Jack's Passions (please click on image to expand)
Activist Quilting
My road to quilting was a long and largely until the last decade unsuccessful. I tried quilting in the 1980’s and was confused by the notion of cutting up large pieces of fabric only to take those tiny pieces of fabric and sew them back into large pieces of fabric! It all seemed too fussy and finicky to be of any real joy. However, about 12 years ago I was working with a quilter in the costume shop during summer stock and thought I would give it a try again. . .and I fell in love with the work. It brings out a different side of me now, very zen and I love to sit and quilt.
As with many quilters once I finished my first quilt I was hooked. I then made quilts for friends and family members and once that was nearly exhausted, I started making quilts for fund raising. To date I have raised several thousand dollars in scholarship money, I make a quilt every fall out of the scraps from the fall musical we produce and the money goes into a scholarship fund which has over the years paid for students to attend conferences, CPR training, guest artists and so much more. Read more...
Half Scale Costumes​
I often tell people that these little costumes are my “ships-in-a-bottle”. I say that because I do them for fun and because I can. I started working in half-scale when I was in graduate school, where I would work out a pattern or technique in a small scale before cutting into more expensive textiles. At first, I just worked in muslin and with no real finishing work. , but one day I had a few hours of free time and some left over fabric, and well, a hobby was born.
These little costumes are fully finished, lined with all of their closures, tapes, ties etc. They also have all the under-structure and support garments required—panniers, corsets, petticoats, chemises and bustles—to give the silhouette the required shaping.
I'm not sure why we humans love everyday objects in miniature, but we do. We are fascinated with salesman samples, U.S. patent models and doll houses have captured collector’s hearts for centuries, and my tiny fashion maquettes are no different. Originally, I did them for my own enjoyment, but a friend asked me a few years ago how many I had and when I responded that at the time I had over 20. He suggested I do an exhibit. I was reluctant at first because I didn't believe anyone would be interested in such a thing, but he persisted, and I agreed.
The exhibit, Half & Half-not was conceived and was a rounding success! I have subsequently done several other exhibits of the half-scales and with the same success. I am currently in the process of producing an exhibit of half-scales that will explore the political nature of fashion in the streets, homes, salons, theaters, churches and palaces of France in the 18th century. The working title for the exhibit is A Revolution in Dress and I have gathered patterns, construction details, notes and images of extant garments from England, France, Italy and the United States to inspire the 40+ garments I will need to construct to adequately explore the topic. I plan to tour the exhibit around the United States and possibly Europe.
Extant Garment Patterns
I have been working on taking patterns from extant garments for the last 30 years. I have patterns from the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. I am working on turning those notes and pattern drafts into a digital format with construction notes and plan to use that work in a book or two. For now I will be posting those patterns and notes here until I get enough of them done and can compile them into those books.