Summer Hiatus is Officially Over

Those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer have come to an end.  Kids are back in school and Theatre Lawrence is shifting into high gear.

First, let me give a big shout out to Paula Nigh for her ongoing efforts to organize the hanging stock in the storage room.  When she told me she liked to organize, I had no idea that she would take such initiative and work with such persistence.  Thanks to her, every pair of men's pants are hanging from those high quality wooden hangers and they are sorted by size.  WooHoo!!  You won't recognize the place.

As you know, Mary Poppins will be our big holiday show this season.  While it may seem a monster show to tackle with our limited workforce, we are collaborating with Salina Community Theatre to stretch both of our budgets and volunteer force.  We have been helping them build some of their costumes so that we may use them for our production in December at no cost.  We think this will be a win-win situation and something that we can continue to do in future years.

So, if you are ready to dive into some stitching, come on down!

Taking a break

Hi all.  Just wanted you to know that I will be working at home most of next week.  Paula has been in and knows about some of the projects that are ongoing.  I will stop in periodically and leave instructions for any intrepid souls who wish to join the fun.  I will keep my cell phone handy if you have questions.  Call or text me at 785-766-5061

Closing Of The King

As you probably know, The King and I closed June 29th.  We have been mostly on hiatus this past week, but some cleaning of King costumes has happened.  There is more to be done to put K&I fully to bed and there is always more to do in storage.

We have several new rolling racks to assemble, which opens up lots of possibilities for shifting a few things, and a new set of shelves in the mechanical room on which we will be storing our fabrics.  In other words, come on down!  There is lots to do.

All hail to the cartridge pleat queen!!!

What you might ask is a cartridge pleat?  First popularized in the Elizabethan era, cartridge pleats are a means of gathering yards and yards and yards of fabric for a skirt.  Simple gathering could never accommodate the volume of material that was being used at the time, so tailors developed a method of sewing parallel lines of  stitches where every stitch lined up exactly.  When the threads are pulled, the fabric forms perfect accordion pleats that are then stitched individually to a waist band.

Our cartridge pleat queen is Paula Nigh.  Not only is she queen of the cartridge pleats, she is a tireless, talented and terrific volunteer.  See her work below.

Pretty in Pink

Kudos to Carol Habermaier for her spectacular work on the ball gown coverlet.  What a great surprise to find when I walked into the shop this morning.  It is just like the shoemaker's elves who worked through the night.  Isn't it beautiful?!?!

Please give a huge round of applause to one of our all star volunteers.  Kathy Saving has taken this project from start to finish and has done a terrific job.  Can't wait to see it on Sarah!

We are now full speed ahead on The King and I.  There are some sumptuous fabrics to work with and some simple stitching for the less adventurous.  Come on down.

Sorry, folks.  I have had to make a few schedule adjustments for this week.

OMG.  We reviewed the costume plot for the King and I last night.  Dancers and Guards and Dogs. Oh my!!!!

Well gang, we have our work cut out for us on this one!  But, it will be a blast coming up with all the sparkles, gold and glitz.  Don't miss the fun!

Slight adjustment to Tuesday hours.  I'll be there by 4:30.

We measured a passel of princes and princesses this week, providing a pleasurable preview of the adorable darlings who will be part of the King and I cast.  Just look at these faces.

How can you resist?  Come on down and help make the costumes for these kids.  It is a guaranteed good time.

Welcome to the Theatre Lawrence Design Diva blog.  In case you haven't guessed yet, this is Jane Pennington, introduced most recently on the radio as "costume designer extraordinaire".  But you can call me DD.

But, seriously folks, I hope this blog will keep interested folks up to date and informed on what is going on in the Theatre Lawrence costume shop so that you can join us for all the fun!  I hope to keep an active shop schedule posted here so that you can see when we are working, in case you have some time on your hands and want to come help.  Even if you don't sew, I can always use a hand for non-sewing volunteers.

So, what are you waiting for?  Come on down.