Costume Designers

Head Over Heels, Costume Design Renderings in Progress

These renderings are for our upcoming musical at Diablo Valley College for Spring 2021. We will be filming it instead of playing it live, and it hopefully will be downloadable in pay per view in May 2021, and filming in March and April. All costumes will include masks and much of the filming will take place outdoors. I am currently inventing types of masks that can work as parts of costumes, which I will post about in detail shortly . Principals will have clear masks of two types, while the chorus will have cloth masks.

Continue reading Head Over Heels, Costume Design Renderings in Progress →
Menswear, Teaching, The History of Fashion and Dress, Vintage Clothing

Links To Pages of History of the Newsboy Cap and Flat Cap

The cap that originated sometime before the 20th century but became popular in the early 20th century amongst men and young boys. It was believed to be worn amongst all social classes, mostly middle and lower, but in upper classes, it was worn by wealthy golfers, drivers, and people for leisure activities like sports.

Several selections of 8-pannel Newsboy caps.
Continue reading Links To Pages of History of the Newsboy Cap and Flat Cap →
Designs, Props, Rendering

How to take the Shadow Puppet Renderings and Use them to make the shadow puppet Prototypes for [Dreamer] Project: an Undocuplay

Design for Shadow puppet of Ariadne

UPDATE!: So, as of this week the test puppets were approved as the finished size, so the shadow puppets we are making will be done with 1 sheet of foam core (Ariadne, Theseus & Ship) or 2 pieces (Dionysus, Leopard & Minotaur). I have designed these for the “Ariadne’s Story” portion of the film version of Kathleen Normington’s [Dreamer] Project: an Undocuplay we are doing under her direction. (Images of my designs are available in printable PDFs below, or can also be accessed at Google Photos: The Dreamer Project.) Based on what was done in the previous stage play version at SJSU most of the shadow puppets were about the size of a sheet of foam core or slightly larger. The puppets will be used with rear lighting or projections on our scrim in our PAC Mainstage Theatre and filmed.

Continue reading How to take the Shadow Puppet Renderings and Use them to make the shadow puppet Prototypes for [Dreamer] Project: an Undocuplay →
How-To, Props, Tutorials

Painting a metallic look on Eva Foam

There is multiple ways you can paint a metallic look on foam. Here are some paints you can use to achieve that mantellic look.

First thing to do before painting is priming your foam so the paint will stick to the Eva Foam.

Two Recommend choices are Flex Bond or Plasti Dip.

Lets start with the old fashion way first with some Primacryl paint and a paint brush.

Continue reading Painting a metallic look on Eva Foam →
Costume History

Links To Pages on Histories of Garters

Garters are these little bands that people wore on their legs. And indeed, the very purpose of a garter was to keep hold of long stockings at the stocking’s exact length of up to where it stops at the wearer’s leg.

Around the 18th century, most men wore these garters to keep the long white stockings they wore underneath their pants to keep the stockings at the designated height, above their knees, while the breeches they wore above that part of their legs went down to below their knees, fastened with buttons.

A leather garter on a man’s stocking just underneath his breech on one of his legs.

Below this photograph is a list of pages to explain the history of garters.

Continue reading Links To Pages on Histories of Garters →
How-To, Props

Foam Weapons

1 Comment

Foam is an easy material to cut and form the way you like it. It’s a light weight material that’s soft to the touch. The down side to foam weapons are they aren’t stiff unless you reinforce it with metal, wood or plastic on the inside. If not reinforced they are floppy weapons that look fake on set or stage during combat. They are just meant for esthetic view. Unless they are built for some wear and tear.

Continue reading Foam Weapons →
Costume History

Theory: Are Fashion Comebacks From Older Generations Uncommon?

In the 1980s, we have seen fashions from the early twentieth century make a comeback, and in a way, combining into one for the particular decade, the 1980s. As we know, there comes a time when people start fashion trends in a decade. But the difference is between a trend and a comeback. A trend is when something in fashion to be exact is so popular in a period of time. A comeback is when something is rather old in this category, and brought back from an older decade, and gains popularity, it’s considered a comeback. The question that remains here in this matter is, are fashion comebacks from older generations uncommon?

Continue reading Theory: Are Fashion Comebacks From Older Generations Uncommon? →
Costume History

Picture sources for People of Color in Western Costume History (for Teachers of History of Costume)

The first internationally accepted American actor: Ira Aldridge.

Websites:

Related Pages:

Menswear

Button Suspenders

Button Suspenders are a type of strap that are generally used for holding up men’s trousers before they eventually started using belts more often. The most well-known type of the old days happen to be the button type suspenders with the curved or pointed things with holes that connect the suspenders with the buttons sewn into the pants.

Continue reading Button Suspenders →
How-To, Props

Rubber Weapons

Why are rubber weapons are used in the first place instead of real ones? Rubber weapons are used for action scenes in movies or theatrical shows so the actor doesn’t get hurt during combat scenes. As the video below show a documentary of Jurassic World and their props. The actor Chris Pratt had a real weapon and a rubber one. Simulating his action scenes with a fake weapon. Rubber weapons are lighter and less dangerous to use then metal ones, causing less accidents and making a safer work place.

Jurassic World: Props and Animals | Featurette | Jurassic World

Now you might be asking, how do I make a rubber weapon so I can film action scenes safely?

Continue reading Rubber Weapons →