Sunday 31 July 2011

Scarf improvement at The Experience

A week or two back I returned to the Doctor Who Experience at Olympia as I had heard there had been some revisions and additions to the displays.

Most of the additions, naturally, are relating to the current season, but the revisions are mainly centred around Tom’s costume.

When the exhibition first opened back in February, the scarf on display was apparently two of the promotional scarves issued by the BBC during the Fourth Doctor’s era.

The colours and design is pretty good, but it wan’t quite right.

Well now there is a new, much improved scarf on the display.

I gather the scarf has been knitted by a fan who knows the exact pattern and colour match for the yarns.

The garter stitch is much deeper and more noticeable than before.

Further on in the exhibition I spied another Tom Baker scarf which wasn’t there before . . .

Friday 29 July 2011

Romana Frock Coat (blue version)
pattern grading stage two

So, my college tutor has been an enormous help with my initial efforts at pattern grading the Romana Pink Frock Coat up in size.

I am making a special cornflower blue version for a client’s wife, so I now need add a bust allowance, something I’ve never needed to do before!

I have been given the measurements needed and with the guidance of my college tutor we now need to incorporate these into the existing pattern.

First thing to do is trace off the front panel onto some paper, and cut off the lapel at the centre front line.

The remaining part leaves me just the chest, around the underarm and up to the shoulder.

The bust point is then estimated, being relatively central in the chest area. We are looking to create the capacity here.

I then cut horizontally, passing through the bust point; and then from the shoulder without breaking the shoulder seam, down through the bust point again and on to the waist seam.

The cut pieces are then manipulated to add capacity as shown (see left, bottom).

A sheet of pattern paper is laid carefully over the top and the outermost shape is traced off (see right).

To then create the bust shape, the slice to the underarm and waist are converted into darts, converging on the bust point, but stopping an inch short.

Tuesday 19 July 2011

Doctor Who Experience - in 3D!!!

I have got an absolute TREAT for you today!

This week I had the opportunity to revisit the Doctor Who Experience in Olympia, and thought rather than just get some more endless photographs of the displays, I would do something EXTRA special.

I know a lot of my readers are in the US, so are unlikely to get the chance to see the exhibition at first-hand.

So what I’ve got for you is the near next-best thing - a walk through the displays - in 3D!!!! Well, one of those panoramic views you can interact with.


Below are the panoramas relating directly to the Fourth Doctor.
You can see all the panoramas
I took by clicking this link
First up is the line-up of The Doctor’s costumes, giving you a real sense of how they are presented.
The Ten Doctors