J'adore Dior

The Shanghai Museum of Modern Art is a wonderful institute located just off the picturesque Peoples square. The museum hosts many interesting exhibits and has a vast and beautiful space to display the works. Recently an exhibition of Dior garments and history was hosted in Shanghai and I had the opportunity to visit this fantastic collection.

Seeing the original artwork was a joy to observe as the illustrations were simplistic but made the construction clear. Working with pencil on paper is a medium close to my heart and reflects my old fashioned and classic ways of working. There is so much more expression in a pencil line than the modern computer aided design can convey and the feminine curves are particularly well expressed in this organic drawing style. 

I have always adored the Dior style as I believe it showcases the best features of a women's figure. The construction is exquisite and the design always reflects the beauty and proportions of the house style

   

The New Look was Dior's crowning achievement in 1947 and was dubbed the New Look by Camel Snow who at the time was Editor in chief of Harper's Bazaar. It is not only the design that gives these clothes the silhouette Dior is so famous for, the construction is key. Almost architectural in the creation padding and shaping is the application that allows the tailored appearance. 

At this exhibition tailoresses from the French workshop were visiting to show the work included in the production of each piece. I spoke with these talented women and we discovered that many of the techniques were similar to those used on Savile Row. The materials require a finer touch and more delicate stitching and trimmings. The hand padding is key to the lapels of some of the incredible examples that were displayed within the exhibition.

                                 

Dior gowns are the epitome of glamour with the curves of a woman enhanced whilst draping the form in glamorous swags. The silks used are opulent, the cottons stiff and the colours bold. Internally the gowns may be corseted or padded to enhance the hourglass designs.The designs are eye catching and consistent to the story of the house style and continue to be timeless.

                                         

Obviously the tailoring drew my attention and the shapes and styles of the collections caught my eye. Details of the pieces I identified with and have applied to my own garments and those I have produced for others. My ethos on women's tailoring is that it should be feminine whilst being formal. There is a freedom of creativity and design in ladies wear that I am in awe of Dior's application. 

After visiting this incredible collection of the past and modern works of the fashion house I was inspired to pay homage. So in true style I took my pencil and sketch pad and started to design a new tailored piece for myself. I wanted to use a bold red as in many of the jackets I had seen and create a take on the silhouette. 

 

I chose to follow a design incorporating the wide sweeping lapels and curved seams so prominent in the Dior style. With feminine touches of a pleated skirted coat and bow embellishment. I will use some padding and shaping techniques when tailoring the coat to exaggerate my figure. 

I am using a heavy barathea which will lend well to the curves I want to create. Many panels will allow the reduction from bust to waist to be smooth and give the definition of "The New Look" I may add some silk trim to soften the finished appearance but will observe the requirement of this during the fitting process.

Once the garment is in production I will write another post to keep you all updated and show off my designer inspired look. I have always appreciated The Dior look and hope to show my adoration in this new piece. 

                                    

                                   

Celebrity status

Lights, camera action!

In October I had the privilege of being invited to attend the Ningbo International Fashion fair. A week long exhibition showcasing the design, production and processes of not only the Chinese garment industry but the melting pot of manufacturing happening worldwide.

Henry Bailey London tailors had asked me to attend to help display the techniques and skills of Savile Row bespoke tailoring. We had an eclectic team during this week with gentlemen from Australia, United States, Lithuania, Savile Row and myself representing China. What we all had in common was despite where we may all be located we had all trained on Savile Row or under the instruction of a master who trained on Savile Row. This optimises to me my journey to China and how the training of true British tailoring is now travelling worldwide.

                                 

Our international dapper crew created quite a stir in Ningbo! I have found in my short time in China that I cause curiosity among the locals and that is in the westernised city of Shanghai, Ningbo is much smaller and less familiar to foreign visitors. Upon the opening of the show we were swarmed by teenage girls all wanting their photos taken with our team. It was so sweet to have such appreciation for just turning up! 

We then discovered in what high esteem we were held when we started our demonstrations. I measured customers and cut the patterns rock of eye live in front of observers. Continuing the 

process I struck out the pattern and cut the cloth. Along with my colleagues we basted the garments 

together for basted fittings. All these stages were done in the open to allow people to watch, what we hadn't imagined was how many people would watch.

                             

  

Nowadays you don't see camera flashes when pictures are taken, so I looked up from cutting my pattern to see the apple badge on the back of many I phones and I pads! I am more used to cutting in a basement or back room of a Savile Row house and suddenly to have an audience filming, photographing and watching my every movement was very daunting. Some local students were on hand to help translate for me and I learnt why people were so fascinated to watch me.

Ningbo has their own tailoring history which I explain in more detail in my last post 'The Red Gang' Chinese tailors are men and so the crowd would never have seen a female Cutter before, and definitely not a blonde one! The Chinese tailors often draft straight on to the cloth as well so the 

paper patterns were causing a lot of excitement. One of the audience members was a tailor himself and asked a lot of in depth questions, he wanted me to teach him how to draft a pattern there and then so my interpreter had to explain that cutting is a 7 year apprenticeship in Savile Row and can not be squeezed in to an afternoon session.

