April 2011 Portfolio Special: "Wicked Wednesdays"

April 2011 Portfolio Special: "Wicked Wednedays"

April 2011 Portfolio Special: "Fester's Coat"

April 2011 Portfolio Special: "Fester's Coat"

The Addams Family: Gated Heart

After this Valentine's day was over, I realized that there were STACKS of unused promotional valentine's cards sitting on the back office desk, so I decided this was a great opportunity to make one of those, "unconventional materials" dresses.

The theme of this odd dress is, "Caged Heart."  I guess the story might be that Raine had tons of Valentine's Day cards, but broke up with her boyfriend before the big day, so she cut them all up and wore them as a dangerously sharp dress.  That is why she looks so angry.

I once again turned to "The Addams Family" for dark inspiration and thought of the character of "Gate." (For those of you who don't know, "Gate" was the Addams Family's front gate.) I used the image of the what I consider Spanish Style spikes on different parts of the dress as well as button-accented square connectors.

You might be able to notice that the "skirt" part is actually quite complicated.  It's two-layered and heart-shaped.  See it?  Also, the square connectors are three-dimentional and folded like origami with a button holding it closed, which I wish was easier to see, because those things are what took the most time to make!

(BTW, I totally admit that this dress is SO not even comparable to the awesomeness that was the newspaper Maire Antoinette dress, but they can't all be explosions of genius!)

The Addams Family: Gated Heart

After this Valentine's day was over, I realized that there were STACKS of unused promotional valentine's cards sitting on the back office desk, so I decided this was a great opportunity to make one of those, "unconventional materials" dresses.

The theme of this odd dress is, "Caged Heart."  I guess the story might be that Raine had tons of Valentine's Day cards, but broke up with her boyfriend before the big day, so she cut them all up and wore them as a dangerously sharp dress.  That is why she looks so angry.

I once again turned to "The Addams Family" for dark inspiration and thought of the character of "Gate." (For those of you who don't know, "Gate" was the Addams Family's front gate.) I used the image of the what I consider Spanish Style spikes on different parts of the dress as well as button-accented square connectors.

You might be able to notice that the "skirt" part is actually quite complicated.  It's two-layered and heart-shaped.  See it?  Also, the square connectors are three-dimentional and folded like origami with a button holding it closed, which I wish was easier to see, because those things are what took the most time to make!

(BTW, I totally admit that this dress is SO not even comparable to the awesomeness that was the newspaper Maire Antoinette dress, but they can't all be explosions of genius!)

The Addam's Family: IT's Granny!

Okay, so with Hollyween swiftly approaching, I felt the Addams Family calling to me once again.  Previously, I made a Morticia/Gomez combo, and a Fester/Pugsley one (Wednesday stood alone, as always...), so I thought about a Granny/Cousin It mix-up, and the result is a coat that I know at least one of my fans will no longer be my friend if I don't give it to her.

This outfit is not so much fashion forward as it is fun and stylish to play with.  I mean, we've seen fur-collared coats before, but the overall look and story is exactly what I was going for.

I don't remember what Granny wore on the Addams family.  I think it was some dusty layered dress, but when I think of gothic grannies, I think of old-ladies that hit their prime in the 1920's, so they sill wear their flimsy flapper dresses under dusty black velvet and fur coats and put of every piece of jewelry they own. 

And of course, Cousin It can't be forgotten for what he was, so I made the coat extra... hairy, with oversized fur cuffs that can be pulled down to be used as a muff and a collar that can be popped up for extra warmth around the face or folded down and out of the way.

And, of course, Raine loved getting to look like a dark freak again, so it was difficult to get her to hide her smile and look sufficiently creepy!

The Addam's Family: IT's Granny!

Okay, so with Hollyween swiftly approaching, I felt the Addams Family calling to me once again.  Previously, I made a Morticia/Gomez combo, and a Fester/Pugsley one (Wednesday stood alone, as always...), so I thought about a Granny/Cousin It mix-up, and the result is a coat that I know at least one of my fans will no longer be my friend if I don't give it to her.

