How many things can you carry in two hands at once at the Con? The list can be endless! This prepaid workshop on Friday, Sept. 1 at 10:30AM at the Mart2 203E was designed for the beginner at sewing and anyone who has need for even more pockets!
Asta Darling, the instructor for this class, was wonderfully patient and encouraging. She holds a BA from Wimbledon College of Arts in London, England, in Costuming for the Stage and Screen. She has been sewing historic costumes for approximately 12 years and interned with The Tudor Tailor, Historic Williamsburg in the Margaret Hunter Millinery Shop and Prior Attire and the Royal School of Needlework. She has had a presentation with The Queens Gallery at Buckingham Palace and has provided social media content for HBO, Netflix, Starz, and other corporations.
In an outfit she created, sewing machines threaded, and kits at the ready, we began. Darling started with a brief history about pockets, which can be traced back to the 18th century. Some of what these pockets were documented in being used for was anything from women’s necessities to the theft of two chickens.
The participants started out from scratch, cutting out the pattern and then the fabric. Using the iron and adding binding, the pocket was nearly complete. The last detail was the ribbon that would be sewn across the top to be tied around the waist. In an hour and a half, each participant had a completed pocket. Elegant and a great help to anyone wearing one.
