work and blacksmithing for high-end custom homes.
Working with his mother Barbara Muran to expand her business “of Corset”, he took on marketing and assists with design and production. He has been an assistant instructor for the last 3 years of Costume Collage, as well as the classes that have been held regularly in northern California and now Nevada.
Some of his work has been featured on the cover of the “Reno Passport” along with a feature article. He has been seen on NBC and CBS news during the production of the Red District art/fashion show at the West St. Market Reno. Being new to costuming he enjoys making wearable art, with a focus on Steampunk.
Janea Whitarce
Janea Whitacre is Mistress Milliner and Mantua-maker, in the Department of Historic Trades at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. Her research in her trades, their products, and their technologies led to preserving the Trades of Milliner and Mantua-maker by way of Apprenticeship Program, in 1995. In 2005, she was recognized as Master (or Mistress) of her trades. She continues to research and study 18thc clothing as well as the lives, work and successes of her 18thc counterparts. And regularly shares her knowledge through workshops and lectures. She has appeared on the Mr. Rogers Show, Love of Quilting, and various Colonial Williamsburg productions for television. Her reproductions of 18thc accessories and clothing have been included in museum exhibits from Boston to Los Angeles as well as daily being exhibited at Colonial Williamsburg.
Jenny-Rose White
Since the tender age of two, when she refused to wear pants and informed her Mom which “diss” she would wear that day, Jenny-Rose White has loved clothes, frills and pink. She became fascinated by historical fashion and costuming at an early age, and has been sewing historically inspired costumes for over 13 years. She is the webmistress of jennylafleur.com, a member of The Rappahannock Colonial Heritage Society, and has a frequent attendee of Costume College since 2006.
Dave Wilson
Dave has an omnivorous interest in history that has expanded into costuming because of Costume College, first as a student for three years then as an instructor for five more years he has thoroughly enjoyed learning and sharing with other people a growing involvement with all things sewing. Dave is a renaissance re-enactor, makes chain maille, plate armor and cuir bouille and does coats of arms for his friends. Renewing friendships and making new ones at Costume College is one of the high points of the year. He hopes to add to his knowledge and friends for many more years to come...
Jonnalyhn Wolfcat Prill
Wolfcat has been sewing in one form or another since the early 70’s when her mother began her with basic embroidery, quilting and straight seams. She’s progressed to medieval recreations, science fiction costumes and full-bore fantasy competition pieces, and delights in learning or sharing new concepts. Besides anime wings of unusual materials, and Victorian inspired clothing, her latest area of exploration is with ball-jointed dolls and baby girl outfits
Kathryn Wolters
Kathryn is an “incorrigible” costume/jewelry/needlework junkie for 35 plus years. She started at a tender age of 8, making historical costumes for her Barbie doll, and has gone on to costume adult sized ‘Barbies’, ‘Kens’, ‘Skippers’, as well as anyone else who’d stand still in front of her long enough. She has worked/played/taught with several different costuming and re-creation groups over the years, including Renaissance Faire, S.C.A., Friends of the English Regency, Past Times with Good Company, and has been a repeat teacher at Costume College. The words “lifetime addictions” come to mind.
Vanessa Wood
Vanessa is a native of Chicago who first joined the costuming masses by fashioning Greek & Roman goddess-wear during grade school Latin pageants. Although she has a special love for the Victorian & Edwardian eras, she likes to don her 1940’s finery whenever possible. She obsessively collects vintage & antique sewing patterns, hoards fabric and old lace and enjoys discussing last-minute sewing over tea and homemade cookies.
Cat Slater Woodward
Cat started out her costuming adventure in the vintage clothing world wearing a mixture of vintage and modern clothing. By high school, she was an accomplish hand sewer and beaded beautifully. Eventually she found herself in the costuming world and learned machine sewing. Since the time of her first sewing machine, she has won awards, had her costumes in fashion shows, on display, and with a friend, started their own carpetbag business.
Greg Wosnak
Greg has been making Medieval and Renaissance style armour for well over twenty years. Taking the path of a journeyman, Greg has been perfecting his skills in various shops across the country, catering to museums, private collectors and living history enthusiasts everywhere. A mutually beneficial relationship with Hollywood was inevitable leading Greg to a career of making armour and props for all the various facets of the entertainment industry. The fashion industry was not far behind. Nowadays, Greg owns Metal Skin Productions LLC, which caters to every skill developed by it’s proprietor and a few he has yet to learn.
Robin Young
Robin Young is a historian who also enjoys fashion history. Combining enjoyment with production however is tough, as she lacks the time to sew a lot and to get really good at it. She would have considered a career in fashion if only she could draw! She did get a shove into the production end when she was forced to take “something domestic” in high school because her mother was concerned she was taking only academic courses. She barely passed sewing class after demonstrating such natural talent as sewing a sleeve shut at a shoulder seam. But somehow, somewhere, fates conspired, and Robin figured it all out, learning a lot at Costume College over the years. In fact, she’s still figuring it out, and her seam ripper is a dear friend. She has done her own costumes for Star Trek, Ren Faire, Civil War, Harry Potter, and any costume required for an event. This is her 6th year attending Costume College and her first year teaching. She’s hopes there will be many more of both! This year she is bringing her wicked sense of humor