As guests of the exhibition we were invited to a Banquet in honour of the Fashion fair. The dress code was black tie so being the representatives of our field our team complied. No one else attending the banquet was in black tie and in most cases not even suits. There were jeans and t-shirts and even baseball caps sat around the tables. This is not at all what I am used to from a formal dinner but it also started at 6pm and was all over and the ballroom empty by 7.30! 

Networking is the name of the game at these events and business cards are being exchanged everywhere you look. People eat very little as you are expecting to leave your seat to go and meet other guests. I was also initiated in to the tradition of Ganbei which translates to cheers or more accurately bottoms up. If someone says Ganbei to you it is expected for you to finish all that is in your glass. At the banquet they were serving red wine so combined with the little food it was a very entertaining hour and a half. 

As the week progressed more an more people wanted photographs with us. I had been featured in several newspaper articles which I discovered the newspapers have readerships of 12 million people. One group of students even asked for my autograph, a very humbling experience as their teacher explained that the fashion students didn't realise that women could be tailors and had been inspired by meeting me. I found all the attention a little overwhelming but was flattered by the response to our team. We did have to giggle when a lady thrust a baby into my arms for a photograph, a politician I am not! 

All in all it was a fantastic week, I met suppliers and contacts and some great friends. It was lovely to see so many other people with the pride and enthusiasm about Savile Row spreading the message and trade worldwide whilst sticking to the pure principles and not compromising the craft. Whether it is made in Australia, England or in my case made in China our suits are still Savile Row. 

The Red Gang

Ningbo international fashion fair

I was kindly invited to attend the Ningbo international fashion fair by a Henry Bailey Bespoke Tailors. Henry Bailey were to be exhibiting at the event and were looking to promote British bespoke tailoring in China, a cause close to my heart. We had a beautiful stand with fine examples of hand made bespoke garments and a team of specialists conducting demonstrations and available to answer questions. We had a diverse team who's locations spanned the globe but were all trained in the traditional Savile Row style. It made for an amazing week and some interesting collaborations for future projects on which I will keep you posted! More information and pictures on my week at the exhibition next time. Firstly I want to explain why Ningbo as a fashion centre of China.

Ningbo 寧波 calm wave. The city of Ningbo is an industrial Mecca of garment production  and manufacturing. Full of sky scrapers and concrete much of what is seen is like any other financial or industrial area world wide. But Ningbo has an interesting history regarding garments, specifically tailoring.

Being a port city the area was key to growth of the economic climate in the 1920's. Many expats moved to China in this time moving to the areas of growth and development which ningbo was fast becoming. The westerners that moved into town had requirements for living and had to source items from home and abroad. Tailoring was now desired in these areas and the voyage back to England too extreme for a new suit. English masters of tailoring visited china and recruited young men and boys to learn their craft to clothe the affluent new population. The young men proved to be good 

apprentices and had quick nimble figures and were thankful not to be suffering the hardships of a 

career in farming. 

The Ningbo trainees learned quickly and are now considered world class tailors and continue to pass on the skills learnt through the generations. Being a tailor was considered of a low social status in China but the skills were respected by their piers. Many tailors have since moved into Shanghai and are producing high quality work at a fraction of the Savile Row price tag. Tailoring schools and cutting books have been created recordings the teaching of the traditional ways. The Garment museum in Ningbo documents the rise of tailoring and the modern effects on the city to date. 

These skilled tailors were named the Hong Bang 鴻邦 which translates to the red gang or red guild. This is rumoured to be in homage to the masters that taught the tailors and the customers of the time of their founding. Apparently many of the western men the Chinese came in contact with had wild red hair and big blue eyes. The name still suggests quality worldwide, even if the red hair is fading out in the west.

China is proud of these craftsman and earlier this year a musical was performed, Hong Bang Tailors
musical focused on the rivalries between Shanghai tailors and ningbo trained tailors. Ningbo tailors are quoted as making the first western suit and Sun yet-sen jacket made famous by Chairman Mao. As a celebration of this garment in 2011 an anniversary edition of this jacket was produced on a large scale by traditional Ningbo tailors.

After Sun Yat-sen's death in 1925, popular mythology decreed that the garment had many meanings as well as functions. The four pockets were said to represent the Four Virtues cited in the classic Guanzi: Propriety, Justice, Honesty, and Shame.The five center-front buttons were said to represent 

the five Yuans (branches of government)–legislation, supervision, examination, administration and jurisdiction–cited in the constitution of the Republic of China and the three cuff-buttons to symbolise Sun Yat-sen's Three Principles of the People: Nationalism, Democracy, and People's Livelihood. Finally, unlike Western-style suits that are usually composed of two layers of cloth, the jacket is in a single piece–symbolizing China's unity and peace. The garment is still popular today worn as wedding suits and by celebrities. 

The Hong Bang tailors future may be endangered as there is a severe drought in youth coming into the trade. Young Chinese people especially young men are not interested in learning a craft. An apprenticeship is 3-4 years similar to The Savile Row cousins and the youth of China are more demanding of immediate results. There are less then 100 descendants of the Hong Band tailors left in Ningbo and with the mass growth of machine cut and produced garments being made in the region the future of the Red gang may be shadowed by the looming development of commercial China.