Toriander.C

I'm a professional tailor and pattern maker residing in Northern VA. I love cosplay, costume design, embroidery and fashion. I reblog work I find beautiful and inspirational and occasionally post my own work.

[courtneydoom]

September, 2018

Itsa me and two Over the Garden Wall embroideries I made this week 🎃🍁🐸🍬

[torianderc]

I finally got my Elizabeth skirt pattern professionally printed! It's for sale in my Etsy shop and I'm so excited and proud. I've been providing hand copied patterns for a few months and I'm so thankful for everyone who bought one so I had the confidence to go forward and do this! https://www.etsy.com/listing/589856197/elizabeth-comstock-cosplay-skirt-pattern?ref=shop_home_active_3

[torianderc]

I finished my second Moth. This is a Rosey Maple Moth, which is usually a very tiny month but I decided to make a giant version. I imagined he would make a delightful friend or familiar at this size. Thank you to @animatopoeia for the wonderful suggestion to make a Rosey Maple Moth

[torianderc]

Well guys, I added this big guy to my etsy shop. I always get nervous to put my personal art out there in the world, it’s hard not knowing if people will understand the work you put into your peices. I make my art for me, but the idea of someone else wanting it too makes me so happy.

https://www.etsy.com/TheCabinetOfWonders/listing/600129616/hand-embroidered-3d-rosy-maple-moth?utm_source=Copy&utm_medium=ListingManager&utm_campaign=Share&utm_term=so.lmsm&share_time=1526177372584

[broderiemyworld-deactivated2020]

van_der_winkel via Instagram

[torianderc]

I finished my second Moth. This is a Rosey Maple Moth, which is usually a very tiny month but I decided to make a giant version. I imagined he would make a delightful friend or familiar at this size. Thank you to @animatopoeia for the wonderful suggestion to make a Rosey Maple Moth

[torianderc]

Well guys, I added this big guy to my etsy shop. I always get nervous to put my personal art out there in the world, it's hard not knowing if people will understand the work you put into your peices. I make my art for me, but the idea of someone else wanting it too makes me so happy.

https://www.etsy.com/TheCabinetOfWonders/listing/600129616/hand-embroidered-3d-rosy-maple-moth?utm_source=Copy&utm_medium=ListingManager&utm_campaign=Share&utm_term=so.lmsm&share_time=1526177372584

[sosuperawesome]

Embroidery Art and Brooches, by Shimunia on Etsy

See our ‘embroidery’ tag

[doublehoseven-deactivated201812]

[madlori]

I love posts like this that require like six levels of meta understanding to comprehend them.

[torianderc]

I good meme for fashion/costume/sewing people 😂👍

[torianderc]

I finished my second Moth. This is a Rosey Maple Moth, which is usually a very tiny month but I decided to make a giant version. I imagined he would make a delightful friend or familiar at this size. Thank you to @animatopoeia for the wonderful suggestion to make a Rosey Maple Moth

[torianderc]

Hi, I follow you and I think it’s pretty cool that you’ve gotten to become a costume designer like you wanted. I’d like to ask for your advice. I want to become a costume designer, but it’s been 3 yrs since college and few jobs here in Mexico so I work in commercial fashion design and have only made costumes as my side job. What do you think would be my best option to qualify for a costume job later on? My own costume business or staying in my current job which gives me anxiety? Thank you lots

I can't give you advice, but I can tell you what I did!Before I went to school I volunteered to make costumes for community theater. They had decent budgets and I ALWAYS got pictures of my work for my portfolio.After I quit school I had met enough people that I got some dressing jobs at professional theaters through word of mouth. Then I got a full time job at a theme park doing wardrobe and stitching.After that I did a year of wedding dress alterations.Then the community theater I use to volunteer at hired me to costume a show.After I did a year and a half of tailoring.All the while I did any odd design work, costume commission, alteration, or theater/TV work I could.I honestly was in the right place at the right time to get the job I have now, but I was able to get it because I had spent so many years building up my portfolio and skill set.Word of mouth and who you know is so important in this business and the longer you work in the field the busier you will become! Stitching and building skills will open the most doors for you in my opinion, as will working the sucky dresser and wardrobe jobs in professional settings. I hope that helps!

[swingsetindecember]

tv shows with time travel organizations/bureaus/police/agencies/whatever should have a department with instead of a tech genius eating candy, it’s a harried seamstress or fashion designer who is like

“1450 italy? does it look like I have the time to dye you wool? nO. YOU’RE GOING TO THE 1980s”

and throws shoulder pads at the hapless time agent

[nonlinear-nonsubjective]

“I literally made three- THREE- 18th century corsets last week. You can wait until one of them gets back, or you can go sometime post-1920s, because if I have to sew one more god damn channel I will literally lose my mind.”

“Upper middle class?!?!? You told me upper class! FUCK YEAH THERE’S A DIFFERENCE!!!”

“How about kimoNO.”

“Look me in the eyes. I do not care what you want. This is the 1500s. You absolutely cannot wear trousers.”

“Another court gown?? Here’s a novel idea: go as a peasant for once in your life. Why do you do this to me? You’re fucking sadists that’s why.”

“Don’t mind me, I’ll just be up all night hand painting silk.”

“THE POLICY IS ONE MONTH’S ADVANCE NOTICE ON PRE-1900s WOMEN’S FASHION FOR A REASON, DEBRA.”

[torianderc]

It’s coming up on my 5th year of dropping out of college. Everyone told me I was making a huge mistake, that I’d never get to follow my dream of working in costumes. Well, my first show just opened this week. I am the manager of a costume shop and in-house designer.

Don’t let anyone tell you what you can, and can’t do. Beleive in yourself!

[aqono-luna]

FYI: The moral of this post absolutely IS NOT “drop out of college and all of your wildest dreams will come true.”

