Davina's 3 Day Assiut Challenge Bra and Skirt Ensemble
It was a great weekend of workshops and performances at Bedouin Bazaar in San Diego. I was pleased to debut my brand-new assiut bra and skirt ensemble. It was gratifying to receive some great complements on my tossed together look. Especially the bra. Thanks everyone!
Davina’s 3 Day Assiut Challenge Bra and Skirt Ensemble. Photo by Jamie Hanrahan
Once the skirt is finished, it will hang about two inches lower than it did for this performance, but the 20 safety pins that held the skirt panels to my pants stayed put and did not come undone. To protect the assiut, I used a black faux-pashmina shawl as a hip wrap under my simple kuchi belt. All in all, I was pleased with the results, thought I would like to craft a much more prominent belt and find a better solution than this body stocking for my tummy. Like most costumes, it’s a work in process. I’ll get those changes made – for next time!
Unfortunately, the day of the event, I realized that I had forgotten my tie-top! Oh no! I’m not thrilled about dancing bare-armed at this stage of my career and at my current level of body confidence, so I needed to quickly find a cover-up solution. I took a quick turn around the vendor’s tables, but couldn’t turn up a tie-top, choli or sleeves that would work.
I remembered a tribal costuming trick I learned back in the 90’s. A pair of little girl’s tights can be quickly cut, converting the legs into sleeves. I sent my booth assistant (actually it was my mum) to Target on a quest for girl’s tights. However, they had none in black, so instead, she picked up a pair of leggings. For quick down-and-dirty solution, it worked. The directions for transforming a little girl’s pair of stretch pants into sleeves, check out my next blog post.
I had a great time performing to live music by John Bliezikjian and the Bedouin Bazaar band. I adore John’s lush voice when singing slow romantic tunes and his silky, rich tones are inspiring to me for sensual veil and taxim pieces. Turquoise is my favorite color and I was pleased to dance with a lovely silk veil from Judeen’s booth (only $40 and lush, I love the way it moved.) to add a punch of color and flow.
Since I am currently working on my assiut research project, I was exceptionally pleased to spot Judeen wearing an amazing vintage assiut tunic. Naturally colored, and dating back at least 80 years, this costume was gorgeous. Densely patterned, the drape was amazing. Here’s a great shot of her in motion and a detail shot of the lush designs.
Judeen in vintage Assiut/assuit dancing to John Bilezikjian. Photo by Jamie HanrahanDetail of Judeen’s Vintage Assiut/Asuit Tunic
Jean Jingler I selected for my embellishment. This is one of my last fiew, and I believe it didn't get selected because the contrast between the brassy triangle and the bright silver of the chain.
Well.. I didn’t quite get that bra done in 48 hours, but all hope is not lost. Today was the Saturday of Bedouin Bazaar and I had a bit of time between watching performances, catching up with old friends, and selling books, to do a bit of work. While the bra was mostly done, I had a few things that needed to be addressed. First, it needed something – anything – done to the center front to give it a bit of swing and flash. After I had laid out all of my jewelry, I found one of my jewelry pieces, a Jean Jingler, would work admirably for a decoration on this bra. If not permanently, than perhaps just for this weekend.
Jean Jingler I selected for my embellishment. This is one of my last fiew, and I believe it didn’t get selected because the contrast between the brassy triangle and the bright silver of the chain.
However, when I laid the piece out I noticed that there were not enough coins to reach all the way to the clasps. So, I had a bit of work to do. So while I was hanging out at the show, I cannibalized s bracelet and applied them to the selected Jean Jingler to fill in the gap.
This gap is too big for my tastes, so I need to add a few coins.Gap filled, time to apply to the bra.The center piece needs to be firmly stitched at the center front. I stich it to the bottom edge using a double strand of upholstery thread.For the outer edges, I stitch on a tailor’s loop to serve as an anchor point for the clasp.