This outfit is not so much fashion forward as it is fun and stylish to play with.  I mean, we've seen fur-collared coats before, but the overall look and story is exactly what I was going for.

I don't remember what Granny wore on the Addams family.  I think it was some dusty layered dress, but when I think of gothic grannies, I think of old-ladies that hit their prime in the 1920's, so they sill wear their flimsy flapper dresses under dusty black velvet and fur coats and put of every piece of jewelry they own. 

And of course, Cousin It can't be forgotten for what he was, so I made the coat extra... hairy, with oversized fur cuffs that can be pulled down to be used as a muff and a collar that can be popped up for extra warmth around the face or folded down and out of the way.

And, of course, Raine loved getting to look like a dark freak again, so it was difficult to get her to hide her smile and look sufficiently creepy!

The Addams Family: Fester's Fabulous!

Completing my Darkness collection is a very unexpected Uncle Fester! (Actually, it's Fester with a little Pugsley combo, just like the Morticia/Gomez mixture of my last post.)  Yes, I know that Fester is bald.  But I can't do a whole standalone picture series with a bald headed model!

On the show, Fester wore a dirty looking monk's robe with a fleece or fur muffler. I recall the robe being burlap, but maybe it wasn't.  Either way, it didn't look too comfortable or flattering to the body.

For this outfit, I wanted to make something just as figure-hiding while still being fabulous.  Baggy and bulky are usually not my style, so I of course had to pair it with something fitted and skimpy, hence the hotpants and tight sweater just to make me feel more at home.  The result is a ensemble that is part Addams, part Dr. Zhivago, part Streetwalker.  Love it!

If you look at the non-fur part, yes, that's burlap, or a version of it, that I got a huge bolt of years ago for a dollar a yard sitting on a street corner.  I've used it to upholster some of my furniture peices and make window coverings, and now, it's a bog coat.  I'm telling you, after working with all that burlap and fur for this project, my nasal passages are hating me!  I'm dreading vacuuming my sewing room and looking forward to it at the same time.

FUN FACT! Wondering what make me think of making those funky curved cut-out layers with the brown tabs hanging out?  When I make mock-ups of symmetrical pieces, especially ones that require a lot of fabric, I often only make one side. After all, why waste the material if both sides are the same? Well, with this coat's mock-up, I made one side properly, and the other out of scrap material that was left over after I cut out the mock sleeve.  So the curve at the bottom that you see is actually the shape of the stop of the coat's sleeve pattern laid flat.  I liked the way it looked, so I used it as an overlayer!

I'm not going to lie and say that this coat has nothing to do with my experience in making Henry VIII costumes, but I think that I've updated it competently and Nora thinks it's hot!  Literally!

The Addams Family - Fester's Fabulous!

Completing my Darkness collection is a very unexpected Uncle Fester! (Actually, it's Fester with a little Pugsley combo, just like the Morticia/Gomez mixture of my last post.)  Yes, I know that Fester is bald.  But I can't do a whole standalone picture series with a bald headed model!

On the show, Fester wore a dirty looking monk's robe with a fleece or fur muffler. I recall the robe being burlap, but maybe it wasn't.  Either way, it didn't look too comfortable or flattering to the body.

For this outfit, I wanted to make something just as figure-hiding while still being fabulous.  Baggy and bulky are usually not my style, so I of course had to pair it with something fitted and skimpy, hence the hotpants and tight sweater just to make me feel more at home.  The result is a ensemble that is part Addams, part Dr. Zhivago, part Streetwalker.  Love it!

If you look at the non-fur part, yes, that's burlap, or a version of it, that I got a huge bolt of years ago for a dollar a yard sitting on a street corner.  I've used it to upholster some of my furniture peices and make window coverings, and now, it's a bog coat.  I'm telling you, after working with all that burlap and fur for this project, my nasal passages are hating me!  I'm dreading vacuuming my sewing room and looking forward to it at the same time.

