I started getting into costume design and making in my A level Art and Textile lessons – encouraged by my teachers, I was given free reign to research and create what I like and what really interested me.
Now, like many people, I LOVE ‘Pride and Prejudice’ and often wish that we have similar garments to wear – when hats were compulsory items, gloves had to be certain length depending on the time of day and one had to get changed for dinner! So I decided to use this passion to provide an interesting area of study for my final AS project. Of course, this meant I HAD to watch all the versions and adaptations of Jane Austen’s famous novel!
From my research I then drafted my own pattern for a empire dress, made a toile out of calico then moved on to the main fabric – it was quite a simple design but worked perfectly in terms of the simplicity and grace of that era portrays; no one really want to know how they cleaned their teeth or how dirty their clothes must have gotten because the fashion is so beautifully iconic!