Sewing Related Things to See

There's a few of events advertised at the moment which I'm quite excited about and thought some other bloggers may find interesting too.

First of all are the Creative Stitches exhibitions which this year include an exhibit of the actual Downton Abbey costumes (which the above picture is of). Until I wrote this blog post I thought I'd missed the exhibitions at my end of the UK but I've just discovered there's one scheduled in Brighton for the 10th-12th May. Woohoo! It's also on from 26th-28th April in Liverpool so if that's your neck of the woods get on over there because I'm sure it'll be a real treat!

There is also the Antiques for Everyone antiques fair which is held three times a year at the NEC in Birmingham. The next one is from the 12th-15th April. I've never been to one and you may also think 'this is a sewing blog what have antiques got to do with it?!' but the main feature of the exhibition this time around is Downton Abbey themed, showcasing furniture and decoration from that period. I've also heard a little rumour that the exhibition is going to include costume from the period. The mannequin's exhibited will unfortunately not be the actual costumes from the programme but other similar examples of dress from that era (possibly including some from my work!). However, I'm sure these will be equally as fascinating to examine the construction and decorative detail of.

An event which I've just managed to miss this spring but is scheduled again for 17th-18th October this year is the Textile Forum. This is a fantastic fabric show with many exhibitors displaying unusual and new lines of fabric. The event is mainly aimed at the fashion industry and wholesale buyers so the minimum orders are usually around 10m rather than the 2 metres you need for that dress but anyone is welcome and I've always found it fantastically inspiring and a way of really expanding my knowledge of fabric by talking to the exhibitors about the qualities of certain samples. It's right in the middle of London near Bond Street so easy to get to and best of all is free entry, just sign up on their website for an e-ticket.

Finally the event I'm most excited about and already have my ticket purchased for...the V&A's Hollywood Costume Exhibition opening on 20th October this year. The exhibition aims to 'explore the central role costume design plays in cinema story telling' which in my opinion is the most exciting part of costume design. What do those clothes say about that characters personality? What does how they are worn tell you about what is happening to that person right now? The exhibition is set to include over 100 of the most famous movie costumes of all time including Holly Golightly's little black dress (!), Dorothy's blue gingham dress, Spiderman, Jack Sparrow, Darth Vader and Scarlett O'Hara to name just a few. So the exhibition is going to include the work of some of the most important ad skilled costume designers and makers of our time. From the exhibition outline it sounds like it's going to guide you through the creative process of a costume designer and I think that's such a fantastic way to look at it and make people aware of the importance of costume in film or theatre. I can hardly wait! If only it was slightly earlier to tie in perfectly with the Sew Cinematic challenge!