FUN FACT! Wondering what make me think of making those funky curved cut-out layers with the brown tabs hanging out?  When I make mock-ups of symmetrical pieces, especially ones that require a lot of fabric, I often only make one side. After all, why waste the material if both sides are the same? Well, with this coat's mock-up, I made one side properly, and the other out of scrap material that was left over after I cut out the mock sleeve.  So the curve at the bottom that you see is actually the shape of the stop of the coat's sleeve pattern laid flat.  I liked the way it looked, so I used it as an overlayer!

I'm not going to lie and say that this coat has nothing to do with my experience in making Henry VIII costumes, but I think that I've updated it competently and Nora thinks it's hot!  Literally!

The Addams Family: "Morticia, have I made you very Unhappy?" "Oh, yes, My Darling, Completely."

Part two of my mini-collection of darkness is Morticia Addams.  This suit is one of the main reinforcements of why I don't like to design in black.  This is the most complicated jacket that I have ever drafted.  It has three collars going all different directions, one and a half peplums, tiny pinstripes angled every which way, and hard-to-make sharp-cornered seams.  And you can barely see any of the work!  The unfortunate outcome is that Tish looks like a dominatrix 50's airline stewardess.

In the end, I kind of knew that I wasn't going to like this one.  After all, it's not really my style, but I really wanted to do a black collection so I could get over it and "come out of the darkness and back into the light."  Corny, yes?  But whatever!  You don't know me!

But for those of you who want to know, "What was he thinking?!" I can point a few cool things out.  First of all, I do know that the original Morticia costumes, both the Carolyn and Angelica versions, put the actresses in dresses so tight at the knees they could barely walk.  Making a fishtail gown, though, would be too obvious, so I started by making very tight pants with huge flares at the bottom with a corset at the top.  Then I realized that flared pants are SO not in style anymore, so I scrapped it and started over by making an uncomfortably tight jacket with padded shoulders and a strange, spider-like collar treatment with an attached choker that makes her decollete' look like a heart.

I even made a pair of impossibly tight ankle pants as an option to try and make it look less stewardessy.  I like the pants, but I think I'll leave the jacket/tight pants combo to another designer who likes to use black and make similar combo outfits.

So this was a good excercise, but soon will be put into the phail file!  I should have taken a picture of what a mess my sewing room was after all this.  Black fabric trimmings all over the place makes it look really creepy!

Tha Addams Family: "Morticia, have I made you very unhappy?" "Oh yes, My Darling, Completely."

Part two of my mini-collection of darkness is Morticia Addams.  This suit is one of the main reinforcements of why I don't like to design in black.  This is the most complicated jacket that I have ever drafted.  It has three collars going all different directions, one and a half peplums, tiny pinstripes angled every which way, and hard-to-make sharp-cornered seams.  And you can barely see any of the work!  The unfortunate outcome is that Tish looks like a dominatrix 50's airline stewardess.

In the end, I kind of knew that I wasn't going to like this one.  After all, it's not really my style, but I really wanted to do a black collection so I could get over it and "come out of the darkness and back into the light."  Corny, yes?  But whatever!  You don't know me!

But for those of you who want to know, "What was he thinking?!" I can point a few cool things out.  First of all, I do know that the original Morticia costumes, both the Carolyn and Angelica versions, put the actresses in dresses so tight at the knees they could barely walk.  Making a fishtail gown, though, would be too obvious, so I started by making very tight pants with huge flares at the bottom with a corset at the top.  Then I realized that flared pants are SO not in style anymore, so I scrapped it and started over by making an uncomfortably tight jacket with padded shoulders and a strange, spider-like collar treatment with an attached choker that makes her decollete' look like a heart.

I even made a pair of impossibly tight ankle pants as an option to try and make it look less stewardessy.  I like the pants, but I think I'll leave the jacket/tight pants combo to another designer who likes to use black and make similar combo outfits.

So this was a good excercise, but soon will be put into the phail file!  I should have taken a picture of what a mess my sewing room was after all this.  Black fabric trimmings all over the place makes it look really creepy!