Award winning costume-ing!

I’ve been at it again, rifling through the costume shed’s of the Woodhouse Players that is. This time around I’ve done the costumes for their Spring Double Bill consisting of “The Ruffian on the Stair” written by Joe Orton, Directed by the awesome Dan Uzstan and “Bobby Gould in Hell” written by David Mamet, Directed by the smashing Cathy Love.

At this years Waltham Forest Festival of theatre the Woodhouse players offerings swept the board in awards, including an award for Stage Craft which I am proud to say my costumes contributed to!! Woop!

Ruffian on the Stair is set in dreary, monochrome 1960′s and is a darkly comedic play that is an unsympathetic peek into the lives of Mike, an ex-boxer, and Joyce, a former prostitute.

Bobby Gould in Hell is a comedy about a Hollywood mogul who suddenly finds him self being interrogated by the devil, who’s been called back to hell from a fishing trip!

“The actors scuttling, the gentlemen watching, the ladies tittering…..”

The most recent production by the Woodhouse Players was “Our Country’s Good” by Timberlake Wertenbaker, a tale of a young Lieutenants efforts to encourage a ragged bunch of convicts in the first of the Australia Penal colonies in 1978, to act in a Restoration comedy called “The Recruiting Officer”. With strong opposition from the other quite sadistic naval and army officers and a leading lady that faces the hangman’s noose the production is in trouble from the offset!

As you may have guessed I have put together the costumes for this production, with the wonderful  help of my trusty Woodhouse sidekick Laura. Here are a few of the production pictures which show off the convicts’ artfully distressed costumes to their best!

 

that’ll be the express coming through…

Hello there everyone, remember me? I hope you have a vague recollection of my ramblings, I have of late been rather bad at keeping my little blog up to date. Part of the reason you must understand is that I have been thrust once more in to the wardrobe Mistress role for the darling Woodhouse Players. The lovely Director Hilary Benson who  I once before worked with on Round & Round the Garden is at it again with “Still Life” by Noel Coward, a short play which the tremendous film “Brief Encounter” is based.

Obviously I jumped at the chance, as I do rather enjoy a good hat & any style of dress from the 1920′s to 1950′s.

The performances went so well that the Players have entered the Walthan Forset Festival of Theatre which is a week-long event of theatrical goodies! Go along if you can & see my lovely outfits in person!

As usual for a Woodhouse performance a significant number of the items seen on stage are from my own wardrobe, I count five in the pictures below & a couple more from the rest of the production pictures here.

Dress Making Machine!

I’ve been a busy little sewing bee recently, I’ve just finished Cinderella’s Ball gown for the Woodhouse Players panto . It’s a gorgeous velvet & satin Navy vision!

My second project, which actually something I’ve been commissioned to make, is a lovely little empire line silk dupion dress.

I just had to take a picture of the fabric as I unwrapped it from the carefully wrapped tissue paper, yes wrapped in tissue paper! When youre spending this much on fabric from Broadwick Silks, it bloody should be delicately folded & wrapped for you to take home & create beautiful things with.

The young lady, who’s lovely boyfriend commissioned me to create this dress, has not yet seen it made up so i’ll only show you a couple of close up & working shots.

Here’s the contrast trim on the sleeve’s cuff…

… and here is me mid stitch working on the precise topstitching on the pleats along the front of the dress…

…and the finished pleats on the empire line…when i’ve got the lady in question in the dress i’ll take a full length picture.

 

 

the Lark Costumes

sorry this has taken so long, i’ve been so busy over the last couple of weeks i just don’t know where i am anymore! anywhoo finally the production pics from the Lark are ready, here are my favourites but you can see them all including a couple that i am in here….. there’s no need to go looking for them they are hardly exciting.

All pictures courtesy of The Woodhouse Players

Tea & Culture

this weekend my mum has come to visit and i had a lovely day rich in culture planned for saturday. First stop the Royal Academy a first visit for both of us! We almost spent as much time in the lovely gift shop as we did look through the rooms!

My favourite momment was seeing this little toddler so overwhelmed with excitement at seeing their warped reflection in Anish Kapoors “Tall Tree & the Eye”

i also fell in love with the beautiful gilt mouldings of the Fine rooms!

Next stop was Liberty, which is my favourite & best looking place to shop, this was a first for my mum so we made sure we covered every floor, including the Christmas Shop (one of the best christmas shops i’ve seen, especially for jars of old fashioned sweets). Of all the beautiful & delicate decorations i took a snap of these…..

yes actual puppy baubles…. these i am quite sure will end up on mine & Miss Pinks christmas tree this year. Both of us have an awful soft spot for ridiculous tackyness!!

After exhausting all the floors we ended up in TEA for a scrummy lunch & beautiful rose bud tea served in Silverware by Liberty of Londons original designers.

next we were off to see a play, to see my fab costumes, the Lark hopefully the official shots will be up soon for you all to see!

oh yes & here’s my mum’s cat Cath the Ginger Mitten who has also come to visit & pester us all for cuddles

xoxo

Lark Song

this weekend is rather an exciting one actually, after weeks & weeks of slaving away behind a sewing machine & getting high off spray paint i have finally finished the costumes for the Lark ! here are couple of sneaky photo’s i’ve pinched from the clever lighting designer Emerson….

now if i haven’t flogged this pony enough already the performances are on:

Friday 30th October @ 8pm

Saturday 31st October @ 3pm & 8pm

Friday 6th November @ 8pm

Saturday 7th November @ 3pm & 8pm

as this weekend’s performances are over Halloween i’ve persuaded the back stage crew to come in fancy dress! hopefully it will make the fellas in tights on stage feel a little less self conscious!

xoxo

costumier

look at what i almost finished making today…an amazingly blinging coronation crown for King Charles II in the Lark

 

xoxo

finished!

at last i have finally finished knitting my interstarsia heart cardigan, after pretty much a year of being very lazy in it’s making it is complete!

look how happy i am it’s finished, sorry about the slightly rubbish photo, my usual photographer (my flat mate) is currently drinking all the Margarita’s available in Vegas!

i’ve also treated myself to a new “getting over that bloke” handbag, look at it in all it’s dark teal leather loveliness!

now i’ve really got to get on with making Medieval costumes for the coming production by the Woodhouse players, the Lark. it’s going to be epic, come and see it if only for the 27 costumes i am slaving away at my sewing machine creating!

xoxo

PETRA STORRS

i love everything this lady touches, please be informed …… PETRA STORRS  

xoxo