Dearly Departed
"Dearly Departed" captures the essence of the Victorian era through uniting elements of old and new. The feminine silhouettes pull direct inspiration from menswear to "depart" from tradition. The first look of the collection is completely white, with each look getting slightly darker and darker until the last look is completely black to symbolize Queen Victoria and her impact on this time period. While creating the looks, the mixture of tailored pieces and meticulous volume came together naturally. All materials used are either second hand or dead stock... down to the buttons.
2022-2023
"Look 1"
Look one is a white button down gown with triangle panels of crocheted sequins between princess seams and side seams from waist to hem. The sleeves are a lantern shape with an elastic cuff. All visible seams are topstitched. There are thirty button holes with mismatched buttons down center front leading up to a collar with an exaggerated length. The gown is paired with stretch lace leggings and fingerless gloves.
"Look 2"
Look two consists of a cropped button down with exposed pleats under the bust that wrap around to the back. The collar is even more exaggerated than look one. Each button is unique, no two are the same. The sleeves balloon out and are tied up with vintage lace trim. The skirt is made of a pinstripe shirting material to give a nod towards traditional men's shirts. There is a drop waist with emphasis and volume at the hips. This is all paired with lace leggings that are the same color as the top.
"Look 3"
Look three consists of a long vest that is open at the side seams with extra large hooks and eyes connecting the front and back. The center front opening closes with smaller hooks and eyes. It is made of a velvet upholstery and fully lined, helping it hold it's shape. All princess seams are topstitched, keeping with the same code as the other looks within the collection. The pants are double layered lace to provide more coverage. They are hand dyed grey to give it an older feel. There are four darts in the front, as well as the back. Functionality comes into play with the deep pockets in the front. To accessorize this look, there is a white lace ruff that is fully adjustable, and ties into a long bow in the back.
"Look 4"
Look four has a different interpretation of a vest. It is made of grey denim and fully lined with the self fabric to minimize the waste. Keeping with looks one and two, all buttons are unique. The hem follows the shape of the skirt underneath. The skirt is made of a black and white pinstripe, and protrudes out of the hips. The shape pulls direct inspiration of the womenswear of the Victorian era, but the material is inspired by the menswear. There is an option to include the detachable sleeves made of two-toned crochet material, as pictured above.
"Look 5"
Look five showcases the textile collaboration piece with textile student, Emily Radomski. Together, we created the grey knit dress. We put my pattern pieces into a computerized Shima Seiki knitting machine. It then knit shaped panels, leaving zero waste. Emily and I worked together on yarn texture and came up with a pointelle structure knit to mimic the look of lace. It was important to add a custom knit into the collection, due to Queen Victoria's love for the craft. The dress is paired with a black silk skirt with triangle panels inserted at all princess seams, side seams, and center front and back. There is a vintage lace trim hand sewed on to the hem, with the intention to make it look like it is falling apart and aged. This is all paired with a neck ruff placed over the mock neck detail of the dress. It is fully adjustable, and made of the same material as the skirt.
"Look 6"
Look six is a play on a power suit. The blazer is made of a black silk moire. It has hidden deep pockets at the side seams. The sleeves are rounded out around the elbows, with shoulder pads to help keep it's shape from the top. The trousers are made from five different types of black lace. Strips of lace were patch-worked together to create new yardage, which the pattern pieces were cut from.
"Process"
Muslin samples.
Concept Board
Knit collaboration swatch with Emily Radomski.
Knit Sample
Hand Knit Ruff
Patchwork lace
Hand dyed lace