Lather, rinse, repeat. I made a tailor’s loop on the other side as well and hooked the clasp. At that point, I started doing some cleaning up of the stitching, making the front angles a bit neater, cleaning up some of the loose edges. When I was “done enough” because, you know, this kind of finishing work can go on forever, I paused and held the bra up to me. The appearance of this bra caused a but of a fuss as the vendors around me oohed and ahhhed over the progress. Thanks to Jackson for snapping this picture of me.
And here I am, holding up the bra for a peek. I think this will work!David of Scandinavia preparing for performance Bedouin Bazaar
Although I think it’s good enough for now, I’m interested in finishing up the edges around the center a bit better. I think some trim or another piece of assiut as an applique to cover the plain black triangle. This Jean Jingler looks pretty good. I think I’m going to leave it as is for tomorrow’s performance.
I was especially excited to see that I wasn’t the only person with assiut at the event. David of Scandinavia performed in a fantastic robe. He was in the middle of preparing for his piece and posing for pictures with some fans. I really love the diamond grid pattern with snow-flake like pattern down the back of his robe and the row of heart-enhanced camels in a band near the hem.
I hunted through the dealer’s offerings and found another assiut gem. But I’ll have photos of that later. For now, I’m going to hit the hay… Tomorrow, a live performance with John Bilezikjian!
Happy Costuming! Dawn Devine ~ Davina
ps – Oh yes, I know, my three day challenge turned into a four day event. But I really like the way this bra is turning out. I’ll follow up with finishing details when I get home and back to the studio. ~ D
Detail of the right ceenter of Assiut Bra. You can really see how many little darts I pinned into place to get those radiating lines.
Hello Friends in Dance and Costuming,
At the end of day three of this assiut challenge, and what have I got done? Well, most of the bra and a pinned together skirt. Today, I spent quite a bit of time fiddling with the numerous darts. Usually, when I’m covering a bra, I use one or two darts. But in this case, I was attempting to divide the darts, spreading out excess fabric, so that under each strip is a mini dart. I started with the top three strips at the tops of each cup and adjusted and fiddled with each subsequent stripe, trying to make the right side match. Moving from one side to the other ensures that the stripes are as symmetrical as I can get them. I invested quite a bit of time positioning each stripe and dart, nearly three hours! And boy, did I used a LOT of those whimsical (yet dull) pins!
Each stripe had to be carefully pinned into place one at a time to create good symmetry.
I always pin and look Pin and look. Pin and Look. At one point, I actually made sure all the little tips were buried and tried it on! When I was satisfied with the position of the stripes, I then and made sure that the darts were all carefully folded and tucked.
Here you can see me slipping a finger into one of these numerous small darts.
And then I sewed like mad!
Hours later, several cups of coffee and a lot of TV. (Yeah Project Runway, Chopped, and Engineering an Empire to name a few who kept me company while my head was down and my needle was up!)
Assiut Bra Cups – Nearly done!
Sadly, I did all this stitching in black thread, so it’s difficult to see the details, but here’s the best shot I could get.
Detail of the right ceenter of Assiut Bra. You can really see how many little darts I pinned into place to get those radiating lines.
And I’m done for day three. What’s left to do? First, I need to come up with a solution to make the center front of the bra beautiful and finished. In the photo above, you can see the thickness of the pleated fabric. I’m going to the show tomorrow, and I will search the dealer’s room tables for a piece of jewelry. Alternately, I can place a fabric applique over the exposed triangle of bra.
Tonight, I’m packing my sewing kit up, the scraps of assiut, my books, patterns and heading over to the show tomorrow morning. If you’re in San Diego, stop by Bedouin Bazaar, drop by my booth and say “HI,”
I’ll work on that center front panel tomorrow! ~ Dawn Devine ~ Davina
Bra Base for Quickie Assiut Costume - Frederick's of Hollywood Exxtreme Cleavage Bra
Hello Friends in Dance and Costuming,
It’s day two, and boy, am I worried about not getting this all done! But you know, I only really need to get it “done enough” because my motto of the moment is “Done is GOOD!” Actually, that’s sort of the motto for my whole life. With the skirt taken care of, with two cuts and 20 safety pins, it’s time to tackle project two, the bra. There really is no way to fake this bra. I’m just going to have to put my nose to the grindstone and stitch like mad!
