Alice in Spamaland
In June 2008 I organized my first independent costume photo shoot, inspired by the characters of Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking Glass. I had been working as a wardrobe attendant and technician for the Monty Python musical Spamalot, and was just starting to launch my career as a freelance costume designer. I recruited cast and crew members from the show as my models, and spent months sewing costumes. See a partial group image below.
Mask Inspiration: Plague Doctor Queen of Hearts
The inspiration for the Plague Doctor styled Queen of Hearts and the complementing daily wear Hearts Court noble mask are directly inspired by and use fabrics from original looks in the photoshoot. The Queen of Hearts costume centered on a red corset embellished with a burgundy-red ombre application of buttons. This corset was later deconstructed, then finally cut apart and embellished with leftover buttons for this present mask design.
The Queen of Hearts mask features styling to include hearts in the overall design, from some of the buttons to the eye hole shape to the “Sweetheart” top edge.
Mask Inspiration: Daily Wear Hearts Court noble mask
The Daily Wear mask is designed to reflect a costume from a member of the Hearts Court, featuring diagonal stripes in silver and black metallic spandex. A burgundy metallic spandex heart is appliqued to the left cheek. The spandex layer is reinforced with a fusible interfacing, and the lining layer is a black cotton twill. The edges are bound in burgundy metallic spandex.
This project is funded in part by the Cornell Council for the Arts. 