No matter what you do — stay in college or drop out — your dreams require work to achieve. If you work hard, and put in the determination, you will achieve your dreams.

Don’t drop out of college because it worked out for a handful of people who failed to mention how much work they put into achieving their dreams after dropping out.

[torianderc]

"Dreams only work if you do"

[torianderc]

It's coming up on my 5th year of dropping out of college. Everyone told me I was making a huge mistake, that I'd never get to follow my dream of working in costumes. Well, my first show just opened this week. I am the manager of a costume shop and in-house designer. Don't let anyone tell you what you can, and can't do. Beleive in yourself!

[torianderc]

Hi... I'm at a loss. I don't really want to work as a costume designer because I don't think I could compete with anyone if they're nearly as passionate as you, but... I'd really like to make my own clothes, but I don't know where to start. This must sound so silly to you :') How old are you? For how long have you been studying the subject? I don't even know what I want to ask

Hello! I just turned 27 and I've been sewing for the last 11 years or so. I recently started sewing "full time" as in, it hasn't always been my day job.You dont need to do anything special to learn. Youtube is a great resource, as well as sewing books. You can take classes but they aren't necessary, you just have to be patient and know you are going to mess up a lot at first. Lol To start sewing clothes, pick a simple project and slowly try harder and harder projects! Best of luck. :)

[torianderc]

I'd love to know your story - how and why did you become a costume designer?

Sure! I actually started with cosplay. I found that I really enjoyed sewing and learning new techniques for building. Someone clued me in could do it for a living and I worked my way up from volunteering, to getting small paid jobs, to dressing, to stitching and finally my first job as a costume designer! It's been 7 years of working my way up and I'm finally feeling like I'm making it. :)

[torianderc]

So, I am also on my way to become a full time costume designer. Any tips?

I guess it depends on what type of work you want to do but in general learn fabrics, time periods, cultures, how to meet deadlines and how clothes are made!

[lolita-wardrobe]

—Can the word “handsome” be used for Lolita girls? —Definitely! >>> https://www.lolitawardrobe.com/c/ouji-lolita_0364

[mermithid]

@altamirage

[starshipcaptainjojo]

Oh my god these are actually my style. Like these are exactly as masculine and feminine as i am

[hallwinter]

why have we stopped wearing cloaks and capes. this is ridiculous. the human race is a failure

[quillandsaber]

So this one I can explain!

\puts on reenactor hat\

Simply put, cloaks and capes are, all in all, a massive pain to wear in cold weather. Shocking, I know, but if you think about it, you have this massive amount of heavy fabric that you wrap around you like a blanket. The minute you need to use your hands and arms to, say, pick up something, you have to expose yourself to the cold by opening up your cape/cloak; even capes/cloaks with hand slits only solve the problem with very small items. Coats, by contrast, keep your body and arms warm and allow you to move as you please without having to expose most of yourself to cold. They are also far more fabric-efficient, being substantially less expensive to produce, and they’re a lot easier to put comfortable integral pockets into.

(Side note: for as much of a big deal as we put on women’s clothes having/not having good pockets, I am mystified at why people don’t take this into consideration for outerwear.)

The only case in which a cape or cloak has an advantage over a coat is in rain, and that only includes 100% fulled wool capes/cloaks due to how 100% fulled wool reacts when wet; most moisture rolls right off, but wool can be saturated in its weight in water, even cold water, and still keep you warm. Capes and cloaks made of silk, blends, etc. have zero functional redeeming factors whatsoever, and are only suited to making you look pretty in indoor settings.

[starlightomatic]

You’re completely right, and yet.

[vo-kopen]

My Dad impulsively bought a poncho like over a decade ago and he still uses it frequently. And now that a recent surgery has left him unable to use his dominant hand, the poncho is currently the only cold weather clothing he can put on by himself.

This seems off topic, but isn’t a poncho kind of like the blessed child of a coat and a cape?

[thefingerfuckingfemalefury]

THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS :D

[fattyatomicmutant-deactivated20]

Imma be frank here: ponchos are cooler than capes.

[brunhiddensmusings]

capes were more or less useless CLOAKS were actually extremely practical for specific reasons we assume that someone outside in the winter will need to use their arms constantly, because we are fools! during the era of the cloak the common mindset is why the fork would you be doing things outside that aren’t ‘going to the inside’, any possible arm related tasks would be done indoors, typically you went outside to pick up firewood. if you were someone doing a lot of outdoors work in the cold chances are you didn’t want a cloak OR a coat because you didn’t want to overheat, getting sweaty outside in the cold is deadly. in a setting where your cold weather wear didn’t need excessive arm usage its far more warm to keep that blanket sized wool slab surrounding as much of you as possible, including your entire head and jutting out on the sides for four inches to protect you from sideways wind as well cloaks were for TRAVELING- your long walk to someones house because all walks were long walks, or sitting on a horse as you go to a different village and you want to be swaddled like a burrito while you wait for your horse to get there. this is why the ‘cloak room’ was a thing, and often still is, as you got into the building you traveled to you immediately take off your damp cold cloak and hang it up to drip dry as you sprint to the fireplace extra traveling bonus- as so many destinations to travel to were farther then one days journey and the sparseness of inns to stay at many travelers had to sleep outdoors in the middle of a trip, and would not have had the luxury to carry a big heavy tent and gear with them for a two day trip. so your cloak was your sleeping bag as well

[bairnsidhe]

I will stan cloaks to the end of time.

[misbird]

Also when you have to make your own clothes anything you can make out of a rectangle right off the loom is a god send. Each scrap of waste fabric represents time you either spent making it or paid someone else to. so a cloak, easily made out of a big old rectangle, is an easy no mess no waste option.