This outfit was for my sister, Christmas 2009.  The blouse pattern is Advance 8787 and the skirt is Simplicity 3983. The blouse is a modern silk crepe de chine, and the skirt is some sort of polyester crepe.

I got a quote in the Times!

One Size Fits Nobody: Seeking a Steady 4 or a 10

“Studying dress sizes in Vogue advertisements from 1922 on, Alaina Zulli, a designer focusing on costume history, found clothing sizes have been irregular for decades.

A woman with a 32-inch bust would have worn a Size 14 in Sears’s 1937 catalog. By 1967, she would have worn an 8, Ms. Zulli found.

Today, she would wear a zero.”

Vogue September, 1929

Crafting a Corset Part 1: Getting Started

Crafting a Corset Part 2: Assembly

Crafting a Corset Part 3: Hardware

I made this slip in pink silk crepe de chine from C&J Textiles as a christmas gift. The pattern is McCall’s 6590, copyright 1962. The lace is from M&J Trimming.

McCall's 6590 (1962)

Snapshot by fabulous photographer Kevin Bertholf.

This past Autumn I worked on a number of commercial sets as the on-site tailor.  The stylist brings about a gazillion clothing items to the shoot, the director chooses what they want, and then I do a quick fitting and alteration.

So far I’ve worked with stylists Robert Verdi for Kathy Griffin, and Ise White for Avon, Anderson Cooper, New Balance, and Dial.

For Kathy Griffin I had one evening to transform a purple bikini into a camouflage one.

Kathy Griffin at the 2010 VH1 Divas Salute the Troops

Katherine Caron-Grieg's beautiful use of a braiding pattern from 1860 on a 1910s style bodice. Click on the image to visit her site.

All of the following patterns were photocopied from Godey’s Lady’s Book.  I apologize for any that do not have dates, I sometimes slip up in my note-taking.

My friend Caitlin and I attended Phantasmagorey early in the day dressed as the Odd Cousins from Herts, based on a limerick by Edward Gorey.

The Odd Couple of Herts by Edward Gorey, from "The Listing Attic"

Alaina and Caitlin as the Odd Couple from Herts

Halloween evening I went to see the Dresden Dolls reunion concert.  I went as Kate Bender, the 1870s Kansas seductress/accessory to serial murders.  The skirt is Truly Victorian 1870 Trained Skirt Ensemble in black silk taffeta over a bustle from the Laughing Moon Hoops and Bustles pattern. I made the hairpiece from four super-cheap switches purchased at the wig store on 14th street by making a series of braids and coils, sewing them into a bun-like mass, and pinning liberally.

Aminah and her friend/designer, Vaughn Jereaux, came to me with a very specific request:  reproduce this dress exactly.  I don’t usually work with synthetics, but Aminah chose a beautiful synthetic with the hand of a hammered silk taffeta.  I built the bodice directly on her body over a corset-like foundation layer.

I usually avoid doing any designing if I can help it, so I was thrilled that the talented Mr. Jereaux took the onus on himself of buying fabric and flowers.

Craftzine.com- How-To: Grecian Tunic Top

Click on the photo to connect to the How-to.

I found this fabric in a funny little  store in the east village and had to have it.  It’s a jacquard in black and white of a naked woman-statue, ancient greek style.  I lined it fully with a long-haired faux fur.  It weighs about 20 pounds but is delicious to wear on a cold day in Manhattan.

Sadly, I cant find any more of this fabric, but if you want your own cocoon in some other fabulous textile, check out my Etsy page here.

Photographs by Kevin Bertholf.