First, I grabbed out my black bra. This is an Exxtreme Cleavage bra from Frederick’s of Hollywood. (Find it here) I’ve been wearing this style of bra for quite some time and have made dozens of belly dance costumes from this make. Although it’s a bit pricy, it really does create a gorgeous plunging cleavage line.
Bra Base for Quickie Assiut Costume – Frederick’s of Hollywood Exxtreme Cleavage Bra
I love this palm-tree motif with alternating short and tall palms. Before I started cutting, I played with the layout of these stripes on paper. Once I sketched out my possible designs, I wrote down my order of procedure, so I wouldn’t leave out any important steps. And in the spirit of full disclosure, here are my sketches. Thus proving, you don’t need to be a great artist to be a good costume designer.
Notes on assiut layout over cups. Man, I need to work on my penmanship before I share more prelimenary sketches! ! 😉
Okay – So now that I determined that I am insane for picking the hardest design I could come up with for this piece of assiut, it’s time to start applying the fabric to the bra. I start by laying out one cup first, measuring the cloth to make sure that if I cut the cloth, I still have enough fabric to make the other side. Thankfully, I do!
I like to begin at the main focal point, which for this bra is the center front.From the center front, I work outward along the upper edge of the cup. I decided to put in three tight bands of the palm-tree trunk pattern at the edge to make a very dense and eye-catching strip of silver.Once the upper edge is pinned into place, I return to the center front to make a series of little pleats, folding in the plain black under the palm-tree trunk stripes.Once the center front seemed densely silvered and lovely, I figured out which stripe I could use for the bottom edge. Here you can see the excess cloth is still attached. ALWAYS ALWAYS measure twice and cut once. (because fabric won’t grow back – darn!)Take a deep breath and cut. I know what you are thinking. I cannot cut assiut! But fear not – it’s just fabric. I’m using new assiut from Egypt. And while expensive, it’s not THAT expensive or difficult to get. Now – if you’ve got a VINTAGE piece, that’s a different story. Think long and hard before cutting into vintage assiut.Gently mold the cloth around the cup. Here, I’m making box pleats to bring the cloth into the arm hole side of the cup. My goal is to sport as much of the silver embroidery as possible. So I pleat carefully, making sure not to squash the cup down and loose the bra shape. Never pull, just smooth the cloth over the bra.After pinning the whole way around, I take a look at it now. Is there anything that looks off or jarring to my design eye? If so, now is the time to make any adjustments. Actually, I think this doesn’t look half bad, if I do say so myself!
JUST FOR THE RECORD – I HATE THESE PINS!!! I am traveling and some of my tools have gone missing. I ran out to the nearest pharmacy and got their only style of sewing pins. They remind me of Lucky Charms cereal. Blue Stars, Red Hearts, Yellow Butterflies. They are wimpy, dull, and are not coming home with me! I long for my lovely yellow-headed quilting pins and my sleek extra long silk pins. *sigh* Next week!
And now, it’s time to replicate this design on the other cup. Just a few words on this process. Follow the same steps in order, and you will get closer results. Don’t be shocked if you need to do more pinning and futzing with it to make it match. What ever you do, don’t sew down the first cup! You might find it easier to adjust both to match rather than trying to make one look just like the one you just sewed. Once you’ve sewn it, you’re not going to want to rip it out!
Now – it’s time to cover another cup. (This time I don’t have to stop to take pictures, Yeah!) and then the sewing like mad portion of the project begins. Check out the next post to see how it turns out. ~ Dawn Devine ~ Davina
Sewing Assistant – Sammy waiting for me to drop something.. anything… There is nothing in the world as energetic and potentially dangerous than a 5mo old kitten!
