Laura J. Parker 

One of the most challenging, frustrating fabrics to work with is chiffon.  Over the years I’ve learned various tips and tricks to working with it – some quick and dirty (machined hems!), and some time-consuming, but beautiful.  One of the prettiest techniques is doing a rolled hem by hand.  It’s a little tedious, but once you get your rhythm going it moves along fairly quickly. I love this technique because it produces a lovely rolled edge without much prep work – you don’t h

…as Julie Andrews has told us, it’s a very good place to start! For NC State University Theatre’s production of ‘Fallen Angels’, I’ll be building a series of 1930’s day dresses and evening gowns for our two female leads.  At State, we are lucky to have an extensive vintage pattern archive, with original patterns dating from the mid 19-teens through the present.  For ‘Fallen Angels’, the costume designer has chosen McCall’s 7345, a very cute dress and cape pattern from the mid