Costume University’s FREE Sample Costuming Tip of the Week (7-29-11)

Posted: August 16, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Acrobatic Costumes, Blacklight Costumes, costume coupons, Costumes & Entertainment, Dance Costumes, Digital Costume Design, kids costumes, Pirate Costumes, Steampunk costumes, western costumes | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Have you ever tried to heat press interfacing to a piece of fabric on to a cut-out garment piece only to have it NOT stick?…Frustrating huh? 

In years past, we here at the Costume University Studio Workroom had problems with heat press-on interfacing or any kind of heat  “press-on” glue products to some fabrics.  No matter how much you try to press it, the heat press-on product would not stick to the intended fabric….until we found the secret.

Thanks to CostumeU staffer “Stitch Rich”, we discovered that heat press-on interfacings and many other heat set products don’t stick to fabrics with “Sizing” on them.

Sizing is a modified starch finish that is applied to a fabric at the mill to make the fabric stiff & flat and look more pressed, so it looks good when you purchase it.

So remember to wash that fabric before you try to stick anything to it, don’t use fabric softener in the washer or dryer…those products are both a form of SIZING!

Any Questions, comments or if you have a Costuming Tip to share, please write me at Ideas@CostumeUniversity.com  We would love to hear from you.

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Skip Stewart
Sr. Writer, Costume University

Designing Western Costumes, Part 3… The Iconic Western Details…

Posted: August 10, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Costumes & Entertainment, Dance Costumes, Digital Costume Design, kids costumes, western costumes | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Believe it or not, the details of western wear are what sets western wear apart from clothing / costumes from the same time period.  With out these simple but effective fine points of embellishments the clothing of a wild westerner would basically look like clothing worn by east coasters, or anyone from the same era.

Embroideries are a very significant part of Western Wear.  Floral motifs including roses and leaves are a tradition in thread embroidery.  Motifs of everything western is embroidered, appliquéd or embossed in some way or another on western wear.  There are so many traditional motifs… Cattle, Ranch, Motifs, Indian Blanket and Southwest Motifs, Cowboys on bucking Broncos, Feathers and Indian Feather motifs, Guns, Stars, Wings…you name it and if it is… READ MORE AT CostumeUniversity.com