PS – Special Thanks to Jamie Hanrahan for letting me use his dining room table, light and most importantly, the use of his sewing assistant Sammy. This beast is diabolically cute, but I miss my well-trained old-lady cat Sassy who is most expert at finding “the middle” of every piece of cloth. Just an FIY – Assiut is very very attractive to cats. It’s shiny metallic bits and open network are perfect for kitty claws. Protect your expensive fabric! And that was my public service announcement for the day! ~ DD~D
Inventory of existing pieces and materials on hand.
Hello Friends in Dance And Costuming,
OMG – I’m performing this weekend and I don’t have a thing to wear! This is a classic case of the cobbler’s kids have no shoes! How can I, a costume guru of sorts, appear at a show wearing.. well.. off the rack stuff? I’m going to put all my projects for the next three days on hold, changing my plans, and making a costume NOW. I frequently tell friends, clients and students that planning and executing a costume doesn’t have to cost a fortune or take a lot of time. SO – I’m going demonstrate in a quick series of blog posts which will document this quickie “made in a minute” costume.
Clock Starts NOW!
First Thing: Take Inventory and Make a Plan
My Motto: When time is tight, work with as many materials as you have on hand. I start out by making notes on what pieces I have to work with. Since I knew I was dancing, I brought along some basic costume pieces. I’m also working on a Costumes of the Maghreb, and doing some research on Assiut. (Which is spinning off into it’s own book because THAT chapter grew to epic proportions! More on that project to comes soon!) I do a lot of doodling while I’m making notes. Here’s my inventory on paper, complete with slopping short-hand notes and rough sketches.
Inventory of existing pieces and materials on hand.
Costume Goal: Put together an outfit that features MORE assiut.
First: I will make a quick-and-dirty panel skirt from the shawl. Second: Make a new bra using the plain black bra and left over scraps of assiut. Third: Create a headdress using assiut. Fourth: Make a hip sash from assiut. (I don’t think I’m going to make this one – but lets try!)
Down and Dirty Panel Skirt
So – I can take the shawl and turn it into a skirt. That was not my original plan for this piece of assiut, but it’s a simple matter of cutting it down the middle and putting a waist band onto it. Ooops – I don’t have a sewing machine. SO – I’m going to improvise with a bunch of large safety pins and pin a front and a back panel directly to my harem pants. I’m on the road, and while I have a small sewing kit with me, I just don’t take a sewing machine everywhere I go. When I get home, I’m going to take the time to turn this shawl into a proper panel skirt. For now, this is what I’m going to do:
1 – CUT – Since this shawl has a center panel, I’m going to cut to either side of the panel to preserve those useful motifs. I’m not terribly worried about the panel skirt being too short, as I can always add a yoke to bring it to the proper length when I get home.
Be Brave!
2 – PIN – I used about 20 pins in the process – 10 in the front and 10 in the back. I started by pinning down the sides where I wanted them. I then divided the fabric in half, to find the center, and then pinned the center of the panel to the center of the pants. Then I folded the fabric a bit to make it fit the width, pinning above the motifs so it will hang as straight as possible.
Yoked Harem Pants with Assiut Side Panels – Design by Anaar of Tombo Studios.When viewed from the inside, you can see that I placed a pin about every 4″ accross each panel
I would like to take a moment and thank my ancient Roman ancestors for inventing the Fibula, which evolved into the modern safety pin. Without you, this quick and new-sew skirt would not be possible. Thanks!
This pinned-in-place skirt is not a permanent or final solution. When I get home, this will become a finished skirt or perhaps some other garment, but for this weekend, it will function just fine as a quickie pinned on 2-panel skirt. A little short, but very very sweet.
Skirt Panel Safety Pinned to Pants – I call this project Done (enough for now)
Next Step: Assiut Bra – Check out the next post ~ Dawn Devine ~ Davina
