On Monday I started planning a brief for me to follow for this module. This proved to be quite hard as I had to set all the tasks for myself, and state what I wanted myself to achieve from the project.
In textiles I decided to do some dying samples as I had the idea of dying my fabric for the corset. After sampling a few different pigments on various fabric types, I really liked the Olive green shade as it came out very similar to a fabric I had in mind already. This would be a much more cost effective and exciting way of getting my fabric to look the way I want, rather than just choosing a pre-made fabric. After I chose a colour I was drawn to, I started experimenting with different techniques. I used a spray gun to squirt the dyes onto the fabric which meant i was able to blend two colours together, and i also sampled dipping in only one end of the fabric into the dye to let it soak up part of the way. I'm glad I had a sampling session in this class as I was close to ordereing fabric which was quite expencive!

Today in our class with Emma we discussed semotics which is the study of signs. This is helpful in costume as it allows us to look at images of characters we may need to emulate and pull feelings or meanings from them, so we can use them in our costumes.
We also learnt about objective and subjective literary reviews and how to come about them. For next week I need to choose an article or piece of writing and write a brief copy of a literary review for it.

Today we started talking to Ruth about our long study essay and talked through the project module handbook. Before next week I need to come up with a comprehensive book list and a more finalised essay question.

Yesterday we had a meeting in our professional practice class about fundraising for the end of year show. I came up with the idea of having a 'swap shop' type event as I think this would be a popular event. For next week I need to have a few ideas on how we could set this evening up, and in what ways it was successful for other people. I also need to ask around a few of the clubs and bars in Scarborough to see how much it would be to rent the place out for a fundraising evening.

First construction lesson of the year, I discussed corset styles with Wayne and have viewed a few fabrics which I think may be suitable. I also started to collect all my ideas and design the costume.
Idea of looking at Edwardian postcards to get a bigger idea of the corset and underwear.

Week 1

Monday

Sat with group and reviewed each others projects for the next semester. This was really interesting and exciting as all the class have really strong ideas.
In Ruth's lesson we gave each other feedback and told each member firstly our initial reaction to their subject choice and secondly their personal strengths and weaknesses when working. I found this really helpful as my class were really interested about my project and were positive with their feedback. They also said to be more confident with my ideas and work as I tend to doubt myself a lot when I don't need to. I thought this was a really fair observation of the way in which I work, and is the first thing I will work on during my third year. (That and time management!)


Tuesday
Emma's lesson and introduction to Reflection and Review.
Need to keep my journal up to date and to keep on top of the work in this module as it is an area which I think I'll enjoy.

Rest of the day was spent reading up on the designer Lucile and his later collections. I also started to look deeper into the artist Gottfried Helnwein, who worked along side Marilyn Manson for a number of years and is how I recently discovered him.
I will look further into this artist and explore alternative art in more detail, as i think it parallels the idea of a Freak show very well.
In addition to reading into Helnwein and Lucile, I discovered the relation between very early actresses such as Theda Bara and Goth culture, as they both have very dark styles which steer clear from mainstream fashions. This theory came about whilst reading the book 'Goth Vamps and Dandies' by Gavin Baddeley.