FOUNDATIONS REVEALED COMPETITION ENTRY
Silphium
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Outline the story …
The corset is the first item in my planned 5-piece embroidered corsets project, "Silphium". It is a design that stems from my work as a pro-choice activist and envisions “Another World” in the sense of a more just, free place where everyone can decide about their lives and bodies.
Coming from Poland, a country with one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the world, I am involved in providing people with knowledge on how to access safe and legal abortions abroad. For me, it is natural that activism seeps into my design process. The embroidery incorporates the symbol of Red Lighting, an emblem of the Polish pro-choice movement. The pattern, underbust corset skirt, is my first attempt at pattern drafting and is chosen to envelop and protect the abdomen area almost like an armour for the modern reproductive rights warriors. The whole design is executed in the spirit of sustainability, using deadstock and recycled fabrics whenever possible and employing traditional, slow techniques of hand beading and embroidery.
Outline the construction…
For the construction of the corset I`ve used synthetic whalebone and a technique that was new to me, referred to as the “Folded Seam Method” on the blog Steam Ingenious, where I`ve first encountered it . Having only used the sandwich method before, it was a bit challenging, but also a big stepping stone for me. The finished piece has way more wrinkles than were present on the toile, which pushed me to do more research and try to implement some wrinkle-reducing solutions proposed by FR mentors in my future corsets.
The pattern is my first self-drafted one, as I`ve only used commercial patterns before. The external layer is a wool blend fused to coutil, and the lining is a soft deadstock viscose brocade. The corset has a bone in each seam and an additional boning channel is hidden between the layers in the front panel during the roll-pinning process.
I get David Bowie vibes in the best way from this. Beautiful piece.
Great design, and it’s really nicely finished! I love the ring lacing loops!