Library Visits & Missing London

Since I'm only working at the costume shop in the mornings Monday thru Thursday I have a lot of free time on my hands. This week I've been a little lazy and really only been running errands and watching a lot of Friends on Netflix. I went to the library early this week and got a handful of books, one of which makes me really miss London. This V&A book titled "400 Years of Fashion," is pretty great and filled with a lot of useful information and a variety of looks for the different periods. I've included the front and back covers because they show some of the great looks included inside the book.

1905 travelling gown

While reading this book I've just really missed being in London. In London I could go to any museum or art gallery whenever I had free time and I could see amazing exhibits. Here in Illinois I don't have that access to the fashion and art world that I did in London. I'm about an hour and a half away from Chicago, so I can go to a decently big city and see exhibits and fashion, but it's just not the same as walking to a museum about 20mins away from my apartment. But still, books like this are amazing to read, not only for their information but because they can help ease the fact you can't just up and go anywhere you want any time you want. I'm not all the way through the book yet, I've been taking some notes and really looking at the pieces included. In the costume shop we've been organizing all of the costumes and I really wanted to make sure we get the years right for when we go through the 1900s. I'm more focused on the past 100 years because their stock of costumes is mostly 20th century looks and most of their performances can use pieces from those decades for their shows. I'm just really excited to help create the inventory of all of the pieces and to see what all we have in the shop. And so far this book is a great resource and I definitely recommend it to those interested in the changes in fashion.

Costume Shop Progress

The start of the Prom/Bridesmaid
 Dresses section.

So far so good in the costume shop! We've made a LOT of progress this week. We've managed to organize the first couple of rows of hanging costumes. Our "final" categories are: Specialty, Medieval, Prairie, Western/Cowboy, Ethnic (in this order: Asian, Hawaiian, Spanish, African), Civil War, Empire Dresses, Victorian Era, Decades (1920s-1990s), 80s Prom Dresses & Bridesmaid dresses, Wedding Dresses, and lastly the Non Specific Dresses.

There's a lot but it's all organized and looking great. Of course we have more work to do within them, for example we have to organize Prairie lengthwise and also separate it with a children's section. I really hope that by the end the whole shop is just insanely organized and categorized. We're also getting another intern just to do all of the computer work, which was something I thought I'd end up having to do but it'll be great to not deal with that and just doing costumes. Finally, I'll get to tour another costume shop and see how they're organized. I'm pretty excited to see how everything unfolds and how the rest of my summer will turn out. 

Costume Shop Finds: Fancy Red Dress

My latest find while organizing the costume area is this bright red dress. It appears as a dress and coat, but it's all one piece and has a fun black & white polka dot trim on the lapel, sleeves, and buttons. It's pretty unique and fun. I don't know which production it has been used in, or if it will be in one, but it's still great to have around the shop.

Costume Shop Finds: A Funky Hat

 

One of the great pieces I came across was this awesome hat! I was supposed to be searching for a big straw hat when I found this piece. I love it and really wish I owned it, it's really fun and would really work with my senior collection.

First Day in the Shop

I started out in the costume shop "closet" today and so far it's great! I worked 9am - noon and I'll have this schedule this week working Tuesday to Thursday and then next week Monday thru Thursday the same hours. 

I got to start off with a cup of coffee and then help the manager, Sheri, rent out some of the costumes to a woman who is putting on a fashion show at a hospital. She's doing the different decades and needed some options for the early 1900s and the woman took 3 different looks. One was an empire dress and the other two were tops with skirts and then crinoline skirts for underneath, as well as a shawl for one of the looks and a hat. 

After that we got started with organizing the racks. For three hours of work we managed to actually get a big chunk done. We started by taking off the front rows and putting them on racks and then putting different categories on the racks. So far we have a solid grouping of Specialty, Medieval, Prairie, Civil War, Ethnic, Victorian, Uniforms and then on to the past 100 years: 1920s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. We will also be going through and potentially getting rid of some stuff. There's also a men's section, a coats section, and blouse and skirt sections. There's a lot just within the clothes part of the closet let alone the other side that has all types of accessories and what not like ties and hats. There's also going to be some sections that are specifically organized by play/musical.


I'm pretty excited about getting to do this all for the costume shop. Also just to be getting more experience in theater and costume is great! Well stay tuned for more! I'll probably be posting a little bit of each shift, just like a cool piece or a fun story or something similar. I know I already have a few pictures of some really cool and funky pieces to post about, so that'll probably be really soon. 

Now just to figure out what to do on my off days, most likely a part time job and many trips to the library.   

Illinois Life

Exploring the town in my gold shoes.

So far it's been pretty good here in Illinois. Champaign isn't as busy and hectic as Chicago but it has a lot to offer. I had my schedule meeting on Monday and it went really well, despite the costume shop manager missing it. It's okay thought because we emailed and I start work this Monday. Originally I was told I'd get to help with the costumes for "Guys & Dolls" but they have a full staff. Instead I will helping create and implement a brand new inventory system for the theater company. I will be working with the shop manager to go through their stock of costumes (I've seen the room and it's amazing!) and reorganize them for a better and more effective use of the space. Also I can help with sewing if they need it, so I may get to help with costumes for "Guys & Dolls" after all. Despite what I'll be doing changing, I'm still really excited to be working with the theater company and just getting more experience working in theater in general. Stay tuned for more after I actually start work!