As an enthusiastic Renaissance Faire observer for most of my life, I became increasingly frustrated with the lack of options available for special sizes. After years of saving money to purchase a costume at the Faire - I realized there was nothing to fit my 5' tall, size 18 frame. I decided it was time to learn to sew and take care of that issue for myself. My first two gowns were a bit of a mess
and frustrating to make. I knew very little about what was accurate and decided that wasn't really an issue for me. I wanted to make Elizabethan style gowns that were stunning, shiny, and looked great on me - the devil with historical accuracy. For the last 12 years, I have created hundreds of costumes, for myself, my ex-husband, friends, and co-teachers. At my school's renaissance faire, I've been blessed to have an enthusiastic faculty that once to dress the part. As a result, I have made costumes for ladies that are size 0 all the way up through size 32. I've made gowns for petite nobility and tall wenches. Men - I've been able to garb various sizes from a 5'4" Scotsman to a 6'8" Elizabethan nobleman. I've also created several costumes for children and teenagers. I prefer to sew Elizabethan Nobility (with a twist of fantasy), but have worked in Italian Renaissance, Medieval, Revolutionary America, and The Regency. I've also truly enjoyed creating clothing for Hobbits, Elves, and Hogwarts Faculty and Students. I can work within nearly any budget - some of the outfits I've made for others cost on $50 in materials. Depending on the level of design, my gowns can cost into the thousands in materials plus more for my labor. I've worked with patterns from the major pattern companies - Burda, Butterick, McCalls, Simplicity as well as Reconstructing History and Margo Anderson's Pattern (my personal favorite).
